World News – CA – Lightning VS Stars: 3 Keys to Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final

After winning Games 2 and 3 earlier this week, the Tampa Bay Lightning have the opportunity to take full control of the Stanley Cup Final against the Dallas Stars on Friday night (8 pm ET, NBC; direct)

Captain Steven Stamkos will miss his third game of the series, but the Lightning still have their top line and a full All-Star roster to help make up for his absence

The Stars, for their part, must hope that their top line can regain its striking touch before the series begins to elude them.

Now let’s get ready for Game 4 by looking at three keys to the game

One of the biggest issues the Stars have faced so far in this series is that they not only allowed themselves to find themselves in penalty issues early in the last two games, but they also have allowed the Lightning power play to start clicking again

With all this talent they have on the ice, you had to know that it was only a matter of time before they came out of this slump, and they did it in a big way during the games 2 and 3 with three power play goals

The power play unit helped revive Lightning’s Game 2’s victory early in the first period, then took away any momentum the Stars had started to gain in Game 3 when Jason Dickinson cut the deficit. two goals in two

Now that the Lightning power play is starting to regain its game, there really is only one surefire way to stop it.

On the one hand, you have the Lightning lead line of Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point and Ondrej Palat who continue to dominate

The trio have already combined five goals in the series’ first three games, while Kucherov and Point have parted ways claiming Conn Smythe all of the playoffs It’s not just the purpose that characterizes them, either The line is just an offensive steamroller that crushes anything that dares to get in its way

Kucherov has been particularly dominant in the playoffs with unmatched consistency that helps him redeem himself after a forgettable 2019 playoffs

On the other side, the Dallas front row consisting of Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn and Alexander Radulov has yet to score a single goal in this series, and it looks like coach Rick Bowness is considering at least l idea of ​​maybe dividing them in Game 4 on Friday Whether he separates them or keeps them together, the Stars must find a way to get their big three to at least try to match the Tampa Bay front row

I’m not going to blame Khudobin for the last two games It would be unfair, it would be insane, it would be wrong The Stars took penalties, they gave up chances, they had blackouts in front of him and there was some goals by chance that could slip behind him

But these same things happened in the Western Conference Finals against the Vegas Golden Knights, and the main reason the Stars were able to overcome them was the fact that Khudobin performed at an incredibly high level during these five games He also matched this level in the first game against Tampa Bay

The goalie was always going to be the X-factor in this series, and Dallas’ best chance was to sit with Khudobin playing like he did in the previous round. not happened Nothing would allow this series to return faster in favor of Dallas

Stars 4, Lightning 1 (recap)
Lightning 3, Stars 2 (recap)
Lightning 5, Stars 2 (recap) Game 4: Friday, September 25, 8 pm ET – NBC (livestream) Game 5: Saturday, September 26, 8 pm ET – NBC (livestream) * Game 6: Monday, September 28, 8 pm ET – NBC * Game 7: Wednesday, September 30, 8 pm ET – NBC

Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports Message him on phtblog @ nbcsportscom or follow him on Twitter @AGretz

As the Dallas Stars celebrated the tying goal at 8:25 to play in the third period, Kevin Shattenkirk felt a sinking feeling

Joe Pavelski’s shot from the face-off circle was stopped by Andrei Vasilevskiy, but the puck deflected from Shattenkirk’s knee and into the Tampa Bay Lightning tie, and any momentum got from the goal. ‘Alex Killorn five minutes earlier was missing

« In my head, I thought I deserved some kind of good karma after that, » he said after Game 4.

On the power play in overtime, Shattenkirk took a pass from Victor Hedman into the Stars’ zone He then skated in the same face-off circle where Pavelski took his shot that led to the tying goal With Dallas defenseman Jamie Oleksiak and Lightning forward Pat Maroon providing the screens, Shattenkirk scored his second career playoff overtime goal to put Tampa on the brink of a second Stanley Cup title.

“He’s scored big for all of us in the playoffs,” said forward Brayden Point “He’s so stable for us He’s working so hard He’s great in the room He’s a great leader for us , it keeps us tied to see Him bury one, it’s great « 

It’s been almost 14 months since Shattenkirk signed a one-year contract with the Lightning He was in the free agent market after being bought out by the Rangers, who signed him on a four-year contract, 26 $ 65 million in transactions in 2017 The end of his tenure with his city team was not how he originally envisioned it A bad knee affected his game and was ultimately factored into the decision, but time has become an asset

Time allowed Shattenkirk to regain his 100% health, and signing with Tampa put him on a blue line where he didn’t have to feel the pressure to produce or meet a big deal. He has scored eight goals and recorded 34 points in the regular season, his highest total since the 2016-17 season Carrying a chip on his shoulder kept his focus on a rebound season

« I never forget what happened last summer, » Shattenkirk said after game four « I used this to feed myself and just not to make myself comfortable »

Shattenkirk has two goals and four points in three wins in the Lightning Cup Final Friday night, he won his second game of the series after scoring Tampa’s third goal in a 3-2 victory in the second match

