May 20 Recap

Bolts Strike Back, Even Series at 2

         The Tampa Bay Lightning had a bounce back game to even the best of 7 series against the Pittsburgh Penguins at 2 games apiece. Victor Hedman, Nikita Kucherov, and Alex Killorn all finished the night with 2 assists each to cap off a complete team effort.

         Tampa had a lightning fast start with a goal off a deflection from Ryan Callahan just 27 seconds into the game. The Bolts got the start they wanted in a must win situation. They would continue to dominate for the rest of the period, extending their lead when defenseman Andrej Sustr appeared out of nowhere to finish off a pretty passing play at 14:28. After the 1^st, it was clear that Tampa Bay was the faster, more desperate team. Despite a few 1^st period scoring chances, the Penguins had yet to show the same level of urgency as Tampa.

         Things began to get ugly in the 2^nd period. Early on, Trevor Daley’s leg got caught in an awkward position as he absorbed a hit from Ryan Callahan. He would leave the ice in considerable pain. Not long after, tempers boiled over when Kris Letang lost his cool and cross-checked Brian Boyle, who was in his face all night. In addition, Letang got a roughing minor, which gave the Lightning a double power play.

         During the 2^nd minor penalty, Johnathan Drouin passed to Ondrej Palat in the slot, who immediately passed it back to Drouin to complete a clever set up at 14:38. The Penguins loss of composure had them down 3-0. Shortly after, at 17:48, Tyler Johnson, who was hit in the face by a puck during warmup, scored off a cross-ice pass from Nikita Kucherov. The Penguins entered the 2^nd intermission with a seemingly insurmountable 4 goal deficit.

         Penguins veteran goalie Marc-Andre Fleury made his first appearance of the 2016 playoffs at the start of the 3^rd period. The Penguins finally turned up the heat, with Phil Kessel rifling a shot past Vasilevskiy at 1:18, breaking his shutout bid. The Penguins would just keep coming, as Evgeni Malkin scored at 11:13 to cut the deficit to 2. Two minutes later, at 13:08, Chris Kunitz scored a power play goal off a rebound to make it 4-3. Unfortunately for Pittsburgh, their comeback attempt fell short, as the Lightning held on to win the game and tie the series at 2.

         The Penguins goalie situation will now make the series more interesting. Entering a crucial game 5 in Pittsburgh on Sunday, head coach Mike Sullivan will have to choose whether to start the young and talented Matt Murray or the highly experienced Marc-Andre Fleury in goal. On the other side of the coin, Tampa may get Ben Bishop and/or Steven Stamkos back, but it’s still largely unknown when the two superstars will return. With each team now 2 wins away from reaching the Stanley Cup Final, the rest of this series promises to be entertaining.

Weekly Recap (May 20)

         Happy Friday! It’s time for another weekly recap. Here’s what’s been happening in the hockey world the past 7 days:

Sharks Shut Out Blues Again, Take 2-1 Series Lead

         Last night, the San Jose Sharks shut out the St. Louis Blues for the second straight game to take a 2-1 lead in the best of 7 series. Martin Jones was once again perfect, stopping all 22 St. Louis shots. Tomas Hertl scored twice to lead San Jose to a 3-0 win at SAP Center.

         The Sharks were the faster, more dangerous team for the entirety of the game. The top scorers were once again flying all over the ice, intimidating the St. Louis defense. Throughout the playoffs, San Jose has had a lot of success when using their speed. Not only are they speedy, but analyst Brian Lawton has stated, “the guys are looser playing a less rigid style of play under coach Pete DeBoer than Todd McLellan.”

         Tomas Hertl opened the scoring at 15:53 when he ripped a shot past Elliot. Though outshot 9-7 in the 1^st period, San Jose was generating a lot of scoring chances and spent a majority of the time in the Blues zone. Up 1-0 in the first intermission, the Sharks continued to dominate heading into the 2^nd period. They extended their lead at 11:44 when Joonas Donskoi’s shot from the high slot went high glove on Elliot.

