Jon Cooper has coached the Tampa Bay Lightning since 2013. During that time, he has watched the Battle of Florida between the Bolts and the Florida Panthers go from something theoretical to one of the NHL's most intense feuds.
"They started to get good when we happened to be at the peak. It's been a battle. And I'm telling you, it's so much fun to play games against those guys," Cooper told ESPN. "They for sure circle us on the calendar, as do we."
The lifeblood of the NHL is rivalries. They're the most marketable commodity in the league outside of the Stanley Cup itself.