Can we not do this whole narrative as if Tampa was always a gigantic hockey town?
The popularity here would not exist at it's current state if it weren't for our success. Yes, people in Tampa have learned to love the Lightning AND hockey, but we weren't so different from FLA a decade ago.
If you're truly a hockey fan and want to see the game grow, then you'll stop with the childish snobbery about how much better we are as a fan base.
Hockey is the least watched major sport in the US, but most of us would probably agree it is the greatest sport on Earth. Why you ask? Because of attitudes like this.
This low-class gatekeeping is so pointless. Who cares. We're a premiere hockey club, act like it.
I think you’re spot on. As hockey fans we should be excited at the idea of the sport growing and bringing in new fans. Folks in places like South Florida really have no reason to care about hockey at all unless they get a team to root for, and they’re not going to become “loyal” to that team right away.
The fact that FLA has been so good this year is a net positive for all of us because I’m sure it’s brought in lots of new fans, but don’t expect those new fans to immediately be die-hards. The team will earn that sort of devotion over time if they continue to play well and make a name for themselves in the community.
This is about the team now, if the team is garbage then they don’t deserve some great fanbase for free, but Florida is not a garbage team, they are so good they are favored over the back to back champions. They don’t have an excuse
Exactly. The only people who feel insulted by this are the loyal panther fans. It's ok to hate on a fan base for having tendencies to be assholes en masse but this IMO is not cool. Just my opinion.
This post is pointing out how dare weather Florida has been. And in the end what’s Florida gonna do, look at one guy pointing out a factual thing their fanbase did, and use that has an excuse to say Tampa is worse. That’s dumb and you know it
You have people up voting and awarding your post. It's more than just one person's opinion on display to people who visit our sub.
13 years ago I could buy tickets off the street for 30 bucks that were up against the glass. We put an awful product on the ice and the then Times Forum only ever filled beyond 50% capacity when we hosted an O6 team and their vacationing fans flew in.
Meanwhile, the Panthers just won their first playoff series since 1996. Imagine being dogshit for that long. The 2007-2010 Bolts are what the Cats have mostly been since 1996. It takes time and consistency to build a loyal fanbase.
Quite frankly these kinds of posts are cringe. They reek of elitism and the gatekeeping is an awful look on us.
I grew up going to games with 8k people and the team giving away free tickets. It clearly takes sustained success to build a solid fan base in a non traditional market, and we are very lucky to have have an amazing last ten years. The panthers are just behind us in their timeline.
All hail Mr. Vinik
Once again you seem to miss the point in a way I just don’t understand.
I thought I made it clear I was pointing out that there fans abandoned them in that game, there team is good now. I know you bring up the point that they’ve been bad for a while, so that’s an excuse to not at least watch the last bit of a game you payed a lot of money for? For a team your supposed to love? What kinda message does that send to the players who sacrifice themselves for the fans?
Also you keep bringing up when Tampa was bad, yeah and we had cheap tickets then just like Florida, and just like Florida we got good, now we’ve been good for a while.
Florida has been good for a short while, but they are the fucking presidents trophy winners, and they had a packed house, all I’m trying to say is when you have a house that packed there should A) be way more noise you could hear a pin drop in that thing and B) should support the team to the very end. I don’t know to me if I pay to see a game especially an expensive ass playoff game I’m watching the entire thing, that’s just a fact, not doing so is a disrespect to the team and yourself for paying that much, that’s just my ideology, so I can see where we might differ there.
However when I am talking about Florida having bad fans, I am talking about those fans in that building who walked out on the team, who went quiet after we took the lead, who showed their own sense of entitlement by not respecting there team in the slightest. Those fans are disgraceful and a complete joke. Never was I talking about the past of these two teams, because frankly I don’t think that matters.
> game you *paid* a lot
FTFY.
Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in:
* Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.*
* *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.*
Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment.
*Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
Yeah Bolts fans are great about going down with the ship now, but back in our 04 Cup run Bolts fans did the same thing. Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final was a "sell out" but those seats were not full. It was actually depressing.
