2022 Stanley Cup Final – How Game 3 affects the rest of the series as lightning strike returns in an avalanche with a 6-2 win

TAMPA, FL – What a difference a 48 hour change of place happens.

He faces a 2-0 deficit in the 2022 Stanley Cup Final – and A . is knocked out 7-0 loss To the Colorado Avalanche who felt more unbalanced than that result – the Tampa Bay Lightning came home and delivered an epic counterstrike, skater 6-2 victory In front of a raucous crowd at Amalie Arena.

The content of the series appears to have changed, and sparked a legitimate debate in the goalkeeper for Avs, who replaced Darcy Comber In the middle of the second period of blast loss.

What did we learn in this competition? And has the momentum of the Stanley Cup Final shifted entirely in Lightning’s favour?

It’s a chain again

After being embarrassed by Lightning in Game 2 with a 7-0 defeat, the captain Stephen Stamkos He said, “Let’s find out what we made when we get home.”

What a response in Game Three of successive Stanley Cup champions. They defended to their usual standards, limiting the opponent to two goals or less at home for the sixth game in a row. They got star offers from their best players – Stamkos, Victor HedmanAnd the Ondrej Balat And the Nikita Kucherov He had multi-point games, while the goalkeeper Andrei Vasilevsky He has 37 exports.

Only five times in National Hockey League history have the Stanley Cup champions fallen 3-0 in their best of seven streak. Nobody returned to win, and four of the five series finished with a sweep.

No need to worry about lightning now. It’s a chain again. – Greg and Shinsky

bring thunder

Monday was almost a month since Colorado last tasted defeat. Avalanche reached the cup final with a 12-2 breakout record. In Game 3, Tampa Bay offered its visitors a big slice of the humble pie.

thought avalanche Valery Neshushkin He scored the first goal in the match. John Cooper succeeded in the offside challenge. deflation.

then Gabriel Landskog Actually scored on the power game. 1-0, Colorado. But not for long. Because after a completely dominant performance in Game 2, avalanche was not (or could not) be performed at the same level. They didn’t win races or fights. They were not suffocated in the neutral zone. Instead of being pushed, lightning struck – again and again.

Colorado would have been at a disadvantage without him Andrei Burakovsky In the lineup after a right-handed shot in Game 2. Nazim Qadri (Broken thumb) He stays out, too. But that’s no excuse. The avalanche was praised—and praised for its depth—all season long. You failed in Game 3, while the depth of lightning allowed them to pass through them.

And it doesn’t hurt that Vasilevskiy was cool. Darcy ComberMeanwhile, he was withdrawn after allowing five goals from 22 shots, and replaced them Pavel Francos. The next goalkeeper controversy? Just what an avalanche doesn’t need.

Tampa Bay was the better team in every aspect of Game Three. Colorado earned two Landeskog goals in strong play and was thwarted everywhere else. This was the largest margin avalanche lost in the playoffs, surpassing their 4-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues – Check Notes – May 19.

Suffice to say, this is uncharted territory for Colorado in the playoffs. Where does the avalanche go from here? – Kristen Shelton

game

Stephen Stamkos credits playing on house ice as a factor helping Lightning’s ability to return to the series.

No wrong start

The start of Game 3 was just what the Lightning needed, and what they had lost in their previous two losses.

In the first two games of the series, Team Lightning found themselves falling by multiple goals during the first 10 minutes of the match. Those poor people on the road affected everything else in the game. They couldn’t prove anything they wanted to do to slow down the avalanche’s attack. They expended their energy trying to get out of those holes, leaving little to defend the Colorado or prove their offensive.

Those were also self-drilled holes. Lightning gave the avalanche a 5-on-3 power up in the first period of Game 1. They took a 1:1 penalty in Game 2. Colorado converted both chances.

As he often does, the wing pat maroon Offer a judicious analysis of the situation in Tampa Bay, and how Lightning can apply lessons learned in Games 1 and 2 to Game 3.

“These guys feel good, they feel the puck, it’s a different game. So stay out of the box and play our game. Play Tampa Bay Lightning hockey. Don’t worry about the score. Don’t worry about the score,” he said. “Listen, if they score the first goal, that’s fine. Just keep playing the way we play, and keep finding ways to create the attack.”

The avalanche scored the first goal. Well, they eventually did, as Nichushkin’s changing shot that beat Vasilevskiy was erased by video review for offside. Landeskog’s record in power play at 8:19 made it 1-0, but as Maroon suggested, Lightning kept playing as if he was playing.

center Anthony Cirelli She went to the net hard and slipped the disc through Kuemper at 13:03 to tie the match. Lightning’s skill then took over as Palat intercepted a pass, Kucherov dragged defenders into the attacking area and Stamkos used that room to find Palat in his 10th qualifying goal.

Tampa Bay finished the first half with a 2-1 advantage. The Lightning is now 7-1 in the playoffs when they advance past the first. It wasn’t a perfect opening frame, but it was good enough to build the foundation on which they built their win in Game 3. – Wyshynski

Goats to goats?

