How “Lightning Made”
has helped turn Tampa
into a hockey Town!
Growing the game has always been the plan
By Wyatt Ross
Part 1
Is Tampa a hockey town?
I spoke with several people, but the one thing that
If so, how did it become a hockey town? How
kept coming up is their involvement with the kids.
did a city in Florida, where the temperature
It makes sense, right? If you want someone to
almost never gets below freezing, grow to love a
grow to love a new game, isn’t it better to start at
cold weather sport? You just may wonder about
a young age? Lightning Made started with a street
that when you see all the blue and white flags,
hockey program for kids,and it has continued its
banners, jerseys, vanity plates and signs around
growth from there.
town. Sure, a winning team certainly helps, but
Probably Lightning Made’s most popular and
a real hockey town sticks with its team in good
well-known programs are their ice hockey camps.
times and in bad. There’s has to be something
Various camps allow all kids ages 5 through 15 to
more.
be able to play the game of hockey.
Well, there is a big piece of the puzzle that you may
“You get to learn the game, but the most
have missed. Let me tell you what it took to build
important thing is to make it fun,” claimed
and support this hockey town from the ground up.
Jay Feaster, Vice President of Community Hockey
This program is called “LIGHTNING MADE,” and
Development and the General Manager of the
I recently spent an afternoon with some of the
2004 Stanley Cup winning Tampa Bay Lightning
Lightning Made staff in their new training center.
team.
In this article, I will share some of what I learned
There are beginner camps for 5 to 9 year-olds
about their programs and what they are doing to
with little previous hockey experience, girls only
grow the number of hockey fans daily.
Wyatt Ross is nine years old,
and has been working in sports
broadcasting for two years. He
has previously interviewed players
in the Lightning locker room,
on the NHL All Star red carpet,
and on Hockey Night in Canada
broadcasts. He has been playing
hockey since the age of 5.
Follow him on social media as
‘hockeywyatt.’
camps for ages 7 through 15 and general camps
for ages 5 to 15. They also offer themed camps
during the summer and around the holidays,
where all campers receive a custom jersey with a
fun design based on the theme of the camp.
I have been to these camps several times myself,
and they are definitely a lot of fun. The camps
have become so popular, that they fill up quickly.
COVER STORY