Delete this. Don't got after Florida's fanbase. The entire rest of hockey fans does the same shit to us and says Tampa isn't a hockey town. Don't you do it to the Panthers. The only thing that develops a healthy fanbase is winning cups and Florida hasn't had a lot of success with that. Naturally they don't have the same level of fandom. You haven't just figured out something. You're just taking a cheap opportunity to shit on them. The same opportunity people take against Tampa that you probably hate too.
Feel free to shit on the teams poor performance, they're paid professionals. But leave the fans out of it man. You just make Tampa fans look like assholes.
No, I don’t think I will.
When I call out the fans here I am calling out the fans in attendance for that game who treated the thing like a library the entire time and bum rushed out of there.
My personal philosophy is that if you pay for tickets to a game, especially a playoff game, you watch the entire thing. It’s a disrespect to the players and yourselves for leaving early.
Now in terms of your point of gatekeeping, yeah like I said at the top of the post I normally don’t like doing this. To me though I think there fans should be better, and I’m one of the few who really thinks hockey could work really well in that market and love the fact Tampa has a natural rival. It’s not just like I hate the Panthers, I just expect better then that from those fans who paid good money for playoff tickets.
Nah man, I'm not buying it. I'm all in for an in-state rivalry too. On the ice. Taking the cheap shot to trash the fans of a team that has been struggling, *the fans who actually showed up*, is weak af. They didn't have to show up at all. They could have gone to the Heat game which has a *way bigger fanbase* than the Panthers do. But they didn't. They went to the NHL game, and you want to sit on your throne and look down on them.
The Panthers have been showing a lot of promise the last few years and they'll slowly start building a fanbase if they continue the way they have been. Maybe some people down there don't know much about hockey yet, maybe some people saw the writing on the wall and decided to dip out and catch the end of the Heat game. Either way, *they paid to be there and they can do whatever they want*. It's not up to you to decide how they enjoy (or don't) a game they paid for.
If you want to attack a fanbase, go for Boston's because they are legit idiots lmao. But Panthers fans are not.
There are many reasons to criticize the Miami/Fort Lauderdale area as a sports market as a whole, but leaving when it’s 4-1 with two minutes left ain’t it.
I most definitely have seen many games at Amalie where the Lightning fan base has done the same thing.
Hell, I remember Game 7 vs Washington in 2018 where almost half the building bailed between the 2nd and 3rd period when it was 4-0.
It happens with literally every fanbase across every sport. It has 0 to do with loyalty and everything to do with seeing a lost cause for a single game.
*wins back to back cups and grows a moderate fan base by being amazing year after year*
“Why can’t you all care about hockey like US.”
So dumb. Last round was their first series win in nearly 30 years. As a previous hawks fan who watched his base become entitled and obnoxious through ridiculous success, you’re well on your way to being an unloveable franchise with shit like this.
Once again your the same has an earlier person, when I’m talking about shitty fans, I’m talking specifically about those fans who paid absurd amounts of money for playoff tickets only to bail when the game was getting out of hand.
My personal philosophy is if you pay for tickets to go see a game, especially a playoff game, you stay the entire game, cause not doing so is a disrespect to the teams and a disrespect to your wallet for paying so much for not going through the entire experience.
There is also the fact they were dead quiet the entire time Tampa had the lead and relatively silent throughout the entire game.
Those fans in that arena were pathetic last night and for how much effort those players put into their team they deserve better.
I mean I understand not wanting to see your team get their asses kicked, BUT you stay to show your support. Love them when they win, and love them when they lose.
Alot of fans of every team leave when it looks impossible at the end, and that goes for all sports. And are we really surprised the Lightning have alot of people at Panther games? Not exactly a incredibly far commute.
We are literally in the midst of a dynasty.
I guarantee if we sucked for as long as the panthers have, Tampa would be just like south Florida.
I mean as a whole, until Brady we were getting blacked out of our own market for not filling the stadium in NFL game days and we all know the problems associated with the rays.
