Founder Phil Esposito reflects on induction into Lightning Hall of Fame

"Long after I'm gone, this thing will be still going and I hope it goes forever," said Phil Esposito Thursday morning. "Forever. Because, without a doubt, this is the greatest thing I've ever done in hockey."
The founder of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Esposito addressed the media on Thursday after the team announced that he has been elected into the inaugural Lightning Hall of Fame last week. Esposito will join Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis as the three members of the inaugural class that will officially be inducted on March 17.

"The perfect guy to kick that off," said Lightning captain Steven Stamkos. "I think it's great for this organization. We've had a long enough history now where we can start to celebrate some of the people that have made this into the franchise that it is today. Obviously, Phil was the founding father.
"It's just special to be around him for as long as I have - to hear the stories, to talk to him, to pick his brain, to hear his thoughts. He's obviously a legend in the game.
"Not that he wasn't a legend in Lightning history, but to have something to signify that - it just shows the growth of our franchise and how we can start to have pretty cool things like this. For Phil to be part of that is obviously special."
A dauntless leader when it came to getting the franchise off the ground, Esposito looked back fondly on the early days of the organization and all the hard work that went into the entire process.
"I start thinking about all the stuff we went through, but it was not all negative," said Esposito. "There was a lot of positives, a lot of fun. I found the people of Tampa Bay to be unbelievable.
"I did a lot of good things as a player, a lot of things, but God gave me talent to play. I exploited that talent. He didn't give me talent to raise $55 million and to get players.
"It was all with good people around me and I realize you're only as good as the people you hire around you. And when you play on a team, you're only as good as your teammates are good with you.
"Individually, you can do things, but if you're going to win, it's collectively and it's a team effort. And that's the way I looked at it from the very beginning - a team effort."

Esposito is a hockey legend. As a player, he recorded the 10th-most points in NHL history with 1,590 in 1,282 games. His 717 career goals are still the seventh-most in the history of the league. He won the Rocket Richard Trophy six times, the Art Ross Trophy five times, the Hart Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award two times, and, of course, the Stanley Cup two times, as well.
Off the ice, he founded a franchise that has won the Stanley Cup three times in the past 30 years. Only the Original Six Detroit Red Wings have won more Cups during that span with four.
When you look at the growth of the game of hockey in Florida, along with the substantial expansion of the Tampa Bay community, you have to tip your cap to Esposito, who undoubtedly played a huge role in all of it.
"He's accomplished everything and anything in this game," said Lightning head coach Jon Cooper. "When you're talking about pioneers in this sport, when you look at the Mount Rushmore, I don't know how Phil Esposito isn't there or darn close, because of how important he's been to all of us. I don't think any of us are standing here right now without Phil."
As impressive as Esposito has been as a player and founder, his genuine personality and storytelling abilities make him even more of a complete gem.
"Everyone knows the player that he was on the ice," said Stamkos. "But the personality, how much he wants to interact with people and cares about people and wants to tell those amazing Phil Esposito stories that he has - he has that presence.
"He walks into a room and everyone's aware of it. He just has that aura to him, which is amazing and why he's been so successful from the game of hockey as well and why he's such a legend in this area."
"He's an impressive individual and if you've ever had the pleasure of sitting down with him, boy does he have some great stories," added Cooper. "If there was one guy that could do it, Phil was the guy."
Hockey in Tampa sounded like a crazy idea back in the late 1980s, but to Esposito, it all made sense. He had a vision and made it happen. Without him, hockey may never have found its way to Hillsborough County.
"Sure, I got the credit and all that stuff, but somebody had to get it," said Esposito. "So, it was me, I guess, because it was my freaking idea."
The Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will be the centerpiece of Lightning Alumni Weekend, which will take place in Tampa from March 16-18. More than 30 alumni spanning all 30 years of Bolts hockey will be on hand to celebrate.
Esposito will be joined by Lecavalier and St. Louis when the Lightning's inaugural Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony takes center stage on Friday, March 17 at 7:30 p.m. on the covered ice at AMALIE Arena. General admission tickets for the induction ceremony will be available via Ticketmaster at
https://am.ticketmaster.com/bolts/hof
.
Alumni weekend will conclude on Saturday night when the Lightning take on the Montreal Canadiens, along with head coach St. Louis. Before the game there will be a special Hall of Fame ceremonial puck drop along with the unveiling of the permanent artwork honoring Esposito inside AMALIE Arena.