The universe has a way of having a night out as Shattenkirk discovered this season A year ago, he was looking to get his NHL career back on track It’s just one win away from becoming Stanley Cup champion

« We have a job to do here, it is still not finished », he said « Anyway I can contribute, whether it is scoring goals or to play solid defensively, whatever the team asks of me, that’s what I aim to do every night It’s a great teamwork so far Looking forward to tomorrow night because then everything could come full circle « 

Stars 4, Lightning 1 (recap)
Lightning 3, Stars 2 (recap)
Lightning 5, Stars 2 (recap)
Lighting 5, stars 4 [OT] (recap) Game 5: Saturday, September 26, 8 pm ET – NBC (livestream) * Game 6: Monday, September 28, 8 pm ET – NBC * Game 7: Wednesday, September 30, 8 pm ET – NBC

Sean Leahy is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports Message him on phtblog @ nbcsportscom or follow him on Twitter @Sean_Leahy

In the first three games of the 2020 Stanley Cup Final, the adage « No lead is sure » sounded a bit dangerous Leads worked pretty well for the Tampa Bay Lightning and Dallas Stars

But Game 4 ended up being a wilder affair Ultimately, the Lightning beat the Stars 5-4 in extra time in Game 4, leaving Tampa Bay a Stanley Cup victory with both teams turning to play Game 5 Saturday (8 pm ET on NBC: (livestream)

Deaths, Taxes, and Penalty Complaints When it comes to hockey, and really all professional sports, there aren’t many great games that go without the fans holding on

In what is arguably the least surprising development of all time, the Stars weren’t happy with the penalty Jamie Benn was whistled for after mingling with Tyler Johnson Joe Pavelski gripped in the most entertaining

« Jamie breathes on him and the guy falls… it’s in the playoffs, it’s overtime, we expect to fight » -Joe Pavelski on call on Benn in occupational therapy

Frankly, while Benn is not guilty of tripping, it’s not outrageous to call some sort of obstruction penalty for this trade

And let’s be honest as well: maybe the officials were looking for a chance to whistle a « makeup call » Brayden Point drew what could have been an honest penalty for some, uh, stick work on Corey Perry Instead, officials made a highly questionable beautification call at Point to level things off From there, Tyler Seguin took a penalty when Mikhail Sergachev greatly hampered him, giving the Stars a power play that was a 4-on-3 game and a 5v4 game in overtime

Here’s the thing When the competitions are as frantic as Game 4 of the 2020 Stanley Cup Final between the Stars and Lightning, you run into human limitations Officials are going to miss things

Listen, if this style of play continues, hockey fans will be thrilled Especially if the Stars can avoid being knocked out in Game 5

But you have to wonder if the Stars might want to calm the pace of this series

On the one hand, they’ve done well when the going gets tough in the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs The Stars were able to hang on with the Avalanche, and despite losing 3-1 , the fourth game was far from a certainty for the Lightning

Faster play can force you to hook someone up to slow them down Or catch a puck on a breakaway and trip your opponent Or just appear to be doing things

To that end, you wonder if the Stars can somehow find a way to slow things down like they did in the first two periods of Game 1 of the 2020 Stanley Cup Final. In the first 40 minutes, the Lightning didn’t receive a single power play opportunity The Stars actually won the penalty shootout in that span, opening the opener 18-14

Of course the stars were rested and the Lightning just finished fighting the Islanders It’s still worth chasing if you’re Dallas in my opinion

Is it because the Lightning are enjoying the power play Going 0 for 3 like the Stars did in Game 4? It happens; it’s only disastrous when the other team manages a ridiculous 3-for-4 exit Kevin Shattenkirk’s OTGWG was the killer, but the Lightning won Game 4 by dismantling the Stars’ PK efforts

There was luck, but the Lightning also moved the puck with confidence and a sense of danger.

Bowness needs to get back to the drawing board and find a way to mitigate what has been a huge advantage for Tampa Bay This unit has now scored six goals in that three-game winning streak on Yikes

It feels like his near-failure on a Game 4 power play is the story of his playoff career, other than his Stanley Cup win with Boston when he was still wet behind the ears

Despite the lack of that coveted goal, Seguin was a force for the Stars in Game 4 against the Lightning Seguin did just about all the work to set Corey Perry’s goal

It looked like Joe Pavelski’s 4-4 tally was actually part of Seguin, but instead it started off Kevin Shattenkirk But Seguin created chaos to get there

Seguin forced the issue for Mikhail Sergachev as well, taking a penalty in overtime The Stars couldn’t concede, but that, a few near misses and two assists turned into an argument that Seguin could regain his rhythm

(He’s probably dying to score that goal, of course.But at least Seguin looked alive for the Stars vs the Lightning in Game 4 of the 2020 Stanley Cup Final)

4 stars, 1 flash (summarize)
Lightning 3, stars 2 (sum up)
Flash 5, stars 2 (sum up)
Lightning 5, Stars 4 [OT] (recap) Game 5: Saturday, September 26, 8 pm ET – NBC (livestream) * Game 6: Monday, September 28, 8 pm ET – NBC * Game 7: Wednesday, September 30, 8 pm ET – NBC

