As per my comments in the thread "Predator Uniforms..., last night the Dallas Stars failed repeatedly to gain the inside position when defending their own net and their power play was terrible. The lightning did better at both. The end result is as expected. The Lightning take game two 3-2. (I did not see Game one which Dallas won.)
A good example of a major defensive lapse is given by the first Lighting goal scored by Point(#21) from directly in front the Stars net on a Lighting power play. Four Dallas defenders, in a diamond configuration, which they play when a man down, look on helplessly. Unfortunately Dallas's configuration left a gap immediately in front of the Dallas net into which Braden Point slipped and parked himself while waiting for the puck to be passed to him. The Dallas configuration is nice on the coaches white board, but on the ice defenders, regardless of whether a team is short handed , must always achieve the inside position next to, and not a sticks length away from, the opposing players who at any moment are in the highest probability scoring positions. There are no exceptions to this rule. Those players in extremely dangerous goal scoring positions have to be covered man for man. There is no such thing as a zone defense against a man in a perfect position to score. And it only takes one man to defend! each opposing player; not three. You can witness Dallas's inept defensive performance here: https://www.espn.com/nhl/game/_/gameId/401247149 [see the first goal on the video, and note the position of the Dallas defenders configured around the goal scorer, Point (#21).]
Three Dallas defenders have only one possible play and that is to deflect or intercept the pass that inevitably will come toward Point.. Had one of those defenders achieved the inside position between Point and their goal, that player would have three plays possible, the puck, Point's stick, or Point. Notice the fourth Dallas defender (#5) is correctly covering the Lightning player immediately in front of the Dallas goaltender man to man, but note that the defender has not achieved the inside position, making his defense more difficult and very hard to move the Lighting player, he lifts the lighting players stick as his only option.
On at least two power plays Dallas wasted a great deal of time in their own end of the ice after the Lightning had iced the puck. And they committed the worst power play sin: passing the puck back or circling back into their own end. Meanwhile the clock is running, and the winger's and center's momentum drops toward zero. For a lesson on how a team should move the puck out of their end of the ice when a man up, see the Boston Bruins Power Play, which is the best in the NHL! See also my comments Re the Power Play in the thread "Predator Uniforms ..."
.. Barring injuries, the Lightning in six or seven games will take home this years Stanley Cup.
A good example of a major defensive lapse is given by the first Lighting goal scored by Point(#21) from directly in front the Stars net on a Lighting power play. Four Dallas defenders, in a diamond configuration, which they play when a man down, look on helplessly. Unfortunately Dallas's configuration left a gap immediately in front of the Dallas net into which Braden Point slipped and parked himself while waiting for the puck to be passed to him. The Dallas configuration is nice on the coaches white board, but on the ice defenders, regardless of whether a team is short handed , must always achieve the inside position next to, and not a sticks length away from, the opposing players who at any moment are in the highest probability scoring positions. There are no exceptions to this rule. Those players in extremely dangerous goal scoring positions have to be covered man for man. There is no such thing as a zone defense against a man in a perfect position to score. And it only takes one man to defend! each opposing player; not three. You can witness Dallas's inept defensive performance here: https://www.espn.com/nhl/game/_/gameId/401247149 [see the first goal on the video, and note the position of the Dallas defenders configured around the goal scorer, Point (#21).]
Three Dallas defenders have only one possible play and that is to deflect or intercept the pass that inevitably will come toward Point.. Had one of those defenders achieved the inside position between Point and their goal, that player would have three plays possible, the puck, Point's stick, or Point. Notice the fourth Dallas defender (#5) is correctly covering the Lightning player immediately in front of the Dallas goaltender man to man, but note that the defender has not achieved the inside position, making his defense more difficult and very hard to move the Lighting player, he lifts the lighting players stick as his only option.
On at least two power plays Dallas wasted a great deal of time in their own end of the ice after the Lightning had iced the puck. And they committed the worst power play sin: passing the puck back or circling back into their own end. Meanwhile the clock is running, and the winger's and center's momentum drops toward zero. For a lesson on how a team should move the puck out of their end of the ice when a man up, see the Boston Bruins Power Play, which is the best in the NHL! See also my comments Re the Power Play in the thread "Predator Uniforms ..."
.. Barring injuries, the Lightning in six or seven games will take home this years Stanley Cup.