This news didn't come as a huge surprise given the tough cap crunch the Bolts are going to face heading into next season. From an outsider's perspective, moving Stamkos and his $8.5 million cap hit would make some sense. However, general manager Julien BriseBois said that isn't the case, and that he fully expects the team's captain to be in the lineup for opening night of the 2021-22 campaign.

If he is being truthful, then there will be some other members of this Lightning team who are forced to move on due to their cap situation. While moving Stamkos may make sense, you can understand why BriseBois would be hesitant to do so given his contributions to this team over the years. Since being taken first overall in 2008, Stamkos has done nothing but impressed, proven by his 439 goals and 866 points in 841 games.