Second Year In A Row, A Former K-Wing Hoists The Stanley Cup

For the second year in a row, a former Kalamazoo Wing has had the honor hoist the most honored trophy in sports, the Stanley Cup.

Yanni Gourde and the Tampa Bay Lightning finished off the Dallas Stars four games to two Monday night to cap an unprecedented playoff campaign complicated by the global pandemic. Adding to the difficulty, was all the players were enclosed in a "bubble", quarantined from even family, in some cases, for over two months.

Gorde has developed into a dependable forward for the Lightning, having two 20+ goal scoring seasons prior to this year's truncated schedule. Tampa signed him to a six-year contract in 2018 that pays in excess of $30 Million. (Though The Athletic reports today that Tampa has severe salary cap issues and that "anything" is possible.)

The K-Wings say "Gourde, 28, scored 15 goals and had 34 points in 30 games during the 2013-14 season for the K-Wings."

During his one season in Kalamazoo, the K-Wings' goaltender was Jordan Binnington, who hoisted The Cup last June, when he led to St. Louis Blues to their first cup ever.

Various K-Wings have played on Stanley Cup winning teams, most notably, the 1999 Dallas Stars, who were coached by former K-Wings coach Ken Hitchcock, and there were at least a half dozen former K-Wings on the roster.