To say that a game can end in the first half is madness.
Still, the first half seemed like just that. The Lightning scored three goals
in under four minutes and two on the power play. In a game where Tampa was
looking for revenge, the hot start was the antidote with the first period when
everything went well for Tampa and conversely everything was bad for Dallas.
The power play reminded us that Tampa Bay has one of the
best passing attacks in the game. Brayden Point received a nice feed from
Nikita Kucherov. Ondrej Palat was also found with an incredible cross pass from
Kucherov that left Stars goalkeeper Anton Khudobin out of place for the save.
Both goals can be blamed on the Dallas Stars for giving the Lightning early
power plays, but many would note that it is difficult to capitalize on the
power play, Tampa Bay have been able to master their technique on consecutive
occasions.
The final goal of the first half was to remind everyone of
the importance of cluttering the net. We have seen countless times, the Stars'
ability to clutter the net for shots and goals later. Still, Kevin
Shattenkirk's slap gave the Stars a taste of their own medicine. Shattenkirk
didn't have a good shot per se, but Anton Khudobin couldn't see the puck with
all the traffic created by the Lightning attack.
The three-goal header was all Tampa needed. Dallas would
make the game close but unfortunately it would be too little too late. John
Klingberg would set up a Pavelski deflection into the net in the second.
Klingberg would also set up Mattias Janmark with another nice assist for the
Stars' second goal in the third period. The Lightning were suddenly on their
heels in the third, which is when one of Andrei Vasilavskiy's best goalkeepers
steps in. The Stars' last desperation was stopped and the Lightning held on and
won 3-2.
So far, the series has been shaping up to be the one we anticipated. There is a scarcity of goals, a lot of hard knocks, and the few mistakes have led to costly goals. The show can go either way and we're looking to have a long streak unlike many who initially thought Tampa Bay would dominate the Stars (needless to say, the Stars have been underestimated by audiences). After the first game, we were pretty sure Stamkos would play in the series, but the doubt still lingers. The Tampa front row was superb, and it's hard to see Stamkos playing much of that ice time, potentially taking time away from a healthy skater. We might have to see Stamkos later, but after tonight we might see Tampa wait again before pulling the trigger on Steven Stamkos.
You would think this should panic the stars. Anton Khudobin
might have been tired and it looked like that in the first half. This loss does
not put Dallas on the ropes, it was rather expected. Tampa is considered the
better team and the Stars were trying to steal two games. Tampa would break
even, but the Stars enter Game 3 with the series tied, which they hoped they
would get into the series initially. The Stars have the Lightning where they
want it and a win in Game 3 will bring the momentum back to their side.
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