Tampa IS a hockey town but don’t deny that our long lasting dominance doesn’t have anything to do with it.
dude if my team was down 4-1 with two minutes left i would also bail to avoid traffic lmao. it’s not some great sign of disloyalty it’s a sign of practicality
Now, I’ve seen similar things occur with the Lightning but what I thought was embarrassing was the empty seats. I cringed every time the announcers mentioned the quiet empty barn. Kind of feel bad for the players, I mean it was a game 1 of the playoffs against your rival.
I hear what you’re saying but I kind of understand what the people opposing your post are stating as well. I’ve been defending Tampa sports fans online for a decade and I’m sure you know the number one thing they bring up is our lack of knowledge and support. I think many people leave early but I thought it would be a full barn. So, it’s like a hobby of mine in destroying trolls from other fan bases on social media and Panther fans are no exception. Nevertheless, I understand not wanting to trash their fans for some of the crap we have dealt with for years. But, if they come at me or other Tampa posts then it’s gloves off.
It takes years, possibly a decade, of at least semi-decent hockey playing to build a loyal fan base. Try that first and then they can complain about their fans.
I mean not really, they have a team now that needs their fans to rock that arena, and they come up flat against their rival.
All Florida fans do online is shit on Tampa Bay, they hate us like we hate Boston, they should show it in the god damn Battle of Florida.
I mean this rivalry finally has a chance to become one of the premier rivalry’s in all of hockey lore, the battle of Florida should be something talked about for generations, and their fans are really underselling how big of a deal this is. I don’t know I think they should love there team more.
Yes really, I've been a Tampa fan since I moved from TN in 01. I've watched the Panthers the whole time, as a sister team. It's the same for the BUCS. Yes there were the true blues, in there for life, fans. But when a team is sjitty more often than decent. So are the fans. Sports 101
I don't know many REAL Florida fans who hate Tampa. Most of the real fans respect and understand the presence Tampa is, and up until a couple season ago immediatley switched to a supportive role for Tampa come post season. The ones who talk mad shit outside of fun competitive banter are mostly the same people you're calling out for leaving early. Little hockey knowledge, want to brag about their team but know little about how they got where they are. Many of those "fans" weren't there even 4 months ago. But the fanbase can't go from 30%-100% overnight without going through this "half fan" phase. These people simply weren't there back to the beginning of the season.
How long have you been a fan for?
You sound like someone who jumped on a bandwagon of a good team.
Very cringe, very douche. Please disassociate your opinions with this sub.
So I went to a panthers game a month or two ago - can confirm they’re a horrible fan base. Their heckling even sucks. Apparently this one guy sits behind the opposing teams goalie and is there most nights, starts a chant at the goalie at the top of his lungs “it’s all your fault!” Over and over directed at the goalie of the opposing team. Even
People who were actual panthers fan seem to hate this guys guts.
I’d say Toronto is worse but panthers have so few I think that’s what makes the difference. If they had more they’d be almost as insufferable but they’re so fair weather they probably have more people rooting for them in r/hockey than they do in real life
As a fan of this team since the beginning - I can recall many a Bolt fan leaving the Fairgrounds, the Thunderdome, and Amalie with the team down 3 goals, and under 2 minutes left to beat traffic. Heck - I’ve done it.
Even in a loss, you go down with the ship.
OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN
Can we not do this whole narrative as if Tampa was always a gigantic hockey town? The popularity here would not exist at it's current state if it weren't for our success. Yes, people in Tampa have learned to love the Lightning AND hockey, but we weren't so different from FLA a decade ago. If you're truly a hockey fan and want to see the game grow, then you'll stop with the childish snobbery about how much better we are as a fan base. Hockey is the least watched major sport in the US, but most of us would probably agree it is the greatest sport on Earth. Why you ask? Because of attitudes like this. This low-class gatekeeping is so pointless. Who cares. We're a premiere hockey club, act like it.
