Tampa Bay’s Steven Stamkos might be more appreciative of this Stanley Cup run than most others

The Tampa Bay Lightning are trying to become the first NHL team to repeat as Stanley Cup champions since Pittsburgh in 2016-17. And captain Steven Stamkos knows how significant that would be.

Stamkos had a hard time getting the first one. He played only game of Tampa’s run last season — scoring on his only shot in Game 3 of the final — after having surgery to repair a core muscle injury last March. It was his fourth major surgery since 2013.

He has a clean bill of health for this year’s final, which starts Monday night at Tampa’s Amalie Arena, and a greater appreciation of just how special an opportunity it is to play for a Stanley Cup.

“As a player, you want to be on the ice helping your teammates win, and that’s the best feeling of all,” Stamkos said Sunday. “I got to experience some great runs in the past and, for a few of us that (have been) around for a long time, this will be our third final together … You want to help out any way you can. Last year (I had) a small part, and this year a little bit of a bigger part. But as long as you are part of that group, that’s all you can ask for as an athlete.”

Stamkos, 31, is one of seven players remaining from the 2015 Lightning team that lost the Cup final in six games to Chicago. There are 21 players returning from last year’s championship run. That was when Stamkos joined Billy Taylor (Toronto, 1940) as the only players to score while playing their first game of the playoffs in the Cup final. Stamkos only played two minutes and 47 seconds.

But that still serves as inspiration for Stamkos and his teammates, who know his injury history.

“He was great for us in a leadership role (last year), and not playing, he kind of had a different perspective of the game and he was able to give us something different that he saw from watching,” Lightning forward Brayden Point said.

“Just to have him out there now is special. Obviously, he’s a great player, one of our best guys, and he’s done so well this playoffs. He competes hard and its great to have him back.”

Stamkos is third in playoff scoring this season with 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists) in 18 games. He has also registered 32 hits in the playoffs, just six short of his regular-season total of 38. But one number — two — stands out for the Markham native, as in two Cups in two years.

On the eve of the Cup, the Lightning were taking about a “hunger” to repeat as champions.

“In terms of filling your ultimate dream of winning the Cup and realizing how amazing that feels, it’s knowing how hard it was to accomplish it,” Stamkos said. “That was kind of one of the first thoughts for a lot of the guys (after reaching the final again). When we had the Cup (last spring) and we were with the Cup and spending time with the Cup … we can’t wait to do this again because it’s so amazing.”