The Colorado Avalanche!

A wild six game series came to a close last night in Tampa Bay. Tampa gave it their all, rallying twice after losing the first two games in a row. Each team won a blowout game, and the rest were 1 goal victories, two of them OT winners for Colorado. The two best teams in the sport met in the finals and the best team won.

Colorado was able to do just enough to keep Tampa at bay in this series. The back-to-back wins in games 1 and 2 were crucial and their defense came through to seal the deal after letting it slip away in game 5. Keeping Tampa Bay to 4 shots on goal in the 3rd period of an elimination game in Tampa is a heroic level of achievement.

There were a ton of missed penalties in the series due to the officiating getting self-conscious about not calling some worthwhile, although questionably impactful plays, like too many men on the ice. So they largely opted to “let them play”, especially in last night’s game. Which of course, led to some serious goon moves which were nothing short of dangerous. Tampa Bay’s Patrick Maroon took a full-on golf swing to Josh Manson’s leg right after Colorado took the lead. If Manson didn’t see it coming to block the hit with his stick (which broke) there is no telling what kind of damage he would have done.

In the end, Tampa Bay was denied a third championship in a row, cutting them short of an official dynasty. They are now salty as hell. Maybe to the level of when St. Louis swept them in the first round in 2019. To their benefit, most of the roster is signed through next season so they should be able to get to the playoffs again with no problems. They’ll certainly have the motivation (and the goalie) to get back up right away.

Colorado is more up in the air with more pending contracts but it’s not out of the question that they’ll be fantastic again. The mind-boggling part is that Colorado came in last place in the league five seasons ago. That is an insane turnaround. It took the Rangers that long just to get back into the playoffs.

Tampa wins the game 2-1. Tampa wins the series 4-2.

Game 6 proved to be the same as the last three with the Rangers struggling to get any traction against Tampa’s defense. Coach Gallant made an odd call of taking Kakko out, putting an injured Strome in, and Dryden Hunt back in for the first time this season. He also mixed up the lines with little results. He put the old lines back together in the second period.

Tampa was faster all game and the Rangers’ passing felt very off leading to a lot of playing catch up. Steven Stamkos scored first in the second period, on a shot that I think caught Igor by surprise. It’s one he usually has no problems stopping. So the desperation came even greater at that point but Frank Vatrano answered the call in the final minutes of the 3rd period.

He scored on the Rangers’ second powerplay (Tampa went 0-1) right off the face-off in Tampa’s zone that Vasileskiy completely missed. The rush of success and hope came to a screeching halt just 21 seconds later. Stamkos, having been the one in the penalty box, made up for it on the next play. He got a nice pass right in the center of the ice on the rush and he made his shot about 3 feet away from Igor. He caught the puck in his glove but the velocity made the puck roll around his glove before he could close the mitt. He fell out in the exactly right place for it to hit the passing Stamkos’ leg and bounced into the net. Probably the worst goal to lose such a big game by. It happened in about a second and because the Rangers couldn’t score a 5-on-5 goal, there was little they could do. Pulling the goalie for 5 on 6 bore no fruit.

A depressing defeat, another game that felt like a robbery. Igor did his best and is the only reason this game wasn’t a 7-1 blowout. Exhausted and hurt from playing so much playoff hockey in the past 6 weeks the Rangers had no more to give.

The Rangers have more gaps to fill to come back stronger next season, but it was a hell of a season. Now it’s left to Colorado to stop Tampa from becoming a dynasty by keeping them from winning three Stanley Cups in a row. It should be a good series. Tampa’s biggest advantage is in net and they will be far and away the best team Colorado will play in the playoffs. It’ll be a challenge.

Tampa wins the game 3-1. Tampa takes the series lead 3-2.

This was another very close game that ended with a last-minute dagger to the heart. The good news was that the Rangers played much better, a repeat of Game 4 would have been horrific. This loss was more depressing.

Both goalies played as well as their growing legacies predict. There were few penalties (many did not get called) and neither team scored on the power play. Solid defensive play from both sides really. The Rangers had a solid first period in particular, outshooting Tampa 8-3. Tampa ended up with 2 or three shots on goal and more high danger shots.