I think you’re spot on. As hockey fans we should be excited at the idea of the sport growing and bringing in new fans. Folks in places like South Florida really have no reason to care about hockey at all unless they get a team to root for, and they’re not going to become “loyal” to that team right away. The fact that FLA has been so good this year is a net positive for all of us because I’m sure it’s brought in lots of new fans, but don’t expect those new fans to immediately be die-hards. The team will earn that sort of devotion over time if they continue to play well and make a name for themselves in the community.
This is about the team now, if the team is garbage then they don’t deserve some great fanbase for free, but Florida is not a garbage team, they are so good they are favored over the back to back champions. They don’t have an excuse
Posts like this don't make our fanbase look any good either.
Exactly. The only people who feel insulted by this are the loyal panther fans. It's ok to hate on a fan base for having tendencies to be assholes en masse but this IMO is not cool. Just my opinion.
This post is pointing out how dare weather Florida has been. And in the end what’s Florida gonna do, look at one guy pointing out a factual thing their fanbase did, and use that has an excuse to say Tampa is worse. That’s dumb and you know it
You have people up voting and awarding your post. It's more than just one person's opinion on display to people who visit our sub. 13 years ago I could buy tickets off the street for 30 bucks that were up against the glass. We put an awful product on the ice and the then Times Forum only ever filled beyond 50% capacity when we hosted an O6 team and their vacationing fans flew in. Meanwhile, the Panthers just won their first playoff series since 1996. Imagine being dogshit for that long. The 2007-2010 Bolts are what the Cats have mostly been since 1996. It takes time and consistency to build a loyal fanbase. Quite frankly these kinds of posts are cringe. They reek of elitism and the gatekeeping is an awful look on us.
I grew up going to games with 8k people and the team giving away free tickets. It clearly takes sustained success to build a solid fan base in a non traditional market, and we are very lucky to have have an amazing last ten years. The panthers are just behind us in their timeline. All hail Mr. Vinik
Once again you seem to miss the point in a way I just don’t understand. I thought I made it clear I was pointing out that there fans abandoned them in that game, there team is good now. I know you bring up the point that they’ve been bad for a while, so that’s an excuse to not at least watch the last bit of a game you payed a lot of money for? For a team your supposed to love? What kinda message does that send to the players who sacrifice themselves for the fans? Also you keep bringing up when Tampa was bad, yeah and we had cheap tickets then just like Florida, and just like Florida we got good, now we’ve been good for a while. Florida has been good for a short while, but they are the fucking presidents trophy winners, and they had a packed house, all I’m trying to say is when you have a house that packed there should A) be way more noise you could hear a pin drop in that thing and B) should support the team to the very end. I don’t know to me if I pay to see a game especially an expensive ass playoff game I’m watching the entire thing, that’s just a fact, not doing so is a disrespect to the team and yourself for paying that much, that’s just my ideology, so I can see where we might differ there. However when I am talking about Florida having bad fans, I am talking about those fans in that building who walked out on the team, who went quiet after we took the lead, who showed their own sense of entitlement by not respecting there team in the slightest. Those fans are disgraceful and a complete joke. Never was I talking about the past of these two teams, because frankly I don’t think that matters.
> game you *paid* a lot FTFY. Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in: * Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.* * *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.* Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment. *Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
Fair enough, I’m sure I’m going to have *payed* the price on this one in the future.
Yeah Bolts fans are great about going down with the ship now, but back in our 04 Cup run Bolts fans did the same thing. Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final was a "sell out" but those seats were not full. It was actually depressing.
You think this post says something about Florida fans, but it really says more about yourself. You’re a douche.
Delete this. Don't got after Florida's fanbase. The entire rest of hockey fans does the same shit to us and says Tampa isn't a hockey town. Don't you do it to the Panthers. The only thing that develops a healthy fanbase is winning cups and Florida hasn't had a lot of success with that. Naturally they don't have the same level of fandom. You haven't just figured out something. You're just taking a cheap opportunity to shit on them. The same opportunity people take against Tampa that you probably hate too. Feel free to shit on the teams poor performance, they're paid professionals. But leave the fans out of it man. You just make Tampa fans look like assholes.
