Lightning vs. Hurricanes game on Oct. 12 postponed due to impact of Hurricane Milton
The National Hockey League announced today that the Saturday, Oct. 12 game between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Carolina Hurricanes at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla., has been postponed amid recovery effort in the Tampa Bay area from the impact of Hurricane Milton.
Saturday’s @Canes at @TBLightning game postponed. https://t.co/XopJgtvGmF pic.twitter.com/uHWkzb3o6U
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) October 10, 2024
The league said a makeup date will be announced as soon as it can be confirmed.
Milton made landfall as a Category 3 storm Wednesday night, causing widespread destruction throughout the state of Florida. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said in a press conference that five people were confirmed dead in St. Lucie County after tornadoes touched down throughout the city Wednesday.
Meanwhile, police in both St. Petersburg, Fla., and Volusia County, Fla., confirmed five more storm-related fatalities.
The winds from Wednesday night were so powerful that entire chunks of the roof of Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Rays, were ripped off. The Florida Division of Emergency Management said it was establishing a 10,000-person base camp to support debris operations and post-landfall responders.
“As it became clear that there was going to be something of that magnitude that was going to be within the distance, they redeployed them out of Tropicana,” DeSantis told reporters on Thursday. “There were no state assets that were in Tropicana Field.”
U.S. President Joe Biden urged Florida residents to stay inside and off the roads, warning of risks posed by downed power lines and washed-out roads.
As of Thursday afternoon, Milton is now considered a Category 1 storm.
Last season, the Lightning finished with a 45-29-8 record and 98 points, clinching the No. 1 Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. They were eliminated by the eventual Stanley Cup-winning Florida Panthers in the first round of the playoffs.
Meanwhile, the Hurricanes went 52-23-7 with 111 points, second in the Metropolitan Division. They defeated the New York Islanders in the first round but were eliminated by the New York Rangers in round two.