Ryan Lindgren was the first to score in the second period from a weird angle right next to the boards to the right of Vasilevskiy. It looked like nothing when it happened but hitting that back of the net stunned Vasilevkiy and made the Garden erupt. But Tampa tied the game a few minutes later on a screen play, Shesterkin didn’t get a good look at the shot.

The third period was a nail biter, each team doing their best to stay out of the penalty box. It was like everyone knew the next goal would come as a surprise and would likely call the game. Tampa did it with 1:50 left on another screen play with a deflection. The second robbery from Tampa. I’m not sure what was worse, this game or Game 3.

So now we’re in the worst-case scenario with Tampa one game away from winning the series with a home game. The Rangers didn’t split Tampa’s back to back home games and couldn’t get that one extra goal to take the series lead. The Rangers had a few great chances but didn’t cash in. The most brutal being Strome missing a pass from Copp in front of a wide-open net. It’s those scenarios that make champions. It’s so rare to get an open net chance that when it happens, you have to score. Those opportunities evaded the Rangers and Tampa was able to pull it off.

The pressure couldn’t be higher. The Rangers have been in this spot (and actually worse) for most of the playoffs but this one feels like the biggest mountain to climb. Tampa has this experience and the momentum so the sides feel more tilted. The Rangers could win tomorrow to force Game 7 and they’re going to need to go all out to do it. I expect a very physical game as Tampa is going to want to break out early to depress the Rangers.

Tampa wins the game 4-1. Tampa ties the series 2-2.

Splitting the two games at Tampa did not happen. Even worse, the scoring is going in the wrong direction. Poor defense doomed the Rangers tonight.

Missing Ryan Strome, Chytil leaving the game halfway through and Goodrow playing injured also didn’t help. On the other side, Vasilevskiy continued to play strong and the stars of the team scored a goal in each period.

Tampa got two rebound goals, where the rebound landed right in front of a Tampa player, and the Rangers didn’t. That kind of luck is what helped the Rangers win Game 2. The goal in the second period was from a terrible middle of the ice dump in that was intercepted and turned into a breakaway chance in about 3 1/2 seconds. A dumb play that was stacked on top of a terrible defensive position that had huge gaps in coverage.

In this game, the Rangers’ only goal was from a power play (1/2 for the Rangers, 0/3 for Tampa). The special teams were the only highlight of the night, shutting out Tampa and keeping them from a shut-out game.

Just bad defense and sluggish play through the whole game. What I mention in the last post, that the Rangers looked tired, was true again. With the series tied, the board is now reset into a best of 3 series. The stats of the playoffs go back to the Rangers’ favor as they go back to play at MSG, but they have to play with a renewed drive and strategies to win again. If they don’t win tomorrow, the odds of Tampa winning in 6 at home is really high. They’ve dug deep for weeks now and they have to do it again. The question is if the team is healthy enough to make it happen.

Rangers lead series 2-0. Rangers win 3-2.

This win breaks Tampa’s win streak record of 17 rebound games after losing one game in the playoffs. The Rangers take a two-game lead in the series, the first time Tampa has lost two games in a row in the playoffs since being swept by the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2019.

Tampa played better this game, as the final score shows. The biggest difference was Tampa’s penalty kill. where they shut down the Rangers all 4 times. Tampa scored on their only power play at the start of the game. Reaves was baited into retaliating at the face-off and the ref only gave him a penalty. Tampa quickly capitalized, but the Rangers responded and kept Tampa at bay for most of the game.

It was just a few minutes later when K’Andre Miller scored after his first shot was blocked (knocking down the defender). The rebound came right back to him and so he thought, “Hey, might as well try again.” He moved over a little bit and took a tremendous slapper that Vasilevskiy should have stopped. That was Vasilevskiy’s story again, letting in goals he should have stopped.

In the waning minutes of the first period, Kappo Kakko scores from a brilliant pass from Fox. Kakko stationed himself in Kreider’s favorite spot next to the left goal post and Vasilevskiy had no chance to stop the tip in.

