Despite the neighboring Florida Panthers having already confirmed attendance to kick off the 2020-21 NHL regular season, the Tampa Bay Lightning are taking a different approach, steering clear of fan attendance at AMALIE Arena due to a spike in COVID-19 cases in west central Florida, particularly in the Hillsborough County area.
The parent company of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Vinik Sports Group, LLC, made the announcement on Saturday that the facility will remain closed to fans until at least February 5th, at which point, the team would work with local and State health officials to reassess the situation.
Prior to this decision, the Bolts were among several NHL clubs in the US who were expected to allow fan attendance to open the regular season on January 13th. Steve Griggs, Chief Executive Officer for Vinik Sports Group and the Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning organization, issued a the following statement in an attempt to shed light on the decision.
"We have worked tirelessly, putting every safety measure possible in place at AMALIE Arena. However, as we review current data and COVID-19 modeling for the next few weeks in the Tampa Bay area, we do not believe it is prudent to admit fans inside the arena at this time," said Griggs. "Please note the decision to close AMALIE Arena was made internally, without direction from local health or government officials.
"Our health care agency partners and the local governments have helped ensure that AMALIE Arena is as safe and healthy as possible, but because of the increasing numbers and the rising positivity rates we are not comfortable bringing large numbers of fans indoors to watch hockey or basketball right now. We are hopeful to reopen the arena soon after we see declining rates and better overall numbers."
The decision will also impact the NBA's Toronto Raptors, who are temporary guests at AMALIE Arena due to the Canadian/American border crossing situation. As a result of Vinik Sports Group's decision, NBA fans will not have access to the facility either, as expected.
No word yet on what the organization plans to do with the Lightning's Stanley Cup banner raising ceremony that was set to occur on opening night.
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