The second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2020 is in full swing, and we’ve already quelled a bit of everything: tight games, blowouts and controversy – and that was all just on Sunday!
While the matchup between the Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning was still in doubt until the finish, the Vegas Golden Knights used some motivation on the ice to thank their running win over the Vancouver Canucks in Game 1.
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Monday’s games
All times Eastern.
Game 1: No. 1 Philadelphia Flyers vs. No. 7 New York Islanders | 19 hours
These long-time rivals face each other in the playoffs for the first time since 1987, and it should be a juicy series. The Flyers ‘offense stopped in the final round against the Montreal Canadiens (11 goals in six games) and the Islanders will not make it defensively easy: They have conceded just nine goals at 5-on-5 in nine games from’ t summer. “There’s no question I think there’s another level we need to reach,” Philly GM Chuck Fletcher said over the weekend. The Islanders were allowed to spend the weekend moving to the Royal York Hotel and into the more luxurious Hotel X, where the rest of the remaining Eastern Conference teams will remain. “I think we’ve become pretty comfortable in this hotel, so it’s maybe bitter,” Brock Nelson said. “I’m sure it’s going to be fun to get a change of pace, a change of scenery.”
Game 2: No. 2 Colorado Avalanche vs. No. 3 Dallas Stars (DAL leads 1-0) | 9.45am
Avalanche goalkeeper Philipp Grubauer was injured in Game 1, and he has already been ruled out for this match. Well, Pavel Francouz gets a chance. “He has proven himself,” defender Ian Cole said. “He came in and played great for us. We will trust Frankie to do his thing.” Coach Jared Bednar may not make any other roster moves. “I want to give our boys a chance to respond before I start making drastic changes,” Bednar said. “They’ve banked a lot of confidence based on how they’ve played.” The Stars come to this game with four straight wins, scoring 19 goals in that span. At the risk of being a bit too carried away by a small sample size: Dallas’ big three of Jamie Benn, Alexander Radulov and Tyler Seguin are starting to look alike again.
About last night …
Boston Bruins 3, Tampa Bay Lightning 2 (BOS leads 1-0)
It’s the marquee’s second-round marquee – with the two best teams in the Eastern Conference this season – and in Game 1 it was all about the Bruins. The score was not as close as expected (the Lightning added a late goal, the second of the match by Victor Hedman, to save face). At the start of his team, Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said, “It was completely disappointing, to be honest.” The Lightning would have had some bursts of dominance, including the second period, but Jaroslav Halak was on point, stopping 35 shots. “He was dominant during that period,” Bruce coach Bruce Cassidy said. “The other two goals, I think one went into Charlie [McAvoy], the other had eyes, so they certainly got a few lucky ones. But boy, did he make some savings in the second where they probably deserved better. ” Full review.
0:29
Bruins forward Charlie Coyle deflected a shot past Tampa Bay goalkeeper Andrei Vasilevskiy to give the Bruins the first goal of the game.
Vegas Golden Knights 5, Vancouver Canucks 0 (VGS leads 1-0)
The Canucks are now Canada’s team, as the last remaining hope in the country would break their Stanley Cup drought in 2020, which dates back to 1993. Game 1 was not exactly encouraging. The Golden Knights’ top strikers – Reilly Smith, Jonathan Marchessault, Alex Tuch, Mark Stone and Max Pacioretty – all scored to chase Jacob Markstrom out of the net in his 11th consecutive playoff start. Meanwhile, Vancouver’s trio of star offensive talents – Brock Boeser, Elias Pettersson, Quinn Hughes – have not recorded a shot on goal. Robin Lehner got his first playoff shutout with a 26-save performance. “I thought we were playing a hell of a game,” Lehner said. “It was fun to come out strong and start the series strong.” Full review.
Three stars
Brad Marchand, LW, Boston Bruins
With two points in Game 1, Marchand tied Bobby Orr for seventh in postseason points in the history of the Bruins (92). He now also has 28 multipoint playoff games, and third in the history of the Bruins behind Ray Bourque (46) and Phil Esposito (29).
Robin Lehner, G, Vegas Golden Knights
It was his first career playoff close, and it came after a weekend in which he was unexpectedly dragged into a controversy on social media when Marc-Andre Fleury’s agent tweeted a photo that claimed that his client was wrong from the playing time. “Me and Marc, we were just laughing,” Lehner said. “It’s always the media and everyone who makes a big deal out of this. I think me and Marc, we get along really well. He’s a very good man. This team in general since I’ve been here is hell of a group and everyone is really tight.At the end of the day, [Fleury] did nothing. It was his agent, and if he wants to be unprofessional, then go ahead. He looks terrible. “
Jaroslav Halak, G, Boston Bruins
With Tuukka Rask out of the bubble, Halak has gone on to go 4-0 with a .930 saving percentage and 1.75 goals-against average. The Lightning had 12 chances with high dangers in Game 1, and Halak stopped them all en route to a performance of 35 saved in the victory.
Bubble content of the day
Shoutout to Tyson Jost (and his grandmother!) For delivering this hot bubble update:
Tyson Jost gets family reunions handed over to his siblings’ bubble in Edmonton, including his grandmother’s homemade almond butter cookies, which he has shared for generations with teammates like Ian Cole. @Avalanche
– Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) August 23, 2020
Transaction of the day
Vladdy is locked up.
De #NHLBruins have signed @danvladar after a three-year contract extension.
📰 Full details: https://t.co/Rm0TicOww1 pic.twitter.com/kXEALKkJlc
– Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) August 24, 2020
The fact that the Bruins extended 23-year-old backup goalkeeper Dan Vladar is not exactly surprising. Boston has baked two back-to-backs in its series against the Lightning, and there’s a good chance that Vladar (zero games of the NHL experience) will get a shot at starting one of these. However, the timing was interesting. Boston made the announcement in the middle of Game 1. It is unclear whether any Vladar brought a pen and clipboard to the bench.
Quote of the day
“As for the image, I just wanted to say that Allan has been my agent for a long time. I’ve loved him since I was 15. I really appreciate his passion for the game. I think it was a way to defend me that I was not a many play, but I’m here to win with my team. “- Vegas goalkeeper Marc-Andre Fleury, in response to the biggest controversy of the weekend: His agent, Allan Walsh, tweeted a photo out of Fleury who turned out to be stabbed by a sword with the name of coach Pete DeBoer inscribed on it. Walsh would later delete the tweet at Fleury’s request.
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