By Mark Pukalo
Well, at least they beat the Bruins.
Let’s start with this. The Washington Capitals are finally playing the 200-foot game they have needed to be successful in the playoffs. They have been great since dropping the first two games of the postseason. Give them credit.
But the Tampa Bay Lightning have somehow reverted back to late-regular season form after an emotional and very strong performance during the five-game semifinal demolition of the Boston Bruins. They are allowing too much room in the defensive zone, having coverage issues and losing puck battle after puck battle. The Bolts have lost their way after playing four straight focused, sharp, complete, low-mistake games against what many thought would be the toughest opponent in the playoffs.
You can understand a little rust in Game 1 against the Capitals, but the Lightning seemed lost and confused from about the third shift on, and did not wake up until the contest was lost after two periods. Washington stood Tampa Bay up at the blue line and controlled the neutral zone, sweeping up every turnover and turning most into scoring chances.
The Lightning passed up a bushel load of shots in the first period and finished with just 10 on net in the first 40 minutes. It’s disturbing how this team can be shown the exact way to win in the first two series of the playoffs and suddenly go back to overpassing and playing fancy with the puck once again. It has been this team’s problem for years. Yes, you can’t shoot all the time. You don’t want to get them blocked. But time after time in Game 1, they failed to take a shot in a golden spot. Simple thought: sometimes, a shot creates a rebound, a deflection. Braden Holtby is not Patrick Roy.
You expected after another Game 1 failure, the Lightning would come out and take command of Game 2. But 28 seconds into the contest, they were down 1-0. They were allowed to fight back and take a 2-1 lead with two power-play goals - the second a bit of a gift - but the second period was one of the most puzzling of the season. They went back to slow-thinking, reactionary play and eventually were punished for it.
First, J.T. Miller controlled the puck on an odd-man break and held it way too long. He didn’t take a shot, did not find the trailer early enough, then turned the puck over. The team’s top line got caught overcommitting at the end of a shift - something we’ve seen from them before - and could not get back after the gaff. Washington’s fourth line tied the game on a 2-on-1.
It got worse late in the period. Anton Stralman falls down, can’t get up quickly and his teammates are not able to pick up anyone as Lars Eller deftly deflects home the go-ahead goal. In the final seconds - again - the Bolts lose a faceoff cleanly and cannot get to a loose puck behind the net. Seconds later, Evgeny Kuznetsov sends the puck into the crease where Ryan McDonagh appears to deflect it through goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy. Ok, you give up the tying goal. But a little extra effort and awareness and Tampa Bay goes to the third period tied. Instead, they are leaving the ice down two.
Still, you get a goal quickly in the third period and then you are all over a protective Capitals team the rest of the way. Right? Nah, the Lightning did not seem to have any push back in the final 20 minutes. The fourth line - Chris Kunitz-Cedric Paquette-Ryan Callahan - for some reason continues to play against Alex Ovechkin’s first unit. That group can’t keep the puck deep and Braydon Coburn makes a bad pinch, Stralman flops on the ice on a 2-on-1 and Ovechkin whips home a Kuznetsov pass. It’s 5-2.
Game over. Fans head to the exit. Normally, I would get on the faithful for that. Not this time.
Maybe I was too harsh on my tweet after that. But, honestly, I have followed the Lightning for more than 15 years and I can’t remember them quitting in a big game before. I saw a confused, frustrated, but mostly lifeless team in the third period. There’s no way I could have predicted this performance over the first two games of the Conference final, no matter how good the Capitals have played.
And anyone that says Vasilevskiy has a major part in this is crazy. He made some brilliant saves in Game 2. I’m not sure you can call any of the first five goals soft. Maybe he could have been more decisive on the fourth and not allowed McDonagh to tip the puck past him. Maybe. But he would have needed something like the amazing third-period performance against the Los Angeles Kings at home in the regular season to keep the Lightning close in this one.
It’s all about defense, puck management and coaching. The Bolts seem to be backing up instead of aggressively moving forward like they were against Boston. They are reacting and not dictating play. Lightning radio host Matt Sammon talked about "details," of the game not being executed Sunday. That, too.
Coach Jon Cooper has had his best season at the helm of the Lightning. He has pushed a lot of the right buttons along the way. But he’s had a penchant to panic in the past and he seemed to be doing that in Game 2. When the Ondrej Palat-Braydon Point-Tyler Johnson line struggled against Boston’s top unit in Game 1 of the previous series, he stuck with them and they were great in the final four matchups. For some strange reason, he turned to the fourth line to match up against Ovechkin’s trio in Game 2 on Sunday. Palat ended up playing 13 minutes. He, along with Point, are the Lightning’s best two defensive forwards.
The other odd thing that Cooper has done is on the penalty kill. The unit has struggled all season and had one decent series against New Jersey. The Tampa Bay coach has used three somewhat slow-moving players at forward, along with rookie Anthony Cirelli, often on the top two killing units. The Bolts are slow and stationary on the kill, they aren’t getting to pucks. They need more speed and aggressiveness. They don’t need Paquette’s slow feet. They have given up three power-play goals in the series and struggled mightily against Boston. It’s time for change. Use Johnson, Palat, Yanni Gourde, Point. How about Steven Stamkos? He has often been the best faceoff man. But he has been on the bench instead. How about Miller?
The key goal in Game 1 was Ovechkin’s power-play tally in the final seconds of the first period that made it 2-0. Who was on the ice? Cirelli, who lost the faceoff cleanly to wing T.J. Oshie and is last on the team at 46.7 percent in the playoffs. Callahan was not on the ice either. The veteran is the best shot blocker among the forwards.
The players have been very disappointing in these two games. But Cooper has not helped.
Change the lineup? Nah. Who are you taking out? There’s no one that clearly stands out to me. You could put Cory Conacher in for Paquette and mix and match with three lines, adding to the speed. But I’m not sure that’s the way to go. A very bold move that won’t happen? Conacher or Adam Erne in for Kunitz (0 points, 11 shots, 12 games). I have been very disappointed in him during the postseason.
It’s not over. The Lightning have been counted out before. Many times they respond with a big performance. They will need their very best on Tuesday. One road victory and Washington could start doubting itself.
But it will be far from easy. The Capitals seem to be on a mission and it’s hard to fathom the Bolts can rebound strong enough after one of their worst playoff performances in franchise history.
It’s time to prove me wrong. Show me something 2017-18 Tampa Bay Lightning. Now.
Previous rounds: Lack of time and other circumstances did not allow me to recap every game in the first two rounds of the playoffs, but here’s a few brief thoughts on those two series.
The Bolts just needed to be sharp and focused against the New Jersey Devils. They avoided big mistakes, except for the penalties in Game 3, and capitalized when they needed to. They were in control physically and mentally. Vasilevskiy was the best player in the series while Nikita Kucherov, Ryan McDonagh and Alex Killorn were all outstanding.
The Bolts totally dominated the Bruins 5-on-5 on the Eastern Conference semifinals and controlled them more easily than I could have ever imagined. The Lightning played better defensively in the final four games than they did all season. They supported each other so well and Vasilevskiy shut the door after mistakes were made. All six defensemen played very, very well while Point and Palat were ubiquitous. It was a very satisfying victory and the triumph made it easy to laugh after all the whining Bruins fans - and media - did about the officiating. Could the referees have called slashing on Stralman late in Game 2? Sure. But how can you complain when you have 20 shots on goal - 14 at even strength? Sorry, but Charlie McAvoy was pushed down. There was no holding or hooking there. Stay on your feet rookie.
And ... sit down Cam Neely.
