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TAMPA, Fla. — Mathieu Darche is loving life in Tampa and his new job with the Lightning.

“It’s pretty cool,” Darche said Thursday after watching the Canadiens’ morning skate at Amalie Arena on a day when it was 26C and sunny outside. “You see the weather today. People are freaking out when it’s 5 degrees in the morning and then it’s 15 by noon. We had a couple of days of that.

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“It’s great,” Darche added. “It’s a great city, great ownership, great fans, great organization, and the weather on top of it. The weather’s a bonus … the rest of it is the most important thing. The people I work with. Julien (BriseBois) and the organization, the team. But you get the weather and a great city, so it’s tough to beat.”

The Lightning beat the Canadiens 4-0 Thursday night.

Darche’s Montreal roots remain strong after growing up in the city, graduating from McGill University and then playing for the Canadiens. But when BriseBois called Darche last summer offering him a position as director of hockey operations, the 43-year-old couldn’t refuse.