This past offseason, several Tampa Bay Lightning players, including one who has been with the organization for a while, departed ways with the team. In addition to longtime Lightning captain Steven Stamkos, other former Lightning players skating on new teams include Tanner Jeannot, Mikhail Sergachev, and Zach Bogosian.
With the first quarter of the 2024-25 season just past, it’s a good time to check around the league and see how these former Lightning are doing in their new organizations.
Steven Stamkos
Easily the biggest news of the offseason for the Lightning was the decision to sign Jake Guenzel and allow longtime Lightning fixture and former captain Steven Stamkos to depart via free agency, signing with a Nashville Predators on a four-year, $8 million contract in July. Stamkos departed the Lightning as a two-time Stanley Cup champion with a long list of franchise records. Among them, he leads all Lightning players in goals (555), points (1,137), and games played (1,082).
While Guentzel has done well in his first season with the Lightning, Stamkos has struggled to find his true form in Nashville. Even with an assist in Friday night’s (Nov. 29) overtime loss to the Lightning, the 34-year-old had only one goal in his first nine games and has seven goals and five assists in 24 games with the Predators. One of the issues in his slow start was the Predators’ low shooting percentage, especially when Stamkos was on the ice as the team attempted to find line combinations that would be productive for their newly acquired players.
Mikhail Sergachev
One of the more surprising moves during the 2024 NHL Entry Draft was Sergachev’s trade to the Utah Hockey Club for restricted free agent defenseman J.J. Moser, high-scoring center prospect Conor Geekie, a second-round pick in 2025, and Tampa Bay’s seventh-round pick in 2024. One of the biggest reasons the Lightning made this trade was that Sergachev’s contract carried an average annual value of $8.5 million against the salary cap, giving the Lightning flexibility entering free agency.
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The 26-year-old has had a strong start in Utah, posting 15 points in his first 24 games. He’s also scored several critical goals for Utah, including an overtime game-winner against the Montreal Canadiens on Nov. 26 that secured two massive points for the club on the tail end of a four-game road trip. His impact has solidified a blue line that was inconsistent last season and has put Utah in a position to qualify for a playoff spot.
Tanner Jeannot
The 27-year-old never really found his footing with the Lightning after being acquired in a trade with the Predators at the 2022-23 trade deadline. After posting one goal and three assists in 20 games for them in 2022-23, Jeannot followed it up with just 14 points in 55 games in 2023-24. This led to a trade to the Los Angeles Kings in June as the Lightning were looking to free up cap space.
Unfortunately, Jeannot’s most notable moment this season came when he was suspended three games after receiving a match penalty for a hit on Vancouver Canucks forward Brock Boeser in early November. He has yet to make a significant impact on the ice for the Kings, having only three points in 21 games played.
Zach Bogosian
The 34-year-old has had two different stints with the Lightning, including the squad that won the Stanley Cup in 2020. After signing as a free agent and joining the team for a second time in 2021, Bogosian was traded to the Minnesota Wild on Nov. 8, 2023, in exchange for a 2025 seventh-round pick. Bogosian has done well with the Wild and has enjoyed living in Minnesota. On Minnesota’s blue line, he has brought experience and an intimidation factor that can be helpful to a defensive unit blessed with young talent like Declan Chisholm and Brock Faber.
Other Players
- Alex Barré-Boulet signed a one-year contract with the Canadiens in July after tallying six goals and three assists in 36 games with the Lightning last season. In October, Barré-Boulet cleared waivers and was loaned to the Canadiens’ American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate Laval Rocket. His best game of the season came against his former team and Lightning affiliate, Syracuse Crunch when he had two goals, and two assists in a game on Oct. 18.
- The Boston Bruins signed Cole Koepke to a one-year deal for the $775,000 league minimum as a free agent in July. The former sixth-round draft pick of the Lightning has been a pleasant surprise for the Bruins, providing solid and consistent play on their fourth line.
- After one season in North America, split between the Lightning and the Crunch, Waltteri Merelä signed a one-year contract with National League club SC Bern in June. The 25-year-old has been productive, tallying 22 points in 26 games.
While the Lightning have completed their season series with the Predators, they will face some former teammates again when the calendar turns to 2025, starting when the Lightning face Jeannot and the Kings on Jan. 4. Lightning fans will have to wait until March 27 to see Sergachev make his first appearance at Amalie Arena in an opposing sweater.
