Lightning's Cooper wants Bell Centre capacity bumped for Stanley Cup Final
Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper wants to see a raucous Bell Centre crowd when his team travels to meet the Montreal Canadiens for Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final next Friday.
"I hope they let more fans in there," Cooper said following his side's Game 7 triumph over the New York Islanders on Friday, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston. "The fans of Quebec, they haven't been back since '93, they deserve to watch their team play. I hope they get in there because ... this game was meant to be played in front of fans."
The Canadiens were only allowed to have 3,500 fans for the Stanley Cup semifinals against the Vegas Golden Knights - 1,000 more than they were permitted for Round 2 against the Winnipeg Jets.
The streets outside the Bell Centre were packed for Montreal's Game 6 victory on Thursday.
#WATCH: Montreal celebrates as the #Habs eliminate Vegas and move on to the Stanley Cup final for the first time since 1993. Video credit: @by.ariane #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/9M5mVR5Nri
— CityNews Montreal (@CityNewsMTL) June 25, 2021
A full Bell Centre is considered one of the NHL's best atmospheres.
Cooper's Lightning are no strangers to difficult road environments - his squad just played three games at the notoriously hostile Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, winning one of those contests.