June 4, 2015

Chicago stages a comeback in Game 1, concerns over Pekka Rinne for fantasy next year, and thoughts on Sergei Bobrovsky.

****

As is the norm for Thursdays, I will have a forum thread in the Dobber Forums open for fantasy hockey questions from readers. I will open it up around 12:00 ET and all questions are welcome

****

Tampa Bay dropped the opening game of the Stanley Cup Final in heartbreaking fashion losing 2-1 to Chicago, It was really a tale of two games. Tampa Bay came out hard in the first period to grab a 1-0 lead. According to hockeystats.ca, the five-on-five shot attempts were 19-8 for the Lightning. Over the next 40 minutes, the 'Hawks would have the monster advantage in that regard 37-16. It's not a mere case of the 'Hawks just firing from everywhere, either. The scoring chances worked out about the same way. It was a matter of the Lightning sitting back, more than happy to defend rather than attack. That might be the default manner to play a game as the clock is winding down in the third period, but when Chicago scored to tie the game, it seemed like it was just a matter of when, not if, they would get that tying goal. The feed from CBC showed the Lightning employing the 1-3-1 in the neutral zone as they did under Guy Boucher, though appeared more aggressive on the puck carrier. For those that might be a little foggy on the details, take a gander at this video of what they used to do in the neutral zone: