TAMPA – The email was unexpected and yet completely in character.

It arrived around the close of business Wednesday, which, as it turned out, was just before the Lightning would confirm that owner Jeff Vinik had sold a majority stake in the franchise to two money managers at a New York investment firm.

Vinik told employees in the email that he had added new partners to the ownership group to “ensure continued success” and that there would be no changes to the team's day-to-day operations. And then came the highlight:

Every full-time Vinik Sports Group employee, about 300 in total, would participate in a $20 million bonus pool.

The minimum bonus would be $50,000.

“Best owner in sports,” Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois said later Thursday night during the first intermission of a 4-2 loss to Minnesota. “I have friends who play other sports and they all say the same thing. Jeff is the best.”

His tenure as Lightning boss isn't over yet, but the finish line is in sight. Vinik will continue to lead the Lightning for the next three years and will remain as a minority shareholder when Doug Ostrover and Marc Lipschultz take control at the end of 2027.

When I asked BriseBois what made Vinik the best owner in sports, he paused for a few seconds before explaining with a story.

It was 2010 and Vinik had recently purchased the Lightning after it had failed to perform for a few years under the previous regime. Vinik hired Tod Leiweke as CEO and Steve Yzerman as head of hockey operations. Yzerman then hired BriseBois and the four men met a few weeks later for a get-to-know-you dinner.

BriseBois, then 33, asked Vinik how a New Jersey-born, Boston-based money market manager and minority shareholder in the Red Sox came to buy a hockey team in Tampa Bay.

“He said, 'Well, I turned 50 and was wondering what to do with the next chapter of my life,'” BriseBois said. “He said, ‘I was very lucky. I happen to be good at something that made me a lot of money and I feel like I need to give something back. “I’ve always been a hockey fan and” – these are his words – “I thought I could buy a hockey team and use it as a way to improve the lives of people in the community.”

“I was in the NHL for 10 years, I was an attorney for NHL teams, and I remember thinking, 'That sounds crazy.' In my mind I'm thinking, 'Yeah, good luck with that, Jeff.' But it didn't take long before we all realized he was serious, and that's exactly what he did.”

For all the success the Lightning have had on the ice — and they've been one of the league's top teams for nearly 15 years — Vinik is perhaps better known for his role model as a philanthropist. Along with his wife, Penny, he has donated more than $60 million to community nonprofits. Those efforts included a loan he and other prominent Bay Area residents provided to the Tampa Bay Times several years ago.

Vinik also worked with Bill Gates to begin redevelopment of the site surrounding Amalie Arena, which helped change the face of downtown Tampa.

The role of a sports owner usually comes with a target. Only one team wins a championship a year, and owners are often portrayed as villains for not spending, signing the wrong player, letting a popular player go, or just being rich.

Vinik has avoided this fate through his emphasis on giving and his desire to spread that message throughout the organization.

When there was a work stoppage during the 2012-13 NHL season, Vinik continued to pay all of his employees. As labor unrest continued into December, he sent employees another email telling them they would receive paid vacation every two weeks during the holidays. And, the email continued, any employee who stopped by his office would receive $75 in cash to donate to the charity of his choice, no questions asked.

Ten years later, this policy is still in effect.

So yes, Wednesday's email was unexpected. And also remarkably typical.

“When he told me about it, I said, ‘Jeff, that’s amazing. I don’t know if you realize how impactful and life-changing this will be for some of our people,” BriseBois said. “The money is a down payment on a house. These are tuition fees for your child. And it all boils down to the idea that he bought the team to improve the lives of people in the community.

“And no one who has seen what he has done, from the (community) Heroes program, to supporting various causes, to picking up the phone whenever someone needs money, would ever argue with the impact he has had in this community.”

John Romano can be reached at [email protected]. Follow @romano_tbtimes.

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