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Colorado Avalanche looks like a much better team to defending champions, overwhelming Tampa Bay Lightning 7-0 in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals on Saturday night and 2-0 in the Best of Seven series. I took the lead.
Valerie Nichushkin scored the seventh and eighth goals of the playoffs and remained the best player on the ice in the finals. Game 1 overtime hero Andre Brakovsky defeats Andreiva Silevsky again, winning even defenseman Josh Manson and 35-year-old grinder Darren Helm. I got into the fun with each goal. Playoff MVP front runner Kale McCarr scored two goals in the third period, instigating the chanting “I want a cup!”. From an excited crowd.
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“They are currently playing at the elite level. We give them credit. We are not,” said Lightning coach John Cooper. “They are two good teams. They are only playing at a much higher level than we are now.”
Lightning was rarely fully classified during this run of post-season success, but never faced an enemy like Avalanche. Colorado has dominated every aspect of the game to take two wins from the first title since 2001 and from the first title by this core led by Nathan McKinnon.
Avalanche goes to Tampa for Game 3 on Monday night of the series, even though there are no goals for the series from McKinnon. They are still the third team in NHL history, scoring more than three goals in the first period of the first and second games of the final.
“We played a pretty good game,” Helm said. “We played just 60 minutes of the game.”
The dominant performance began in one of the first shifts in the game, when Eric Chernark, a normally trusted Lightning defense, jumped at an early mistake when bubbling a puck with a blue line. After that, everything was an avalanche.
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Their aggressive forecheck penalized veteran Ryan McDonough, scoring points in subsequent power play when Brakovsky gave Nichshkin the first night. It wasn’t his last, and Colorado poured it with full territorial control in six of the first seven shots of the game and many of the games played at the end of Tampa Bay.
“We came out with a purpose,” said forward Andu Coriano, who returned after missing Game 1 with a right finger injury. “We started the game. We skated from the drop of the pack but didn’t give up.”
Avalanche, along with Vasilevsky, who was key to the incredible ability of Lightning to bounce after losing in the playoffs, failed after defeating Macar cleanly in one of the two-on-one rushes. It looked stable and even dropped my head. Most of all attack zone time. The highest scoring team of the postseason has cliniced against the team that has played more hockey than anyone else in the last two years.
It may eventually make its sacrifice, and it is exacerbated by the ferocious speed at which the avalanche plays. Not only did they outperform Lightning again, but they also used quick feet to force errors that turned into goals.
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“Are you shocked by the loss of 7-zip?” Said Lightning Captain Stephen Stemkos. “That is, I don’t think I saw it coming.”
Tampa Bay has fallen to 18-2 after being defeated since the start of the first round of 2020. The 18th straight win was the Eastern Conference final with the New York Rangers, with Lightning snarling and ending 2-0. It’s hard to see Colorado fall into the same trap.
Even if players wipe out the notion of game-to-game momentum during the playoff series, their rampage over champions combined with a 7-0 road record should confidently fill the avalanche. However, due to injury they may need to immerse themselves in the pool at their depth again.
Avalanche lost Brakovsky again in the second season after Andre Coriano returned from missing the season opener due to a right finger injury. Brakovsky blocked the shot in the first match of the West Final and has overcome the pain ever since. Coach Jared Bednar said he would be reassessed before Game 2.
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Colorado causes a lot of pain in Tampa Bay. Tampa Bay relied on some rough stuff after lagging behind. Of course, even McKinnon was a hit in the third season, even though he had the game at hand.
Darcy Kaempfer has been rarely tested on Colorado’s net and has been shut out with 17 saves.
“He was just solid,” Manson said. “He was exactly what we needed.”