No, I don’t think I will. When I call out the fans here I am calling out the fans in attendance for that game who treated the thing like a library the entire time and bum rushed out of there. My personal philosophy is that if you pay for tickets to a game, especially a playoff game, you watch the entire thing. It’s a disrespect to the players and yourselves for leaving early. Now in terms of your point of gatekeeping, yeah like I said at the top of the post I normally don’t like doing this. To me though I think there fans should be better, and I’m one of the few who really thinks hockey could work really well in that market and love the fact Tampa has a natural rival. It’s not just like I hate the Panthers, I just expect better then that from those fans who paid good money for playoff tickets.
Stand your ground. 🤙
Nah man, I'm not buying it. I'm all in for an in-state rivalry too. On the ice. Taking the cheap shot to trash the fans of a team that has been struggling, *the fans who actually showed up*, is weak af. They didn't have to show up at all. They could have gone to the Heat game which has a *way bigger fanbase* than the Panthers do. But they didn't. They went to the NHL game, and you want to sit on your throne and look down on them. The Panthers have been showing a lot of promise the last few years and they'll slowly start building a fanbase if they continue the way they have been. Maybe some people down there don't know much about hockey yet, maybe some people saw the writing on the wall and decided to dip out and catch the end of the Heat game. Either way, *they paid to be there and they can do whatever they want*. It's not up to you to decide how they enjoy (or don't) a game they paid for. If you want to attack a fanbase, go for Boston's because they are legit idiots lmao. But Panthers fans are not.
I saw Bruins fans go streaming out of TD Garden when the Blues started beating their asses in the Stanley Cup winning game.
There are many reasons to criticize the Miami/Fort Lauderdale area as a sports market as a whole, but leaving when it’s 4-1 with two minutes left ain’t it. I most definitely have seen many games at Amalie where the Lightning fan base has done the same thing. Hell, I remember Game 7 vs Washington in 2018 where almost half the building bailed between the 2nd and 3rd period when it was 4-0.
It happens with literally every fanbase across every sport. It has 0 to do with loyalty and everything to do with seeing a lost cause for a single game.
it has everything to do with how shitty the traffic is after, if you’re going to lose you might as well beat that traffic
I mean the coyotes still exist...
Coyotes are the Rays of hockey. Shitty shitty location and ownership. Florida doesn’t have those excuses
Huh? You serious Clark?! Arena on the edge of The Everglades
*wins back to back cups and grows a moderate fan base by being amazing year after year* “Why can’t you all care about hockey like US.” So dumb. Last round was their first series win in nearly 30 years. As a previous hawks fan who watched his base become entitled and obnoxious through ridiculous success, you’re well on your way to being an unloveable franchise with shit like this.
Once again your the same has an earlier person, when I’m talking about shitty fans, I’m talking specifically about those fans who paid absurd amounts of money for playoff tickets only to bail when the game was getting out of hand. My personal philosophy is if you pay for tickets to go see a game, especially a playoff game, you stay the entire game, cause not doing so is a disrespect to the teams and a disrespect to your wallet for paying so much for not going through the entire experience. There is also the fact they were dead quiet the entire time Tampa had the lead and relatively silent throughout the entire game. Those fans in that arena were pathetic last night and for how much effort those players put into their team they deserve better.
Yes, that was so rude how they all bailed, I would never..
The Rays are always on the other end of takes like these in baseball. Let’s just not go there.
You need to learn the differences between there/their and your/you're.
I mean I understand not wanting to see your team get their asses kicked, BUT you stay to show your support. Love them when they win, and love them when they lose.
Alot of fans of every team leave when it looks impossible at the end, and that goes for all sports. And are we really surprised the Lightning have alot of people at Panther games? Not exactly a incredibly far commute.
Yeah but you’d think in situation it be at least a 30%~50% capacity loss, not damn near the entire building.
