(DENVER) Casually, the Lightning have been there, three times rather than once. This is effectively the fourth time that Jon Cooper’s men have faced elimination since the start of the 2020 playoffs.
Posted at 1:40 p.m.
Being the two-time defending champions, you won’t fall out of your chairs to hear that Tampa is 3-0 when facing elimination during this stretch.
Those wins came in Game 7 of the 2021 semi-finals against the Islanders, as well as Games 6 and 7 against the Maple Leafs in the first round this year.
Except that the Lightning never found themselves behind 1-3.
“You have to have a short memory. We just have to win a game here tonight. That’s how we approach it, ”recalled Lightning forward Alex Killorn.
Nevertheless, the evening will be special. For the first time, the Stanley Cup will be in the arena, which becomes hard to ignore. Young defender Bowen Byram admitted it.
“You try to act like it’s any other day. But for sure you will think about different things that happened during the year. It is therefore important to respect your routine, which you have always done on match days. You just have to prepare yourself in order to deliver your best performance. »
Checkup
It also seems that the Lightning avoided the worst, at least with Erik Cernak, who was not seen again after the second period.
Jon Cooper said Cernak felt “better” and was hopeful the 6-foot-3, 230-pound Slovak was in the roster.
Brayden Point got on the skates Friday morning after missing the last two games. It is unclear whether the center will be in his post for the time being.
Lynx’s eye
Moreover, we already knew that Bowen Byram had excellent athletic skills. That’s why he was drafted in 4e rank in 2019. Let’s add that he also has perfect vision.
On the strange winning goal of Nazem Kadri, in overtime on Wednesday, it is indeed him that we see rushing towards the net, when everyone seems to be looking for the puck. It also points to the top of the net, where the puck got stuck.
“I was a bit behind the game,” Byram said. As soon as Naz shot, I saw the net move, so I knew the puck was in the net. Then, while skating, I saw a piece of the puck sticking out over the horizontal bar. I didn’t really realize that the guys didn’t know the puck was in the goal. Then it’s a bit blurry. But I think I knew from the start that we had scored. »