         At 6:09 of the 3^rd, Tomas Hertl struck again when he scored five hole on Elliot. After allowing 3 goals on 14 shots, Brian Elliot was pulled. Jake Allen made a rare appearance in relief. Frustration was once again setting in for the Blues. Though the Blues had some good scoring chances, they couldn’t solve goaltender Martin Jones. The Sharks will enter game 4 at the “Shark Tank” up 2-1 in the series. They will attempt to take a 3-1 stranglehold on Saturday.

Auston Matthews Leads USA to IIHF Semifinals

         Yesterday, 18-year-old Auston Matthews led Team USA to a 2-1 shootout win against the Czech Republic in the IIHF World Championship Quarterfinals. They advanced to the Semifinals where they will face Canada.

         Czech Republic would take a 1-0 lead late in the 1^st when Tomas Zohorna scored on a shorthanded penalty shot. USA had a lot more energy to begin the 2^nd. Auston Matthews stuffed the puck into the net 90 seconds into the period to tie the game at 1. Both teams exchanged chances in the 2^nd, but nobody could break through.

         Though the Czechs took many penalties in the 3^rd, USA was unable to score on their power play opportunities because of Czech goaltender Dominik Furch. The game couldn’t be decided in regulation or overtime, so it went to a shootout. USA would be victorious thanks to Auston Matthews, who scored the shootout winning goal. Goalie Keith Kinkaid was also spectacular, making 31 saves and stopping all 3 Czech shooters. The winner of the USA vs. Canada Semifinal game will face the winner of the Finland vs. Russia Semifinal game in the gold medal match.

May 18 Recap

Speedy Penguins Outlast Lightning, Take Series Lead

         Last night’s Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals at Amalie Arena was exciting to say the least. It featured everything from physicality to goaltending. By the time the dust had settled, the Pittsburgh Penguins had come out with 2-1 lead in the series.

         For the first few minutes of the game, the Lightning had a majority of the scoring chances. Their defensemen were jumping into plays, trying to make life tough for the Penguins in their zone. Matt Murray was good when he needed to be, stopping all of Tampa’s chances. Shortly after, the Penguins began creating chances of their own with their forecheck and speed. 21-year old backup goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy was up to the task and kept the game scoreless. Though scoreless, the 1^st period had a lot of quick, exciting back and forth action.

         The 2^nd period was more of the same. The only difference was that Pittsburgh’s speed enabled them to get a majority of the chances. They would outshoot the Lightning 21-6 in the middle frame. The Hagelin-Bonino-Kessel line, which has been good for the Penguins all playoffs, finally broke through with a late rebound goal from Carl Hagelin at 19:50. The goal was generated by speed, which has contributed to much of Pittsburgh’s recent success.

         That same line would strike again when Nick Bonino sent a no-look pass from behind the net right into Kessel’s wheelhouse for a 2-0 lead at 5:16. The Lightning, however, had a good response when Tyler Johnson, who looked like he’d been shot out of a cannon, scored 14 seconds later. Though the Lightning had climbed back into the game, they ran into a bit of penalty trouble. In the ensuing 4 on 3, Sidney Crosby sent a one-time blast past Vasilevskiy at 10:50 to make it 3-1.

         Though the Lightning battled hard to keep the game close, Chris Kunitz made it 4-1 at 13:12. The game wasn’t completely out of reach for the Lightning until Braydon Coburn took his second penalty of the period at 14:12. Though the Penguins did not score, they killed enough time that the game was practically over for the Lightning. Despite Ondrej Palat scoring at 18:16, it was too late for the Lightning.

         Though the Penguins won the game by a final score of 4-2, Patric Hornqvist was lost to injury after blocking a shot with his hand. Though the Lightning lost, Andrei Vasilevskiy was a bright spot on the team, making 44 saves. I’m pretty sure the Lightning will bounce back in game 4 on Friday. However, if they don’t, I think the Penguins speed will make short work of this series.