Well, it appears I owe the Colorado Avalanche a mea culpa. Contrary to my prediction, they defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games and hoisted the Stanley Cup as champions of the 2021-22 season. While I’m on the apology tour, I also owe a big one to Darcy Kuemper, but that’ll come later. Weekly
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Stanley Cup playoffs are always full of excitement and surprises, and as the best players tend to lead their teams deep into playoffs, the supporting cast and unexpected players are the ones who help push the team to the next level. We are going to look at five players who had breakout performances during
The Tampa Bay Lightning suffered an extremely difficult 3-2 overtime loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday for a few reasons. In falling behind 3-1 in the Stanley Cup Final, it appears that Nazem Kadri’s game-winner should not have been allowed because the Avalanche had too many men on the ice. Yet, it was not
In today’s NHL rumors rundown, reports have surfaced that the Florida Panthers are actively trying to trade Sergei Bobrovsky. What are they willing to do to move him? Meanwhile, the Dallas Stars are expected to name Peter DeBoer their next head coach. Are the Vancouver Canucks in the market for a top-four defenseman? What will
The dream of any aspiring NHL’er is to one day hoist the Stanley Cup above your head. For many, this goal remains a dream, as even reaching the Cup Final is a feat of sports, let alone winning it all multiple times. Yet, since the 2019 Playoffs, one player has become accustomed to holding the
In today’s NHL rumors rundown, the Stanley Cup Final starts tonight with the Colorado Avalanche taking on the Tampa Bay Lightning. What buzz is there heading into Game 1 about both teams? Meanwhile, there is news that the Philadelphia Flyers have offered John Tortorella the head coaching job. What did John Gibson have to say
There is a reason why three-peats are rare in major sports. However, the Tampa Bay Lightning are looking to be the first team since the 1980-83 New York Islanders to win three consecutive Stanley Cup championships. The last team to accomplish this feat in all of major sports was the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers from
With the 4-1 win on June 7, the Tampa Bay Lightning have tied the Eastern Conference Final at two games apiece. After going down 2-0 in the series, the Lightning have completely turned it around and head to New York City Thursday with all the momentum. Tuesday night featured a patented performance by the Lightning,
Whether or not the Tampa Bay Lightning move on for a chance at a third straight Stanley Cup, Sunday’s dramatic victory is just one more example of a team that showed a lot of resiliency this season. For a great deal of the 2021-22 regular season and the playoffs, there was doubt that this team
There is plenty of star power on the Tampa Bay Lightning — Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Victor Hedman, Brayden Point. But in the postseason during this historic run, it’s been the contributions from those that don’t get the spotlight or praise from national pundits that have made the difference. In their Game 3
The Tampa Bay Lightning find themselves deep into the playoffs once again, led by their core group of players and their ability to elevate their play once the games really matter. It hasn’t mattered how the Lightning have gotten themselves into the playoffs, only that they make the most of their opportunity once they are
The Tampa Bay Lightning have moved one step closer to their third straight Stanley Cup but will have to deal with the New York Rangers, who defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 6-2 in Game 7 of their series to advance to the Eastern Conference Final, before moving one step closer to that goal. If the Lightning
Somebody once said that coaches get too much praise when their teams perform well, but too much criticism when things aren’t going well. However, in the case of Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper, he may not be getting enough recognition for the success of this team. This assumption is mostly based on the
Facing a critical Game 4 against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Tampa Bay Lightning stormed out of the gates en route to a convincing 7-3 victory to even the best-of-seven game series at two wins apiece. Ross Colton scored twice while Andrei Vasilevskiy had 22 saves. The Lightning started the came with a sense of
Throughout the history of the NHL, there are only a few moments that were so impactful on a team or the league that it was immortalized by being turned into a statue. When you think of those people, it brings to mind legends of the game like Bobby Orr, whose heroics on the ice are
In this edition of “NHL Talk,” these are the top hockey stories with quotes from players, coaches, managers, and more. Check Tom Pepper’s profile every day for a new edition of the “NHL Talk” column. Penguins Lock-In First-Round Matchup With Rangers The Pittsburgh Penguins locked in its first-round matchup with the New York Rangers in a 5-3
In this edition of “NHL Talk,” these are the top hockey stories with quotes from players, coaches, managers, and more. Check Tom Pepper’s profile every day for a new edition of the “NHL Talk” column. Blackhawks Get Back in Win Column Following Two-Game Skid The Chicago Blackhawks ended a two-game losing streak with a 3-1 win against
The Dallas Stars begin a stretch of seven of their final 10 games at home with a Tuesday night battle against the Tampa Bay Lightning. A Vital Stretch Begins for Dallas There is no hiding the importance of this stretch for the Dallas Stars. They enter tonight’s game just one point ahead of the Vegas