Shadow leader: how Nichushkin's goal and pass helped Colorado defeat Tampa in the first match of the Stanley Cup final

On the eve of the first final match of the Stanley Cup, it was extremely difficult to single out a favorite.

Tampa Bay came into this series as a two-time trophy winner and with vast experience in decisive confrontations, and even with extremely charged leaders.

In the last six meetings, Nikita Kucherov scored nine (3 + 6) points and took fourth place in the scorers race, while Andrei Vasilevsky showed an ultra-reliable game and, along with his compatriot, was considered one of the main contenders for the Conn Smythe Trophy.

However, all this hardly scared the Colorado.

In the current playoffs, Jared Bednar's wards lost only twice, and trips to Denver, located in the highlands, are traditionally considered one of the hardest in the NHL, confirmation of this is the Avalanche's first place in the percentage of points on its ice in the regular season.

And in the first period, one could get the impression that the current champions feel extremely uncomfortable in the rarefied air.

And this applied not only to the field players of the Lightning, but also to their star goalkeeper.

Not only did the Avalanche almost double their opponents (15:8), but Vasilevsky for the first time in his career missed three times during the starting segment of the playoff meeting.

Moreover, all the goals fit in ten minutes, and two of them turned out to be quite offensive.

First, the Russian missed the puck with his armpit after Gabriel Landeskog's “shot” from a position that was not the most lethal, and then Valery Nichushkin hit him in the “house”.

Yes, this episode was not without a rebound, but this can hardly be a worthy excuse.

And although Vasilevsky himself did not act very reliably and in the first period reflected only 83.3% of the shots, this was largely the result of a lack of support from partners.

And this was especially felt in the episodes with the second and third goals.

First, the most experienced Victor Hedman twice failed to take the puck out of the zone and personally organized a productive attack by the hosts, and then, with a difference of 27 seconds, Mikhail Sergachev and Anthony Cirelli earned the removal.

Colorado gladly took advantage of such a gift and realized the numerical advantage.

In the course of a chic multi-move Mikko Rantanen shot, and Artturi Lehkonen put the stick in a timely manner.

As for the Lightning, in the first 20 minutes they only hit the target eight times, but at the same time they were able to surprise Darcy Kemper, who returned to action after an injury.

Nick Paul miraculously escaped from the tutelage of an experienced Jack Johnson and dealt with the goalkeeper in close combat.

At some point, it seemed that the Canadian lost control of the puck, but at the last moment, with an elusive movement, he managed to break it exactly into the far corner.

He was assisted by the same Hedman and Braden Point, who missed most of the playoffs due to injury.

The Canadian dropped out during the series with Toronto and did not go out on the ice for a whole month.

"Tampa" was in a difficult position, but managed to get together and in the second period restored parity.

Moreover, both goals were within 48 seconds, and the Russian stars of the Floridians took part in this.

First, Nikita Kucherov removed the defender with a spectacular feint and rolled out Ondreya Palata to the empty net, and then Sergachev was rehabilitated for his removal.

The signature swoop from the blue line turned out to be impossible for Kemper, who was closed by his own partners.

The defender scored the 28th (8 + 20) point in the playoffs and was on a par with Vyacheslav Fetisov (2 + 26) and Ilya Kovalchuk (11 + 17).

Kucherov, on the other hand, entered the elite club of 25 hockey players with 100 assists in the Stanley Cup.

And only three of them still continue to go on the ice - Joe Thornton (102), Evgeni Malkin (113) and Sidney Crosby (130).

Among other things, the Lightning forward became only the third hockey player in history to chalk up 90 points in three tournament draws.

Before him, only Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux submitted to such a bar.

More than 26 minutes remained before the end of regular time, but the guests failed to build on the success.

And although they created several dangerous moments in the final period, they again lost more than twice in the number of hits on target (5:11).

Throughout the meeting, "Colorado" looked fresh and forced Vasilevsky to work hard.

In total, the hosts made 38 shots on goal, while the guests responded with only 23.

However, the Russian goalkeeper again caught the courage and managed to drag his partners into overtime.

True, it lasted only 83 seconds, the reason for which was another Lightning error when leaving the zone.

This time, Sergachev was cut off, whose unsuccessful clearance became easy prey for JT Comfer.

The American's attempt was blocked by Hedman, who came to the rescue, but Nichushkin was the first to rebound.

The Russian drove a free Andre Burakovsky, and he "shot" Vasilevsky.

Tampa Bay was defeated by the Colorado on foreign ice and found itself in the role of catching up in the Stanley Cup Finals.

The truth is, she's not used to it.

Two years ago, she was beaten hard by Dallas on the road, but subsequently turned the tide of the confrontation and completed it in four matches.

And if the Lightning manage to make a comeback this time, they will confirm the emerging trend.

In the last four years, only one team has managed to win the series, taking the upper hand in the first meeting of the final.

It is noteworthy that this is the Lightning, who crushed the Canadiens a year ago - 4: 1.