Throw in tough-as-nails blueliners Erik Johnson and Josh Manson and this is as an imposing set of defenders to set foot in the Stanley Cup final in some time. Winning by one goal is their forte.Īvalanche No one moves the puck quite like Cale Makar, though youngster Bowen Byrum is close and Devon Toews can score at a better rate. They don’t score a lot - their 3.06 goals-per game is middle of the post-season pack - but if they get lead, they can shut it down. But even depth players like Pat Maroon and Corey Perry can score. Lightning Steven Stamkos is proving to be a captain worthy of the history books, Nikita Kucherov finds new ways to elevate his game when it counts the most and Brayden Point, who missed the second and third rounds, could be back. The Avs are scoring 4.64 goals a game to lead the post-season, but haven’t faced a Vezina-calibre goalie yet. Captain Gabriel Landeskog has eight goals and is a playoffs-best plus-14, winger Mikko Rantanen has 17 points and, when healthy, ex-Leaf Nazem Kadri provides a powerful second punch down the middle. ColoradoĪvalanche Colorado’s offence starts with Nathan MacKinnon (11 goals in 14 playoff games) but certainly doesn’t end there. I don’t want there being any excuse if it doesn’t go well for us, like, ‘Oh, it’s OK, we won two.’ That’d be unacceptable.”Īvalanche 56-19-7, 119 points 2-0-0 vs. “We’re standing here on the cusp of greatness and why the hell wouldn’t we charge through that door? Let’s go get this. “I don’t want anybody to sit here and say, ‘Well, it is easier (to lose) because we won two Cups,” Cooper said. Who could criticize the Lightning, after all, after back-to-back championships?īut there came a moment, prior to Game 7 in that first round, when Cooper’s true message was revealed.
And when Lightning: coach Jon Cooper would say things like “I don’t know who’s going to win” and “the sun will rise tomorrow, win or lose,” they thought the coach was laying the groundwork for an easy, forgivable exit. They were about to hit a wall, the experts thought. They had played more hockey over the last three seasons than anyone else. The experts believed the Lightning had to be tired. It wasn’t just because Toronto had home-ice advantage or was due to lift some curse. The experts and pundits had talked themselves into a frenzy when the Tampa Bay Lightning met the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round.
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