5 Keys To Beating The Lighting In Eastern Conference Finals
The Pittsburgh Penguins have reached the halfway point in their quest for the Stanley Cup.
It's only going to get harder from here. So, stock up on Pepto Bismal or your preferred antacid of choice because Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals is tonight.
The Penguins reached this point with a redemption win over the Rangers in the first round. They followed that up by dispatching the Washington Capitals in the second round. The President's Trophy curse is alive and well, but at least the Caps get another banner out of it.
Before that second round series, I said the only team left in the Eastern Conference that could beat the Pens was the Caps. I still believe this to be true, but the Lightning will not be an easy opponent.
Here are five keys for the Penguins as they look to get back to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 2009.
1. Rattle Ben Bishop
The Penguins have already faced two tough goaltenders in these playoffs and a third awaits them in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Ben Bishop has appeared in seven games against the Penguins in his career. During that time, he's posted a 2-2 record with a 3.97 GAA and a .884 save percentage. For more perspective, he's allowed 20 goals on 173 shots.
While those career numbers aren't exactly good, he was 2-0 and only allowed five goals against the Pens this season.
Building on that, Bishop has been incredible in the playoffs. He enters the Eastern Conference Finals with an 8-2 record to go along with a 1.89 GAA and a .938 save percentage.
A year ago, he helped the Lightning reach the Stanley Cup Finals, where they fell in six games to the Blackhawks. During the run, he went 13-11 with a 2.18 GAA and a .921 save percentage. To say he is a big game goaltender would be an understatement.
At 6-feet-7-inches, Bishop also takes up a lot of net without having to do a whole lot. But, he's an incredibly gifted goaltender. However, like Henrik Lundqvist and Braden Holtby, he's human.
Traffic, deflections and rebound opportunities are imperative in this series. Once again, the Penguins will need to crash the crease and create havoc.
2. Murray Continues To Be Murray
Let's not make more of this than need be. There is no goaltending controversy in Pittsburgh entering this series. The only reason Marc-Andre Fleury isn't playing is because Matt Murray is playing at an incredibly high level.
He stared down Lundqvist and Holtby and didn't blink. Both the Rangers and Capitals tried to rattle him and were unsuccessful. He's been virtually flawless during this playoff run and there is literally no reason to switch to Fleury at this point.
Again, this is not a knock on Fleury. Should Murray falter in any way, I have total confidence in Fleury.
All this boils down to is that due to an injury, Murray has been given an opportunity and he's taken full advantage of it.
Murray enters the series with a 7-2 record to go along with a 2.05 GAA and a .935 save percentage.
To put it in perspective, among goalies left standing in the playoffs, Murray ranks second behind Bishop in both GAA and save percentage - barely.
So, forgive me for thinking it's entirely laughable to consider going away from the hot hand at this point.
It's Murray's net until he plays his way out of it. Plain and simple.
3. Star Power
The Penguins' stars led the way against the Rangers and I would expect to see them to return to form in this series.
Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby combined for just four points against the Capitals. However, both have performed well against Tampa Bay in the past.
In 31 career games, Crosby has 14 goals and 27 assists against the Lightning. Meanwhile, Malkin has 19 goals and 23 assists over the same number of games.
For Tampa Bay, Nikita Kucherov led the team in points during the regular season and he's back near top in the playoffs. In 26 playoff games a year ago, Kucherov had 10 goals and 12 assists. He's already got nine goals and three assists this year – in 10 games.
Against the Islanders, Kucherov had four goals alone. The Penguins would be wise to try and limit the impact both he and Tyler Johnson have on the scoresheet.
Johnson tore up the playoffs a year ago with 13 goals and 10 assists. He currently leads the Lightning with 13 points (four goals, nine assists). He's also on a four-game point streak (two goals, four assists).
4. Depth
The Rangers couldn't handle the Penguins' speed and neither could the Caps. That can't be said for Tampa Bay.
If you enjoy fast-paced hockey, this will be the series for you. Both teams can flat out skate and this should be a lot of fun to watch.
But, the deciding factor in the series just might come down to depth players.
Currently, the Lightning are without J.T. Brown, Anton Stralman and some guy named Steven Stamkos. Maybe you've heard of him.
All three of those guys are getting closer to possible returns, but just how close remains a mystery.
Much like the Penguins, the Lightning have come this far by getting contributions throughout the lineup.
One notable contribution has come from Jonathan Drouin, who has had a rather "interesting" season. He has stepped in remarkably well with nine points (one goal, eight assists).
Other guys like Jason Garrison (one goal, four assists), Brian Boyle (three goals) and Matthew Carle (three assists) have all contributed on offense as well.
For Pittsburgh, Carl Hagelin and Nick Bonino that put them over the top against Washington. Let's also not forget the play of Brian Dumoulin, Trevor Daley and Kris Letang on the blue line. All did a remarkable job against Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals.
Even if the stars do their thing, this series could very well come down to a goal or two coming from unlikely sources.
5. Special Teams
As with any playoff series, special teams will be highlighted.
After torching the Rangers, the Penguins struggled on the power play for the first four games against Washington. They finally got on the board in Game 5 before connecting for two crucial goals in the series-clincher.
In the playoffs, the Penguins' power play is clicking at a 27.5 percent rate, which ranks third in the league. At home, the Penguins have scored six power play goals on 22 chances (27.3 percent). That's good news given that the Penguins have home ice in this series.
Meanwhile, Tampa Bay's penalty kill has been quite good in the playoffs at 88.4 percent. In all, they have only surrendered five goals on 43 opposition power plays.
On the road, the numbers are even better – two goals against on 18 chances (88.9 percent).
As for their power play, Tampa Bay is only operating at 16.3 percent with seven goals on 43 chances. However, they have connected on four of their 15 opportunities on the road (26.7 percent).
As for the Penguins, their penalty kill is fifth in the playoffs at 83.3 percent.
Prediction
While Tampa Bay swept the season series, the last time these two teams met was on Feb. 20. That was well before the Penguins hit their stride. The Lightning also had Stamkos at the time.
To me, the Penguins are the better team on paper entering this series. They are a deeper squad than Tampa Bay and I think that will show itself over the course of the series.
I think the Lightning are better than the Rangers, but they are not quite to the same level as the Capitals. That said, this won't be an easy series and I don't expect it to be over quickly.
Even without Stamkos, the Lightning can skate and are very dangerous. It's no surprise they came out on top in the Atlantic Division bracket.
But, if the Penguins can get some more contributions from guys like Crosby and Malkin, it should be enough to beat Tampa Bay. For those reasons, I like Pittsburgh to make a return trip to the Stanley Cup Finals in six games.
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