Adrian Dater
I almost wanted to lead this column with “Stick a fork in the Lightning. They’re Done.” But, you know, there’s the DaterJinx and all. It’s not over yet. You can forgive the 18,007 screaming Avalanche maniacs at Ball Arena for thinking otherwise tonight though.
The extra point tonight, by the way, was good. Final from Ball: Avalanche 7, Lightning 0.
Game 3 is Monday night at Amalie Arena – an arena named after a motor oil. The Lightning engine looks dead, however. Two Stanley Cups in a row is a monumental feat in the modern NHL era. For that, this Lightning team deserves all the credit for that. But, no, they won’t be any “dynasty.” This Lightning squad is done at two.
The Avalanche have shown themselves to be so far better in the first two games, to evoke thoughts of sympathy for smug, arrogant Jon Cooper and his squad that won a Cup in year 1 – in Edmonton in the bubble against a Dallas team that got lucky to beat an Avs team minus seven regular players and 2. Against Montreal in another bastardized playoff scheme by the NHL in Covid times.
Don’t feel sorry for smug Jon Cooper. He has no answers for a real team, this time. Good on Tampa Bay for getting this far again, against two teams (Toronto and the Rangers) that choked in the earlier rounds. This time, though, he had to match up against a team that is just a pure “wagon” in hockey parlance.
And, none of us can be as smug as Mr. Cooper. This series isn’t over yet. Still two more games to win. And, the next two are at Amalie, named after a motor oil I’ve never heard of. The Lightning’s time is up, otherwise. Andre Vasilevskiy was the sacrificial lamb tonight for Cooper’s stubbornness. He refused to pull the big Russian netminder, even after being lit up more than the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree.
His squad was left with nothing more than to try and goon it up in the third period, after trying to compete on hockey merit was no longer in question.
The Avs are clearly the better hockey team, but that doesn’t mean they still will win it all. They have to go into Tampa Bay expecting the last, best gasp from a team that had a good run. It’ll be tough in that building, which is one of the oldest in the league actually and is antiquated beyond belief when it come to things like air conditioning and elevators that work.
The Avs have to go into Tampa with the attitude that the toughest part is still ahead. This is a proud opponent, and they’ll circle the wagons as best they can to forge a rally.
But the Avs only have to win two of the next five to become Stanley Cup champions. The odds are stacked in their favor now. Nope, it’s not over yet.
But it’s getting close.