Puck It: Debriefing the Second Round

A lot went down in the last two days, 3 game sevens that leave us with our final four. Instead of looking at the 3 game sevens individually, I thought I’d look back at what the second round taught us and what we can expect looking forward. The hub city format has given us a different brand of playoff hockey and one that has to be focused on as we now only have four teams remaining with the quest to hoist the Stanley Cup.

Tampa Bay vs Boston was the only decisive series

Boston won the opening game of the series but fell flat and lost the series in five. This was intended to be the most competitive series of the Second Round and instead became a one-sided bout. Two things come to mind when thinking of the collapse of the Boston Bruins. Tuukka Rask opting out had greater implications than most anticipated. Anyone who watched the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs knows how vital Rask was for the Bruins. The Bruins initially appeared unfazed by Rask leaving the team but when they played a Lightning team that can score at will, it started to show. The second issue the Bruins ran into was the Tampa bay Lightning. This Lightning team has the group of players that were pivotal to their success in recent years but with a greater motivation this year. Aside from not having any glaring weaknesses, the Lightning has clearly proven that they will not take their foot off the gas as the previous season (I’m reminded of the Virginia Cavaliers getting beaten by a 16 seed only to win the National Championship the next year, that’s enough basketball for this post).

The fact that the Boston-Tampa series was only a one-sided series speaks volumes to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The remaining battles were all decided by one game, with many of the games being decided by one goal or one penalty or error or save. The difference between winning and losing the cup is minimal and looking back we can see instances where any series could have gone either way. Part of what makes the Stanley Cup Playoffs great is the unpredictability but the unpredictability extends beyond a series, it can happen on the mere deflection of the puck or shattered stick.

Goalie depth is more is vital for a run this year

The hub cities have proven in a major way that unlike previous Stanley Cup Playoffs, one great goalie can’t carry a team. Historically, the Stanley Cup Playoffs are when great goalies rise the occasion and lead a team to the Stanley Cup. Think of the impact Jonathan Quick had on the Los Angeles Kings or Corey Crawford when Chicago was a dynasty, good goalies would lead some teams to have the best record in the NHL but the great ones were the netminders that would bring a team the Cup.

This season hasn’t proven to be similar, rather we see the importance of goalie depth. The Stars and Avalanche had to dig deep into their depth charts to find the right goaltenders as injuries and poor play have ravaged the team’s play. The Flyers have one of the best young goalies in the game in Carter Hart but saw the series swing into the Islanders momentum in game four, a game where both teams went to backups and Brian Elliott proved to be a few steps behind Thomas Griess, the Islanders took the game and 3-1 lead in the series. The Islanders were able to prove again the importance of goalie depth in game seven, after consecutive losses with Semyon Varlamov in net, the Islanders went to Griess to close out the series and he gave the Islanders a 4-0 shutout victory (albeit, only 16 shots were on the net). We see the importance of goaltending depth in Vegas as they have both Robin Lehner and Marc-Andre Fleury as the ideal one-two punch for a Cup run, Lehner has been playing at an elite level but Fleury is a proven backup that can give Lehner a night off at any time and still give the Golden Knights the victory.

It’s important to note that the teams aren’t getting as much rest as a usual playoff run would provide. A travel day would usually mean that there would be an extra night off but with no travel, teams play back to back nights. The constant action is most exhausting on the goalies, it can be argued that Vancouver’s goalie Thatcher Demko simply ran out of gas in game seven as it was his third game in four days.

Depth but what does depth mean?

It’s an established cliche that depth wins championships. The NHL has proven that in order to win a Stanley Cup, a team needs to have great players in every line and can’t have any weak links. What does depth look like in a Stanley Cup run? How is depth different in the hub city format?

Watching the Islanders defeat the Flyers one can only think of how the third line and special teams lines of the Islanders were able to overpower and control the series. Jean Gabriel Pageau is a third-line center, yet has been one of the Islanders’ best scorers in the playoffs and was one of the best overall players in the series against the Flyers. Andy Greene was a deadline acquisition with the purpose of adding to the later lines of defense, Greene is an ideal defender for head coach Barry Trotz, a well-disciplined, hard-hitting, shot-blocking defender that can be a vital piece on one of the secondary lines.

Watching Las Vegas overpower Vancouver makes one think that the stars for Vegas are the ones that have been winning games. The Golden Knights have seen some of the best play from their third line in Paul Stastny and Alex Tuch, both lesser-known but potent scorers in the playoffs. The playoffs are not a time where stars go to die, rather the great scorers are faced with great defense and great goaltending. Vegas has established scorers in Max Pacioretty, William Karlson, and Mark Stone but to advance the Knights needed players like Stastny to step up, which they have.

Looking Forward, what will hurt each team’s chances of making the cup?

Of the four teams left in the field, I see two that have supposed weaknesses and two that I would say are their own worst enemy.

The Dallas Stars might be considered with the defensive play. They may have been able to beat the Colorado Avalanche despite allowing four goals and may have been bailed out by the high-scoring offense. They were able to get away with that against the Avalanche, a team that didn’t have great goaltending throughout the series, but that won’t fly against Vegas. Vegas will halt that offense and have the ability to turn the series ugly if Dallas can’t find the ideal defense.

The Islanders will need to see more production from the top line. Mathew Barzal has been great throughout the playoffs but Anders Lee has only one goal in the last four games and didn’t have a single assist in the series against the Flyers and on the other wing, Jordan Eberle hasn’t scored since game one against the Washington Capitals. The Islanders are about to play a Lightning team that might have the best top line in the NHL, Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point are going to score but Mathew Barzal and Anders Lee are going to have to keep up with them to make this a series (granted there is more weight on the defense to stop stars like Kucherov but the top line needs to keep pace).

So far, the Vegas Golden Knights and the Tampa Bay Lightning have been their own worst enemies. Both teams have looked like the most complete teams since the playoffs began and the only time either team has struggled is when they became contempt with their play. Both teams look poised to play each other in the Stanley Cup Final as they have shown little weakness and have all the tools necessary for a run at the Cup.