The Stanley Cup Finals have a new look this year. A new logo resides in the corner of your television screen, the ESPN logo rather than the everlasting NBC Sports logo. Doc Emerick, a legend within the hockey broadcasting business, is no longer heard on the airwaves.
If you are a Tampa Bay Lightning fan, none of this matters to you. The only thing that matters now is fighting back against the count, and attempting to even up the series. The Lightning put themselves into more a hole on Saturday night, losing the second game of the series, by a score of 7-0.
Recap
The Avalanche wasted no time getting to business in the first period, scoring three minutes into the game, on a power play goal from Valeri Nichushkin. Ryan McDonagh was the reason for the power play. He was sent out two minutes prior for roughing JT Compher.
Just four minutes later, Josh Manson scored again for Colorado on a 2-on-1 favoring the Avs. This was already Colorado’s tenth shot attempt in the affair. The Avalanche went on to put in one more goal in the first to make the game 3-0 heading to the first intermission.
To start off the second period, the Lightning played pretty well defensively. The Avalanche had three straight missed or saved shots. Tampa’s defensive performance came to a halt when the clock hit 15 minutes, as Valeri Nichushkin, who had an assist earlier, scored himself. Darren Helm scored later in the second period.
There were two more goals to score for the Avalanche in the third period. Two minutes and four seconds into the period, and down one player in Mikko Rantanen, Cale Makar managed to score a short-handed goal for Colorado. Makar continued his scoring just nine minutes later, this time on a power play.
After the game, Jon Cooper, head coach of the Lightning, said, “They’re playing at an elite level right now, give them credit. We are not.”
The Lightning will return home on Monday night for Game 3 on ABC.