TAMPA, Fla. (AP) Quieting the din inside Amalie Arena for just a moment, Gary Bettman looked over to the Tampa Bay Lightning and reached back into the dark days of the pandemic perhaps one last time.

The NHL commissioner beckoned not just captain Steven Stamkos but the entire team over to touch, kiss and hoist the Stanley Cup as champions once more. It was a far cry from the tradition of presenting hockeys holy grail to the captain to take back to his team, and the Lightning sent out another pandemic hockey season like they did the last by winning their second championship in 10 months.

It was a familiar sight for the back-to-back champions, even if it was different in every possible way.