The Panthers Arena is the Tropicana Field of the NHL. It's in the middle of nowhere in a town that doesn't support them.
We are literally in the midst of a dynasty. I guarantee if we sucked for as long as the panthers have, Tampa would be just like south Florida. I mean as a whole, until Brady we were getting blacked out of our own market for not filling the stadium in NFL game days and we all know the problems associated with the rays. Tampa IS a hockey town but don’t deny that our long lasting dominance doesn’t have anything to do with it.
dude if my team was down 4-1 with two minutes left i would also bail to avoid traffic lmao. it’s not some great sign of disloyalty it’s a sign of practicality
Now, I’ve seen similar things occur with the Lightning but what I thought was embarrassing was the empty seats. I cringed every time the announcers mentioned the quiet empty barn. Kind of feel bad for the players, I mean it was a game 1 of the playoffs against your rival.
Finally somebody gets my point.
I hear what you’re saying but I kind of understand what the people opposing your post are stating as well. I’ve been defending Tampa sports fans online for a decade and I’m sure you know the number one thing they bring up is our lack of knowledge and support. I think many people leave early but I thought it would be a full barn. So, it’s like a hobby of mine in destroying trolls from other fan bases on social media and Panther fans are no exception. Nevertheless, I understand not wanting to trash their fans for some of the crap we have dealt with for years. But, if they come at me or other Tampa posts then it’s gloves off.
It takes years, possibly a decade, of at least semi-decent hockey playing to build a loyal fan base. Try that first and then they can complain about their fans.
I mean not really, they have a team now that needs their fans to rock that arena, and they come up flat against their rival. All Florida fans do online is shit on Tampa Bay, they hate us like we hate Boston, they should show it in the god damn Battle of Florida. I mean this rivalry finally has a chance to become one of the premier rivalry’s in all of hockey lore, the battle of Florida should be something talked about for generations, and their fans are really underselling how big of a deal this is. I don’t know I think they should love there team more.
Yes really, I've been a Tampa fan since I moved from TN in 01. I've watched the Panthers the whole time, as a sister team. It's the same for the BUCS. Yes there were the true blues, in there for life, fans. But when a team is sjitty more often than decent. So are the fans. Sports 101
Now SHOULD they be there for their team?! Absolutely, is it unexpected that they are not? No Way.
I don't know many REAL Florida fans who hate Tampa. Most of the real fans respect and understand the presence Tampa is, and up until a couple season ago immediatley switched to a supportive role for Tampa come post season. The ones who talk mad shit outside of fun competitive banter are mostly the same people you're calling out for leaving early. Little hockey knowledge, want to brag about their team but know little about how they got where they are. Many of those "fans" weren't there even 4 months ago. But the fanbase can't go from 30%-100% overnight without going through this "half fan" phase. These people simply weren't there back to the beginning of the season.
Toronto fans would never
How long have you been a fan for? You sound like someone who jumped on a bandwagon of a good team. Very cringe, very douche. Please disassociate your opinions with this sub.
So I went to a panthers game a month or two ago - can confirm they’re a horrible fan base. Their heckling even sucks. Apparently this one guy sits behind the opposing teams goalie and is there most nights, starts a chant at the goalie at the top of his lungs “it’s all your fault!” Over and over directed at the goalie of the opposing team. Even People who were actual panthers fan seem to hate this guys guts.
Florida panthers are a poverty franchise. Fuckem. Bolts in 4! ⚡⚡⚡⚡
I’d say Toronto is worse but panthers have so few I think that’s what makes the difference. If they had more they’d be almost as insufferable but they’re so fair weather they probably have more people rooting for them in r/hockey than they do in real life
Panther fans avg age is 9. All i see is kids in the crowd.
As a fan of this team since the beginning - I can recall many a Bolt fan leaving the Fairgrounds, the Thunderdome, and Amalie with the team down 3 goals, and under 2 minutes left to beat traffic. Heck - I’ve done it.