DENVER | There are coaches who tend to take the fiddle out. There are other coaches who opt for more direct, franker answers.
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At the very last question of his press conference, Jared Bednar offered his appreciation of the game of his goalkeeper, Darcy Kuemper, during this fifth game.
“He was ok,” Bednar said. He would like to see the first goal (Jan Rutta) again. But apart from this game, I think he was fighting well. »
“It was a bit of a butterfly ball,” Kuemper said of the Lightning’s first goal. I was looking to make the right play. You can’t see the puck going into the net, but it can happen. »
Kuemper gave up three goals on 29 shots. He didn’t get off to a terrible start, but he wasn’t the best goalie on the ice. Andrei Vasilevskiy played like Andrei Vasilevskiy during the big moments.
tough rivals
As a good captain, Gabriel Landeskog spoke of the Lightning as a resilient team.
“The Lightning have a good team, he logically recalled. They are in the Stanley Cup Final for the third year in a row. It’s not supposed to be easy and we know it won’t be easy. We knew it before the start of the final, we know it even more now. Vasilevskiy played a good game. We managed to tie the game in the third period, it felt good, but the Lightning scored the big goal. In playoffs, you have to keep a short-term memory. »
The Avalanche now have a record of 15 wins and 4 losses since the start of the playoffs. The Blues and the Lightning snatched two wins from this powerful machine.
For Game 6 of the Finals, the Avalanche will be looking to lift the cup on an opposing rink.
“We can win at home, we can win on the road,” said defenseman Devon Toews. We have proven it since the start of the playoffs. We will forget this game and focus on the next challenge. »