TAMPA – Colorado Avelanche know that the Stanley Cup will be in the building and that they will have a chance to win it in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup final against Tampa Bay Lightning at the Ball Arena on Friday (20:00 ET; ABC, ESPN +, CBC, SN, TVAS).
But no matter how challenging, Avalanche try not to think about a potential celebration with the Home Ice Cup.
“I have the feeling that every series is always the next game,” Colorado defender Kale Makar said on Thursday. “So for us our focus is only on the next match and no matter what happens, we will still be a confident group.
“Obviously we have a great opportunity here to win something great for the team, but at the end of the day we just have to focus on ourselves and play our game and then wherever that takes us, it takes us.”
Colorado led 3-1 in the best of 7 series and closed its first championship since 2001, when center Nazem Kadri scored 12:02 after extra time to win 3-2 in Game 4 in Tampa Bay on Wednesday. It was an emotional ending with Kadri, who was a hero in his return after missing four games after hand surgery.
[RELATED: Stanley Cup Final coverage | Stanley Cup Final schedule]
However, Avalanche enjoyed such moments well during the Stanley Cup playoffs and then moved on to the next task. In this case, he is trying to complete Lightning, who have been steadfast in their attempts to win the Cup for a third consecutive season.
Tampa Bay trailed the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 in the first round and won the last two games of this series, including game 6 after extra time to advance. Lightning then lost the first two games of the Eastern Conference Finals to the New York Rangers before returning to win six games in their 11th straight win in the playoffs.
“We know what is at stake, but at the same time what Tampa is [Bay] will bring and we will have to put other emotions aside and focus on the game, “said Avalanche striker Darren Helm.” As Cale said, we have a band that believes, but we also know that Tampa will play its best game. . So we need to put all that outside noise aside and just focus on what we need to do tomorrow. “
Colorado finished the first round against the Nashville Predators and the Western Conference final against the Edmonton Oilers in their first attempts to sweep each series. The exception was the 5-4 overtime loss to St. Louis Blues in Game 5 of the second round.
Leading 3-1 in this series, Avalanche jumped to a 3-0 lead in the second period of game 5 and took a 4-3 lead with 2:46 remaining in the third period, but could not finish the game and lost in a center goal of Tyler Bozak with 3:38 after extra time. But Colorado regrouped two days later in Game 6 when they came back after losing twice and winning 3-2 to advance.
“I like the way we ended the series,” said Avalanche coach Jared Bednar. “I think the hardest and the one we had to come back from against the Blues was a real heavy loss at home and we went there in their building and played very well. Then the other series in Edmonton we had to go back in Game 4 and do a good job of sticking to our efforts and playing according to our identity. Really, the whole playoff we were trying to make. Some nights are better than others.
“But I don’t see why we shouldn’t go out and try to play on our identity.
Teams leading 3-1 in the cup final with the best score of 7 win the series 35-1 (.972). The 1942 Maple Leafs are the only team to rise from such a hole in the Cup final; they came back from a 3-0 loss to the Detroit Red Wings.
Helm was in a similar position to the Red Wings during the 2008 Stanley Cup final against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Detroit led 3-1 in this series with a chance to win the Cup at home in Game 5, but lost 4-3 in a triple overtime before bouncing 3-2 in Game 6 in Pittsburgh to win the Cup of Stanley.
“It’s an opportunity, but what we’ve said is a big game where we just have to focus on what we have to do,” Helm said. “I don’t think we’re thinking of anything other than the game itself. Play as much as we can, prepare and let things take care of themselves.”
Add Comment