From Game Tent to Gift Bag: The 2026 NHL Stadium Series Gets a Second Life
Summary
On February 1, 2026, the Tampa Bay Lightning hosted the Boston Bruins at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa’s first-ever outdoor NHL game. The 2026 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series delivered on every front — including a historic 6-5 comeback victory in a shootout for the home team.
Like any major outdoor event of this scale, the game required significant infrastructure, including a large temporary clearspan structure to protect the ice rink build from the South Florida environment. When the game wrapped, the NHL reached out to Fairware with a familiar question: what could the vinyl tent material become?
What We Made
The event tent vinyl was collected and upcycled into two styles of upcycled event merchandise — both produced by a trusted Fairware supplier. Each one carries a stamp that says exactly what it is: Official Game Tent Vinyl — and that provenance is the point.
These aren’t just thank-you gifts. They’re collectibles. Made from the specific rink covering for a specific game on a specific night that Tampa won’t forget. There’s no way to make more of them, because the material no longer exists.
Upcycled Duffel — A structured, zippered duffel with circular end panels cut directly from the tent vinyl into a 19″ x 9″ x 9″ duffel bag with bluebird nylon webbing and zipper hardware in navy. The NHL Stadium Series Tampa Bay logo appears on the front and with the NHL mark on both ends. At home in an overhead bin, a gym locker, or on the shelf of someone who knows exactly what it is and where it came from.
Upcycled Tote — A larger open tote at 21.75″ x 13.5″ x 7″, same tent vinyl, same navy webbing and NHL Stadium Series branding centered on the front. The kind of bag that gets used every day — groceries, gear, a weekend away — and tells a story every time someone asks about it.
Where They Went
The finished bags were gifted to NHL staff, local partners and suppliers who made the event happen — a tangible piece of the night, made from the event itself.
Why It Works
Event infrastructure — tents, rigging, temporary structures — almost never gets a second chapter. It comes down, gets rolled up, and disappears. This project is a straightforward argument for doing it differently: the material was already there, already branded, already part of something memorable. It just needed someone to ask the question early enough.
The best merch doesn’t just commemorate a moment — it carries it forward. A bag made from the actual tent of a historic outdoor game isn’t a keepsake that sits in a drawer. It’s something people use, and something people ask about.
Fairware runs upcycling projects like this for events of all sizes. If you have post-event materials and want to explore what they could become, we’re happy to take a look.
Contact us to start your own Upcycled Project.
Project produced in partnership with the NHL. Material: official event tent vinyl. Products: upcycled duffel and upcycled tote. Delivered June 2026.