James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports Message him on phtblog @ nbcsportscom or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins

The Stanley Cup Playoffs continue on Saturday September 19 in central Edmonton Now that we are in the Conference Finals, the full schedule for the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Final has been announced

The top four regular season teams from both conferences contested a three-game round robin to advance to the first round Eight best-of-5 qualifying round winners advanced to the first round

Stars 4, Lightning 1 (recap)
Lightning 3, Stars 2 (recap)
Lightning 5, Stars 2 (recap)
Lighting 5, stars 4 [OT] (recap) Game 5: Saturday, September 26, 8 pm ET – NBC (livestream) * Game 6: Monday, September 28, 8 pm ET – NBC * Game 7: Wednesday, September 30, 8 pm ET – NBC

EASTERN CONFERENCE
Philadelphia Flyers (3-0-0, 6 points)
Tampa Bay Lightning (2-1-0, 4 points)
Washington Capitals (1-1-1, 3 points)
Boston Bruins (0-3-0, 0 points)

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Vegas Golden Knights (3-0-0, 6 points)
Colorado Avalanche (2-1-0, 4 points)
Dallas Stars (1-2-0, 2 points)
St Louis Blues (0-2-1, 1 point)

After a thrilling round-trip 4 of the 2020 Stanley Cup Final, the Lightning took a 3-1 series lead by beating the Stars 5-4 in OT on Friday The Stars face the elimination with little time to collect their thoughts, as the Lightning aim to win the Stanley Cup in Game 5, Saturday (8 p.m. ET on NBC: (livestream)

Kevin Shattenkirk scored overtime winner on a power play after a polarizing penalty against Jamie Benn Hockey fans aren’t likely to argue this point, however: Match 4 of Stars – Lightning was the most fight exciting 2020 Stanley Cup Final

Throughout the first three games of the 2020 Stanley Cup Final, strong starts gave way to successful finishes.Game 4, on the other hand, required both the All-Star and the Lightning to handle the changes in lead

First, the stars hit early John Klingberg jumped on a loose puck after his initial (blocked) shot attempt to sneak one past Andrei Vasilevskiy From there, Alexander Radulov used the power of geometry to get out Jamie Benn, who made a shrewd pass to set a goal from Joe Pavelski About a minute and a half to go in the first period, the Stars were leading 2-0

Kevin Shattenkirk sent Ondrej Palat to the ice, then Palat fed Brayden Point with a fabulous pass In that half breakaway, Palat scored a nice goal to make it 2-1 at the end of the first

Soon after, Point scored once again to tie 2-2 Point conceded on a wacky rebound, but the Lightning power play looked dangerous before he scored It wouldn’t be the last time man’s advantage makes a big game

Tyler Seguin didn’t score the goal 3-2, but he did it Seguin did just about everything except scoring by creating havoc around the Lightning net, then Corey Perry hit him

It looked like the Stars were going to climb 4-2 on a rebound attempt from Nicholas Caamano, but Vasilevskiy made such a nice save that he won his own position.

Instead of falling behind 4-2, the Lightning power play did it again, with Yanni Gourde cashing in luckier rebounds

So the two teams entered the third period tied 3-3, and the twists continued To start, Alex Killorn set up a prayer of a shot that beat Anton Khudobin Khudobin was criticized for this 4-3 goal, but it is also fair to note an accidental projection by John Klingberg

It could have been a winner of the game, but not in this one Joe Pavelski’s shot bounced off Kevin Shattenkirk (and almost Tyler Seguin?) to bring the score to 4-4 Remarkably, Game 4 is went into overtime, which is the first 2020 Stanley Cup Final competition to require an OT

As extra time approached, Point took a penalty on Corey Perry, only officials made a questionable beautification call on Point With the two teams 4 on 4, Tyler Seguin shot what appeared to be a fateful penalty on Mikhail Sergachev

After the Lightning power play dominated during settlement, would the Stars score in the midst of controversy? No, not yet at least

Following a successful Lightning PK kill, Tampa Bay also received a power play chance early in overtime This had its own controversy, as some did not buy Jamie Benn guilty of an offense against Tyler Johnson

At the end of this power play opportunity, Kevin Shattenkirk continued his rollercoaster of a Game 4 (and a few seasons, really) with the game winner in overtime It wasn’t until Game 4 of the 2020 Stanley Cup Final that the Stars lost in OT for the first time in this playoff.

The Lightning power play continued to strike in Game 4, and just like that, the Stars are on the verge of elimination in the 2020 Stanley Cup Final

4 stars, 1 flash (summarize)
Lightning 3, stars 2 (sum up)
Flash 5, stars 2 (sum up)
Lightning 5, Star 4 [OT] Game 5: Saturday, September 26, 8 pm ET – NBC (livestream) * Game 6: Monday, September 28, 8 pm ET – NBC * Game 7: Wednesday, September 30, 8 pm ET – NBC

James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports Message him on phtblog @ nbcsportscom or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins

Lightning vs Stars