Kuemper remains a playoff puzzle. It has been withdrawn from Game 3.

The primary Avs goalkeeper was quickly called into contact, making big stops early in the first period. His site was hardly a textbook, but the disc stayed out. Colorado was struggling through the neutral zone, which is the team’s usual strength, so Kuemper’s contributions were most notable in taking the avalanche to a 1-0 lead.

He’s back again for Tampa Bay’s first chance to play power. Just before the wheels fall off.

Shirelli beat Comber over Tampa Bay’s second-man advantage with a shot that looked like a flop. He placed the bales of the imp in front of him cleanly with another salvageable blow. Time and time again, Lightning scored, until Kuemper allowed five goals from 22 shots (773) halfway through the second.

Kuemper wasn’t stopping what he should have been doing. The hardest things remained outside. why? Who knows. Either way, it was hi, Pavel Francus.

It was the right call by coach Jared Bednar. As Vasilevskiy got better and better at the other end, Kuemper was floundering. It was down very early, not tracking the well well and the lightning set it apart.

The third game was the first time since Colorado played St. Louis in the second round that Kuemper was called up to step up. Unfortunately, he failed in that mission.

And Francoz performed well on the balls, saving nine saves in 10 shots.

What will Badar do now? Sticking with Francoz, who entered Game 3 with a 6-0 record, 906 saves and 2.86 goals-to-average in the post-season? Or give Kuemper the benefit of the doubt as Jon Cooper did to Vasilevskiy after a rough 1 game? Which realistic goalkeeper would give Colorado the best chance if Vasilevsky returns to the top?

It’s a big decision. All that hangs in the balance is Colorado’s cup-winning hopes. – Shelton

Good news, bad news for Tampa Bay defense

Lightning did not chase Colorado during Game Three. They did not allow the avalanche many individual opportunities. They remained in their structure, keeping those attacking the Colorado attackers ahead of them and providing support for the puck in the defensive zone. The team that seemed to be going out of the chain all of a sudden was able to match the avalanche’s energy. A good defense and an enhanced foreclosure check will do just that.

The rather astonishing result: the avalanche occurred without a goal in the third game, after seven of them scored in the previous two games. This was only the second time in 17 post-season games that Avalanche failed to score strongly. One huge factor: Lightning changed the last line in the house. This means they can banish Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov from Nathan McKinnon Line and send an Anthony Cerelli examination line with Alex Killorn And the Brandon Hagel There against the first trio in the avalanche.

Tampa Bay’s closing streak made a huge difference in the Eastern Conference Finals against the New York Rangers when he was named Mika Zibanjad The starting line starts in Game 3. The Lightning trio didn’t have the advantage of attempting a shot against MacKinnon’s line – who could? – but she kept him off the board with equal force.

The Lightning talked about letting Andrei Vasilevskiy “outside to dry” in Game 2. They gave him more help in Game 3, and he reciprocated with 37 saves on 39 shots.

Now the bad news: The avalanche continued to dominate the power game. Lightning entered Game 3 killing only 70.8% of the power plays they encountered on home ice. Colorado scored two goals in strong play and now has five goals with the man advantage in the series. – Wyshynski

A star has been sniffed?

The avalanche lost key pieces of the squad in Game 3. One of the pieces available didn’t help make up for it.

Nathan McKinnon has not scored in the cup final, and has only scored assists in three games. So much focus has gone, rightly, to all the contributors to the depth of the avalanche. Bednar has repeatedly stated that he does not want McKinnon to put the team on his back. That’s not exactly what Colorado needed in Game 3. He just needed a little star power.

McKinnon would have had the assist if Nisushkin’s first goal had held up; He was an excellent helper with that. The avalanche needed more McKinnon then, to match what Tampa Bay had cooked up. Stamkos and Cirelli were scoring alongside them Corey Berry and Pat Maroon, as Lightning got productions from above and below.

Cal Makar Rebounding from a tough (for him) match 1, he was excellent in match 2 and was solid again on Monday. He brilliantly broke a 2-on-1 dash in the third period and didn’t do much to help Colorado’s chances, but he was an example of how fast he can tilt the ice and make a good game. Makar’s two-point night also put him third overall in the National Hockey League with seven goals and 26 points in 17 games.

Bottom line: It’s time for McKinnon to have a good night’s rest. Like, game 5 in the second round against St. Louis senior level. It’s not about pressing himself to be “the guy” every night. But Colorado needs a little nudge from someone right now, and McKinnon can (and should) be the one helping provide it. – Shelton

Something to give him – or does it?

Fun fact: Colorado hadn’t lost a playoff game on the road until Monday.

Here’s another way: Tampa Bay didn’t lose a playoff at home either. Lightning still does not.

Game Three marked the first time in Stanley Cup Final history that both teams entered with active winning combinations on the ground and on the road from seven games.

This is the elite level of “equally equal”. Will we see this trend continue in Games 4 through 7, and herald a winner in the series? – Shelton