The second period went scoreless and the Rangers did tremendous work frustrating Tampa. They tried everything to rattle the Rangers and the Rangers didn’t bite. Only that one penalty. While the Rangers didn’t score on their power plays, they kept Tampa back on their heels. That’s 8 minutes of a game where Tampa is at a disadvantage, which means the Rangers are in control. You can’t score if you don’t have possession of the puck.

Mika Zibanejad with one more sniper goal on Vasilevskiy, high blocker side, gave the Rangers a 2 goal cushion. Tampa pulled their goal early, around 3:40 left in the game, and scored with 2 minutes left. That last 2 minutes were almost complete mayhem. Absolute madness with all those men clustered in front of the net. I don’t know how Igor made the saves he did. He straight up robbed Stamkos with 37 seconds left. And that’s the difference: Shesterkin made the saves when Vasilevskiy didn’t.

The Kid Line continues to strut their stuff. This line is such a threat now it’s changed the dynamics of the team. Tampa cannot keep up or contain them. Adam Fox has 2 more assists this game. Miller is playing so well. His linemate Trouba is playing at his absolute best, which is so needed.

Now the series goes to Tampa for the next 2 games. It’s hard to believe Tampa will be swept, but it will be clutch to win one of these road games because the odds of ending the series at home in Game 5 are monumental.

Rangers lead 1-0. Score 6-2

Just about everything went the Rangers’ way last night, putting Tampa Bay on notice. A 6-2 win is shocking.

The question for Tampa coming into this game was what shape they would be in from having 9 days off. The clear disadvantage for the team turned out to be goaltender Vasilevskiy. He was out of his groove, missing some important shots. Igor Shesterkin, riding high from the last two games, was in the pocket. Now Vailevskiy wasn’t bad, I’d say there were 2 goals on him, the other 4 were incredibly well set up and placed shots that basically no one could have stopped.

Tampa’s best period was the first. The Rangers caught the first break by a mistake on defense and that put New York into the driver’s seat with confidence (the slap pass from Zibanejad to Kreider was ludicrous). But Tampa answered back quickly. A 1-1 game at the end of the first means nothing at this level, it’s anyone’s game. Both teams did play very well, the Rangers in particular because they came out of the gates flying, which they had to do. They frequently kept up with or out-skated Tampa, which is huge for a team that frequently and frustratingly starts games slowly.

The Rangers scored first in the second to take the lead once more and managed to hold on to that lead for longer than the first goal. This is where the game really felt like how everyone thought it would play out, extremely close with spurts of superiority from both teams. It would be a grueling 60 minutes that could go into overtime. But about halfway through the period, the narrative changed. The Rangers took control.

It was wild stuff from the Rangers. Igor legitimately kept them alive in the first period. He made some insane saves. He kept it tied when it could have been 3 or 4 to 1 in favor of Tampa. Then the whole team started firing on all cylinders. It didn’t matter what line was out there, they were giving Tampa no room to do what they wanted. The Rangers heavily outshot Tampa in the second and those shots on net turned into goals. Before long it was 4-2. That is a fantastic and needed buffer when playing Tampa. But Tampa could close that gap with the talent they have.

The start of the third period really ended the game. Panarin made a wrist shot that shocked everyone in the first 30 seconds. Three goals is a huge lead. Tampa looked deflated like they couldn’t believe what was happening. This hadn’t happened to them since the first game against Toronto 9 games ago. While they got more shots on goal than the Rangers in the final frame, the chances weren’t that great. Igor looked pretty casual through it.

There were so many impressive moments and tremendous plays that it’s hard to keep track of. The Ranger’s coaching staff did a tremendous job of coming up with a plan and relaying it to the players. The players executed for 60 minutes. Shooting, passing, checking, blocking, just about any mistake from one player was covered by a teammate. “The Kid Line” with Chytil, Lafreniere, and Kakko has come to life and added such depth to the team that whole new threats have emerged for Tampa to negotiate.

Tampa is a tremendous team who will make meaningful changes. They rarely make mistakes and when they do, they bounce back. It’s up to the Rangers to keep the same energy and determination in order to win again. Going up 2-0 would be massive.