On Wednesday afternoon, Lightning head coach Jon Cooper visited Tampa General Hospital for the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the Coop’s Catch for Kids Family Lounge, a new space inside Muma Children’s Hospital designed to support pediatric cancer patients and their families. The lounge was funded through proceeds from Cooper’s annual Coop’s Catch for Kids charity fishing tournament, an event that has continued to grow. What Cooper didn’t know was that several of the families he’s helped over the years would be there to watch him receive the Jack Adams Award, given annually to the NHL’s Coach of the Year as selected by members of the NHL Broadcasters’ Association. During his 13 full seasons behind the Lightning bench, Cooper has led the franchise to back-to-back Stanley Cup championships, four Stanley Cup Finals, six trips to the Eastern Conference Final and 12 playoff appearances. This season presented a number of challenges for both the Lightning and Cooper personally. In February, Cooper’s father, Bob, died while Cooper was traveling back to Tampa from the Winter Olympics in Milan, where he served as head coach of Team Canada. “There were ups and downs during the season,” said Cooper. “You look back and you're like, 'Wow, you would have loved to spread a lot of that stuff out over years instead of what happened in the last eight months.' It's tough too, because my mom and dad are no longer with us, so they didn't get the opportunity to see this event, but they are definitely here with me now.” On the ice, the Lightning endured their slowest start under Cooper, losing six of their first seven games. They responded with a 20-1-1 stretch from Dec. 20 through Feb. 25, a run that propelled them into first place in the Atlantic Division. The team also dealt with a revolving door of injuries throughout the year, finishing with 339 man games lost due to injury. That total does not include captain Victor Hedman’s 14-game personal leave of absence. Hedman missed 49 games overall, while Ryan McDonagh missed 34, Emil Lilleberg 33, Nick Paul 31, Erik Cernak 21 and Brayden Point 19. Despite the absences, Tampa Bay remained among the top teams in the division for much of the season. “This is an individual recognition in a bigger team atmosphere but understanding that, this is just another step between us getting back to the Stanley Cup,” said Cooper. “And if this isn't more motivation for myself and everybody, I don't know what is.”
