Only twenty more days until the Lightning report for the beginning of training camp. Physicals on September 13.

First full practice on September 15.

Ahhh, hockey season is just around the corner.

On my drive to work this morning, I almost choked on my coffee when I heard a sports break on my local WDAE. The Tampa Bay Lightning have been sold! WTF??!! I drove in disbelief for a moment, and then dialed the radio station. Sure enough, my ears did not lie. Needless to say I was in a pretty foul mood when I rolled into work. Unfortunately, some people felt a little wrath, oops. But it sounds like the new ownership group is definitely keeping the team in Tampa. Hopefully, they will be willing to spend a little more on payroll. I would love to see them get a deal with Dan Boyle done before the season starts. That would build a lot of good will with the fans. And possibly extend Vincent Lecavalier…

It’s been a while since the Hockey Dad has commented on the state of Tampa Bay sports teams. That’s because in the summer we do not have a major team. Oops, I guess the Devil Rays count. But they suck and have no pitching and none in sight. The big news around here is NFL training camps start next week and everyone is watching what the Bucs will do, especially since Jon Gruden is on the hot seat. But for me, I’ve been happy with my Tampa Bay Lightning off season moves. They did not make any sexy signings, but they did make some that makes them a better hockey club. Training camp begins September 13!

How do you think George Steinbrenner feels knowing the highest payroll in professional sports has virtually the same record as the lowest in Major League Baseball, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays?

Try not to hurt your brain.

Listening to Don Cherry and Brett Hull discuss fighting in the NHL was awesome. I think they echoed the sentiments of most fans by saying the league has gone to far to limit fighting and the Instigator Rule is a detriment to the players safety and the NHL. When all of these players and former players slam a relatively new rule, someone should listen. The players police themselves, and without the Instigator Rule, a lot of the cheap shots that cause injuries (Pronger), would not happen. The player would be held accountable by his peers.

What a game Monday night. I thought the Senators were going to make a series of it, but MacDonald of the Ducks may have won the series for Anaheim with two goals one minute apart. The hockey was great, but even better was the intermission after the second period with Brett Hull(who is turning into a good announcer) and Don Cherry. What a treat to finally see Don Cherry. In Tampa, we do not get the CBC, so there is no Hockey Night In Canada for us to watch. Man, his suit was outstanding! The only thing that could have made it better is a fur derby. I hope they bring him back for game 5.

Well this years Stanley Cup Playoffs have certainly been exciting. The finals between the Ducks and the Senators have not disappointed. I started off rooting for the Ducks simply because they are not the Senators, who routinely kill my Lightning. However, the play of Chris Pronger is making it hard to root for Anaheim. I thought he should have been suspended for the rest of the playoffs with his cheap shot on Holmstrom in the Detroit series. He got suspended again for a cheap one against Anaheim. While it was not nearly as blatant or severe, Pronger has got to realize there is an edge that you should not cross.

The Tampa Bay Devil Rays are on a losing skid that happily ended on Thursday night. Now I know “losing skid” and “Devil Rays” are synonymous, but this year’s team shows a lot of promise. If only they had legitimate major leaguers in their bull pen.

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I can’t wait for the next couple of months. Now that the NFL draft is over, it’s time for all of my favorite sports publications to put out their annual cheat sheets & pre-season draft projections for Fantasy Football. Last year, I drafted #3 in both of the leagues I played in, and drafted the stud player in both leagues - L.T. (San Diego Chargers). He was truly a man amongst boys out there last year, and while his production will surely drop a bit this year, he’s going to be the #1 pick if you have the chance to take him.

This Fantasy Football is definitely more elite than the leagues I’ve played in, with payouts up to $100,000. I wouldn’t mind winning some jack like that. I might join one of those - I know it’s a long shot, and against the odds, but hey - if you don’t take your shot, you never know. Joe SixPack can win it just like some fantasy nerd who spends 30 hours a week studying stats.

Wednesday, Coach John Tortorella and GM Jay Feaster had a two hour interview on the Sports Animal 620 WDAE. Unfortunately, I missed all but the first twenty minutes. Boo Hoo. However, they did announce the re-signing of third liner Jason Ward. I like the toughness he brings and he can float on the second line once in a while.