NHL cancels final pre-season game of the year due to emergency

Of course, much of Florida and the American Southeast is still dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, which devastated much of the country last week and has since been confirmed to be the deadliest storm in the United States since Hurricane Katrina in 2005 Naturally, hockey is secondary to the recovery effort and as such both the Lightning and Predators will be focused on staying safe in the coming days. Unfortunately, another storm is set to hit Florida this week as tropical storm Milton appears to be on pace to hit the Tampa area on Monday. As a result, both teams announced today that the contest will not be taking place.

While some fans expressed disappointment in the decision, the safety of not only the players but also the fans and everyone who works for the Lightning is the top priority, especially considering the circumstances.

Furthermore, this has become part of a broader conversation about the length of the pre-season as a whole. Was this game really necessary in the first place? Perhaps not. After all, we have already seen many players sustain serious injuries in games that are generally meaningless. Perhaps the highest profile injury was Montreal's Patrik Laine, who is out for 2-3 months after a knee-on-knee hit. Many fans have argued that the pre-season is too long as it is and it seems like there is some momentum across the league to shorten the pre-season in future seasons. Perhaps late-season storms in the American Southeast will be another factor contributing to this discourse moving forward.