We move onto Montreal with the defending champ Lightning leading these Finals 2-0.
Montreal played much better in Game 2, but still lost 3-1 despite out shooting Tampa 43-23, despite carrying the pace of the game, depite in fact playing about as good as they can hope to play…they still lost.
They gave up a goal in the waning seconds of the second period, then basically gift wrapped the Tampa third goal when defenseman Joel Edmonton made a non-chalant blind pass behind net to Tampa.
That’s now two goals in two games in which a Canadian defenseman has made the knucklehead play of the game or the equivalent of Shaqin’ the Fool. Two horrible hockey plays.
Those type of plays simply cannot occur for Montreal to have a chance.
Carey Price played better in Game 2, but Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy played even better and was the No. 1 Star of the Game.
Vasilevskiy is my Conn Smythe leader in the clubhouse as we head into Game 3. He’s been Tampa’s most valuable player and that isn’t a shock based on how he’s played all season long.
We’ve now played 120 minutes in these Stanley Cup Finals and the Canadians have been outscored a collective 8-2 and have never had the lead for a singular second so far.
I would think Montreal scoring the first goal tonight would be paramount for the Canadians to have some success tonight.
I don’t need to play the Al Pacino video because Montreal played very hard and at a high level in Game 2 minus the dumbass turnover on the third goal.
Tampa just played better.
Montreal has to figure out how to put the puck in the net against Andrei Vasilevskiy tonight. Someone wearing a Canadian jersey needs to score some goals and finish a play or two.
Maybe being in front of a home crowd will help Montreal score some goals.