Victor Hedman at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee in February 2022. Credit: Screengrab via lightningnhl/Facebook

It’s cold out today, and the NHL is probably hoping it’ll be cold in February 2026 when the Tampa Bay Lightning host the city’s first outdoor professional hockey game.

After much speculation, the team made the announcement this afternoon, saying the Tampa Bay Lightning will take on the Boston Bruins at Raymond James Stadium on Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. And it’s not the only outdoor NHL game happening in the Sunshine State next year.

A press release adds that on Jan. 2, 2026, the Florida Panthers will host the New York Rangers at LoanDepot Park.

Ticketing details for the NHL Stadium Series featuring the Boston Bruins v Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday, Feb. 1 at Raymond James Stadium have yet to be announced.

The Lightning have played outdoors before, taking down the Nashville Predators inside Nissan Stadium in 2022. The attendance at that game was 68,619; Raymond James can accommodate approximately 65,000 fans for sporting events.

WFTS’ Best of the Bay-winning weatherman Denis Phillips told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that the average high on Feb. 1 in Tampa is 73 degrees, with the average low coming in at 54 degrees. “If it’s an early afternoon game, low-70s,” he added. “But I wonder if they’ll do it at night so it would be cooler.”

Rob Higgins, Executive Director, Tampa Bay Sports Commission, called an outdoor NHL game in Tampa his organization’s “white whale,” and said, “Tampa Bay is a truly special place that is consistently capable of pulling off what many think is impossible.”