Stamkos posts farewell message to Lightning and fans on social media

Stamkos told TSN he has signed with the Nashville Predators to a four-year contract.

In the message, Stamkos thanked Tampa and its fans for his 16 years with the team. The forward was drafted first overall by the Lightning in 2008 and has been the team’s captain since 2014. He won the Stanley Cup twice with the Lightning, being part of back-to-back championship teams in 2020 and 2021.

The two-time All-Star has played all 1,082 games of his career so far with the Lightning, scoring 555 goals and recording 582 assists.