Tampa Bay was awarded an NHL expansion franchise in December 1990 and began play in 1992-93, struggling through its first decade under several ownership groups, including a period of Japanese corporate ownership, while posting some of the league's worst records. High draft picks during those lean years, most notably first-overall selection Vincent Lecavalier in 1998, gradually built the foundation for future success, and the franchise stabilized further after Jeffrey Vinik purchased the team in 2010.

Captain Dave Andreychuk and playmaker Martin St. Louis led the Lightning to their first championship in 2004 under coach John Tortorella, but the team then missed the playoffs for much of the following decade. A sustained resurgence followed under general manager Steve Yzerman and coach Jon Cooper, built around Steven Stamkos, Victor Hedman, Nikita Kucherov, and goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy, producing back-to-back titles in 2020 and 2021 and a third consecutive Final appearance in 2022, establishing the Lightning as one of the sport's model modern franchises.