Part Three: Time for the Lightning to give Stamkos a mega deal?

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So far during this three part series on what Steve Yzerman and the Tampa Bay Lightning need to do this offseason we have addressed moving Matt Carle, splitting ice time between goaltenders Ben Bishop and Andrei Vasileskiy now we move on to part three. We need to address the elephant in the room when it comes to what this team needs to do this off-season. Steve Yzerman and the Bolts better lock up Steven Stamkos to a mega deal and they better do it soon. Yzerman has already said that locking up Stamkos is his number one priority but he makes it sound easier then I think its going to be and this is why. One Stamkos is going to ask for a mega deal, which he should he is arguably one of the top five or six players in the world. Where I think it gets tricky is that I believe he is going to ask for Jonathan Towes type money. Somewhere in the neighborhood of eight years eighty four or so million dollars. Now here is the problem with that Jonathan Towes had two Stanley Cup rings when he signed is blockbuster contract. Stamkos has zero rings to his credit so there is where Yzerman needs to weigh banking huge money on future outcomes. The second thing is the ever looming Toronto media that keeps on pushing Stamkos to leave the Lightning for his home town Maple Leafs after next season. The last thing Yzerman wants to do is have Stamkos as a lame duck superstar because then the rumors will really flow. Ultimately I think Stamkos signs a long-term deal sometime shortly after the NHL awards ceremony. But until the ink is dry on the new deal these two problems will keep writhing in the background.