Lightning coach Jon Cooper is going viral tonight for a stool he brought to the bench for broadcaster Darren Pang.
Pang is remarkably short, and Cooper noticed. The moment played out live on TV during the game, and fans picked it up fast.
Spittin' Chiclets summed it up in a single line, calling it a veteran move by Cooper to grab the stool so Pang had something to stand on.
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That is the whole appeal. No speech, no setup, just a head coach in the middle of a game, with a lineup to run, thinking about the guy with the microphone.
Cooper has been busy lately. Earlier this week, we covered Cooper's update on Brayden Point's injury, and the Lightning have had plenty to talk about away from the ice.
Tampa Bay lost 4-3 in Winnipeg on Sunday, and that was the game Point left in the first period. A coach with that on his plate could have been forgiven for staying locked in on the bench tonight.
Why this small moment travels so far
Hockey fans love the little human touches that never make the highlight package. Bench access on a broadcast gives them a rare look at how a coach behaves when the cameras are close and nobody is scripting anything.
Cooper made it look natural. He did not wait for a producer or draw attention to it, and the stool simply appeared where Pang needed it.
My take: it is the best piece of coaching on the Lightning bench all week, and it had nothing to do with matchups. A coach who runs a room well tends to notice things like this.
The Lightning came into tonight at 11-4-2, third in the Atlantic Division, and they were at the first intermission in Buffalo as this went up. We will not guess at the score. Whatever happens the rest of the way, this clip will outlive it.
Tampa Bay's next game is Thursday at Columbus, and Pang will no doubt hear about the stool from fans well before then.
This article was written with the help of artificial intelligence, based on public reports and official sources.
Is Jon Cooper's stool gesture the kind of move that makes a great coach?
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