Lightning: one player has already requested a trade because of the Gators

In the NHL, it’s not uncommon for players to request a trade to warmer markets. This is (among other reasons) why markets like Tampa Bay, Sunrise and Los Angeles, to name but a few, are often popular destinations for players.

In the case of Florida, there’s also the lower tax rate.

That said, while many guys like to go and play in these hot regions, it’s not necessarily for everyone either. In a recent video released by the Tampa Bay Lightning, the team’s two founders, Phil Esposito and Henry Paul, discussed the case of Anatoli Semenov.

Seminov spent a few years in the NHL in the 1990s, and he wasn’t a bad player. That said, after just 13 games in Tampa Bay (he’d landed there because he’d been selected by the club in the expansion draft) in 1992, he was traded after requesting a trade for a simple reason: his wife thought it was too hot, but she was also terrified of alligators.

Semenov and his wife had arrived from Russia and spent the previous three years in Edmonton. Clearly, his wife was used to colder climates, and more importantly, she wasn’t a big alligator fan.

She’d seen one near their home in Florida, and it obviously affected her quite a bit.

That said, it’s a pretty funny story, and clearly, Esposito and Paul are laughing about it today. I guess they didn’t expect to have to trade a player so quickly for such a reason, but in the end, it makes for a great story to tell years later.

In bursts

– This is Alex Newhook’s sister.

Abby Newhook ➡️ Canada National Women’s Development Teamhttps://t.co/C6N1BHdEeK https://t.co/WeiTPb5OKb pic.twitter.com/5lpi3MSFbe

– Boston College Women’s Hockey (@BC_WHockey) July 14, 2023

– That’s right.

While on Le Retour des Sportifs, Jacques Martin commented on relations between NHL teams and players who experience problems off the ice.

To listen to the interview, click here 👉 https://t.co/fJWifkGQFF pic.twitter.com/4pLTGjkudy

– BPM Sports (@BPMSportsRadio) July 14, 2023

– Mark Anton Wahlberg signs his entry-level contract in Buffalo.

– Beautiful reading on this July 14.

🇫🇷🏒🇫🇷 https://t.co/J64FguDuh7

– TVA Sports (@TVASports) July 14, 2023

– It’s going to get a lot of attention over the next few weeks.

– Oops.

Messi passed on the red coming out of the training center, with a patrol car behind him, it almost went wrong!😵Ah that damn Commercial BLVD! https://t.co/p6c2HQQxi6

– Jeremy Filosa 🎙 (@JeremyFilosa) July 14, 2023