We are at the point where teams are advancing and likewise teams are being eliminated. Monday saw two teams facing a 3-1 series deficit, one lives to play another night, the other has been eliminated. The second round is where we start to see the contenders emerge and it’s possible we are seeing this even in the hub cities of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Monday’s games leave more reflection than they do anticipation (at least after the first game of the night).
Bruins–Lightning
The Lightning started out the Stanley Cup playoffs with a thrilling triple-overtime victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets. Going full circle, they closed out the series against the reigning Eastern Conference champions and presidents trophy winner Boston Bruins in double overtime. The Lightning couldn’t close out the series with a 2-1 lead in the waning minutes but as a reminder of last season, they are not taking their foot off the gas and they were able to recompose themselves and score the series advancing goal.
Just like that, the Bruins are eliminated and I’m still scratching my head. The Bruins had the best record in the NHL in the regular season and looked like the most complete team with little are no flaws at all. This team fell flat after game one, while the games were close they looked like a significantly less talented squad and Boston lost four games in a row (I honestly thought this was going to be the most competitive series). The first thing to affect them was Tuukka Rask opting out, the lack of one of the best goalies in the NHL showed and the Stanley Cup playoffs are historically a goalie driven playoff. One has to question if the roster was fully healthy (David Pasternak might have been hurt following game one against the Hurricanes) or if the roster is once again falling into contempt (a group of veterans that overestimated themselves). The bottom line is that the Bruins are going to look different next season, Chara might have played his final game and the Hall of Famer will be missed.
Avalanche–Stars
The Avalanche didn’t just win to avoid elimination, they did so in one period. The Avalanche were favored to win this series and were regarded as one of the Cup favorites, down 3-1 in the series they proved why. Colorado has the ability to come back but it doesn’t seem likely. The problem with the Avalanche is that in order to win, they must score at least five goals, the defense and goaltending has been poor and sometimes pitiful. The Avalanche have a great offense but it will be a tall order to ask them to score 5 goals every night, they can possibly overcome the 3-1 deficit if they find an answer in net (or the defense focuses on playing defense, go figure).
