Steven Stamkos began putting on his equipment and uniform in the Tampa Bay Lightning dressing room with about four minutes remaining in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday.

Steven Stamkos began putting on his equipment and uniform in the Tampa Bay Lightning dressing room with about four minutes remaining in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday.The Tampa Bay captain, limited to one game in the Stanley Cup Playoffs because of a lower-body injury, wanted to join his teammates as the minutes and seconds ticked down toward a championship.
On the other hand, Stamkos was concerned an early appearance might be bad luck.
“We didn’t want to jinx anything,” he said.
He didn’t.
In what seemed like an eternity, the minutes and seconds wound down, the horn sounded, and Stamkos’ dream was realized. The Lightning were Stanley Cup champions with a 2-0 victory against the Dallas Stars. The veteran forward raced onto the ice at Rogers Place in Edmonton to join his teammates for the celebration.
[RELATED: Complete Stanley Cup Final coverage]
Stamkos received the Cup from NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman before handing it off to longtime teammate Victor Hedman, the defenseman who was voted winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
“So many guys would do anything to win the Stanley Cup,” Stamkos said. ” And there are so many great players who have played this game who never got the chance to experience what we just experienced. My hat is off to every single player and person in this organization. It’s amazing to be part of this run, the way we did it.”
Stamkos said the next-man-up mentality exhibited by the Lightning in his absence was first discussed among the players when they were in training camp in July.
“It’s not just going to take 20 guys to win the Stanley Cup, it’s going to take every single guy who was in this bubble and more,” he said of the message at the time. “I’m so proud of each and every one of them.”
Video: TBL@DAL, Gm6: Stamkos on winning first Cup title
Stamkos had surgery to repair a core muscle injury March 2 and missed Tampa Bay’s final seven games before the NHL season was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus. He was second on the Lightning with 66 points (29 goals, 37 assists) in 57 games, behind forward Nikita Kucherov’s 85.
Sixty days after he and the Lightning entered the NHL bubble in Toronto, Stamkos made the most of a brief appearance in what would be his only postseason game, scoring a goal in the first period of Game 3 of the Cup Final on Sept. 23 to give Tampa Bay a 2-0 lead.
He played 2:47 in five shifts before leaving the game, a 5-2 win. He reemerged and sat on the bench for most of the second period and all of the third.
Video: TBL@DAL, Gm3: Stamkos returns to lineup with goal
Stamkos said life in the NHL bubbles — Toronto for the round-robin portion of the Stanley Cup Qualifiers and first two rounds of the playoffs, then Edmonton beginning with the Eastern Conference Final — was difficult at times because he didn’t know if he was ever going to be fit enough to play.
“It was tough,” he said. “These last six weeks have been really emotional for my family and I, not only on the ice, but off the ice. I just want to say to my family, I love you so much.”
Stamkos felt helpless not being able to be on the ice with his teammates for the final three games, calling it “the most nervous I’ve ever been.”
But that didn’t mean he couldn’t help them off it.
Or inspire them.
After the Lightning lost Game 5 3-2 in the second overtime, Hedman said Stamkos joined the coaches to “rally the troops” in the somber Tampa Bay dressing room.
“For him to do that shows what he is not just as a leader, but as a person,” Hedman said. “He’s the most unselfish person you’ll meet. He’s all about the team.
“There’s a reason he’s one of the best captains in the world.”
Video: TBL@DAL, Gm6: Gary Bettman presents Cup to Lightning
As the Stanley Cup was being carried onto the ice, Stamkos grabbed Hedman, and the two shared a 30-second embrace. They’ve been teammates and best friends since the Lightning selected Hedman with the No. 2 pick in the 2009 NHL Draft.
“I think I told him 100 times I loved him,” Stamkos said. “What can you say? We’ve been together since Day One. And to go through all the ups and downs, this is what you play for.”