Kammala wannan jumla: Ba tare da wani wuri a gare shi ba, a ranar 20 ga Nuwamba, 1999, Calgary ya yi musayar Ekman zuwa Tampa Bay Lightning tare da zaɓaɓɓen zagaye na 4 (Vladimir Gorbunov) a cikin
2000 Shigar da Tsarin don Andreas Johansson. Ya fara bugawa Lightning wannan kakar, amma ya ci maki 4 ne kawai a wasanni 28. Don samun ƙarin ƙwarewa, ya shiga IHL kuma ya raba lokacin 1999<unk>2000 tare da Detroit Vipers da Long Beach Ice Dogs, yana da maki 32 a wasanni 37 kuma ya sami lambar yabo ta rookie na shekara. Har ila yau, yana da maki 6 a wasanni 5 na wasan kwaikwayo na Long Beach. A lokacin 2000-01 kakar, bayan maki 36 a wasanni 33 don Detroit, an tuna da shi zuwa NHL, inda ya inganta a baya ya nuna kuma ya zira kwallaye 20 a wasanni 43. Duk da haka, yana da ƙananan ƙimar da aka ƙayyade na -15.