The Tampa Bay Lighting are the world champions, taking down the Montreal Canadiens in Game 5 of the hockey Championship Final. And to celebrate, Coors Light is making their first-ever beer made with actual ice from the championship series, which is called Champions Ice. This is a way for Lightning fans to celebrate with the players as close as they can.
“As an official beer partner of the Tampa Bay Lightning, we’re proud to celebrate the team’s second-straight championship win by giving Bolts fans a literal taste of the action,” Marcelo Pascoa, vice president of marketing for the Coors Family of Brands, said in a press release. “We’re no strangers to the magic of the ice, both in the arena and outside it. And now, we’ve taken that ice and have brewed it into a refreshing beer.”
Videos by PopCulture.com
During the Final, Coors Light scraped and collected the actual ice from the area and transported it to its hometown brewery in Golden Colorado to craft the Champions Ice brew. Coors Light will filter the ice during the brewing process to ensure the fans who do drink it get the best experience possible. Starting on July 12, Lighting fans can drink the limited-edition Coors Light at bars in the area. Fans can get more information at ChampionsIce.com.
The Lightning are building a dynasty as they have won the last two championships. However, the team could look different next season due to financial reasons. “We know going forward with the salary cap world that this might be the last game that this particular group plays together,” Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said after Game 5. “I can’t say how much that motivated us. We talked about it midway through the playoffs. We talked about it going into Game 5 of the Islanders series. ‘Let’s take advantage of this opportunity.’ It’s not very often you get this chance to play with a talented team like we did. We just believed.”
The Lightning are the first team in four years to win back-to-back titles. They are the fifth franchise to reach that mark among teams that joined the league in 1967-68 or later and the ninth different franchise overall. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Lightning won both championships in less than a year. The 2020 championship came on September 28 of that year.
