TAMPA, Fla. – It was July 2 when the Lightning announced the schedule for the 2024-25 season. It was only 24 hours earlier that Tampa Bay fans knew for certain it would be a season without beloved captain Steven Stamkos, who had spent his entire 16-year career wearing the lightning bolt on the front of his jersey. Stamkos, the all-time leading scorer (1,137 points) and goal scorer (555) in team history, signed with the Nashville Predators on July 1, the first day of NHL free agency. The schedule revealed it would be less than one month into the season before he would return to Amalie. And what…