On the eve of the start of the NHL finals, the opinions of forecasters about the future victor of the couple were divided almost equally, the Avalanche had only a slight advantage of a few percent. Starting with Tampa, we will figure out how each of the finalists can take home the coveted trophy.

Best Goalkeeper

Photo: © REUTERS/Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Andrei Vasilevsky, if not the best goalkeeper in the NHL right now, then at least the strongest of the participants in the Stanley Cup Finals. In the previous round, he did not fold against the future owner of Vezina, Igor Shesterkin, playing reliably when it was necessary. In the decisive matches for reaching the next round, Vasilevsky has impressive statistics: in eight meetings, he allowed his opponents to hit his goal only twice. Overall, he is one of the top five goaltenders in this playoff, with an average save percentage of almost 93. By comparison, Colorado goaltenders Francoise and Kümper don’t even reach 91%.

It is curious that the reliability of Vasilevsky allows Tampa not only not to look back, but also not to tear the veins in the attack:

“In the last two games, it was enough for us to score just twice to win,” Tampa captain Steven Stamkos said after reaching the final. – This says everything about the capabilities of Vasilevsky.

It is in the confrontation with the “Colorado” this moment is very important. Given the pressure that the Avalanches will bring down on the opponent, the Lightning may not have many scoring chances. And the less the need to implement them, the better for the team.

Vasilevskiy’s importance to the Lightnings in this final is hard to overestimate: the current Colorado, which rips opponent after opponent and scores more than four goals per game in the playoffs on average, has not yet had to play a series against a superstar goalkeeper. There is a chance that Avalanche players will be unpleasantly surprised.

Trump up your sleeve

Photo: © Frank Gunn / Keystone Press Agency / Global Look Press

The entire series with the Rangers, as well as the previous one with Florida, Tampa played without an injured forward Braden Point, who is in the top 5 of the team’s best forwards. In each of the previous two playoffs, he scored 14 goals – the best among the Lightning players. This is the kind of sniper the team needs in the final. Apparently, he will finally be able to play, and this improves the chances of “Tampa” to the final success, because the depth of the squad is something in which it is inferior to Colorado without a chance.

The advantage of Point’s return is not only in strengthening the lightning attack, but also in adding variability to the team’s strategy. If Colorado carefully studied how Tampa broke the Rangers in the semi-finals, then by the final this information may already be outdated. With the appearance of Point, who plays either a center or a winger, the lineup will change slightly, as will the lightning scheme. The very surprise that Colorado would prefer to avoid.

An experience

Photo: © Vladimir Prycek / CTK / Global Look Press

Over the past three seasons, Tampa seems to do nothing but play hockey. During this time, she spent a record 65 games in the playoffs – the same number as Chicago played from 2013 to 2015. Each meeting right through is an invaluable experience that helps Tampa not make mistakes in every next confrontation. It was thanks to him that the Lightning pulled out the first round series with Toronto (losing 2-3), easily rolled out the regular season champion Florida in the conference semifinals and morally destroyed the Rangers, who believed too much in themselves after two victories at the start.

Despite the occasional roster renewal, this season, Tampa retained the championship backbone of 13 current Stanley Cup winners. At the same time, each of them knows not only how to win, but, most importantly, how to overcome the pressure that accompanies the final series. This is what can easily break the game of a rookie finalist, who in theory can be ready for anything, but in practice does not know what to expect from the decisive battle for the Cup.