Summer of Stanley: Sept. 3

The 2020 NHL postseason is whittling down to four teams and possibly one hub city this week. Summer of Stanley presented by
Alaska Airlines
is in position for September's first fly-in news from NHL hub cities Toronto and Edmonton.
Let's take off.

Third is First in Edmonton
The Colorado Avalanche have rallied from a 3-1 series deficit to force a Game 7 Friday against the Dallas Stars. Avs third-string goalie Michael Hutchison is riding a two-game winning streak to keep Colorado's hope most certainly alive. Hutchinson made 27 saves in Wednesday's 4-1 Game 6 victory after recording 31 saves in a 6-3 Game 5 win.
Hutchison was forced into action because starting goaltender Philipp Graubauer and his highly capable backup Pavel Francouz were both listed as "unfit to play" this week. Graubauer was injured early in the series while Francouz was sidelined during Game 4. Hutchinson is one of five goalies who earned at least one victory for the Avalanche during the regular season and playoffs. His last action was a 2-1 road victory over Detroit in early March.
But the double wins this week is particularly sweet for Hutchison, a career NHL backup goalie who has played in 117 games over seven NHL seasons while frequently shuttling back to his team's American Hockey League affiliate. His last NHL stop was rough; he was released by the Toronto Maple Leafs last November after underperforming in early-season play. Analytics experts, while noting Hutchinson's under-average ability to control or prevent rebounds, did calculate that when in the Maple Leafs net he faced twice as many "high-danger" scoring chances as starting Toronto goalie Frederik Andersen.
It appears both Hutchison and his Avs teammates tightened up both rebounds and high-danger scoring chances while reviving their Stanley Cup chances in the Edmonton bubble this week. For one thing, Colorado took only two penalties and just one Dallas powerplay. After five high-scoring games, Avs coach Jared Bednar insisted his squad "get more disciplined" and fronting a backup-to-the-backup goalie amplified the need for better and "little bit more intelligent" defensive play among forwards and defensemen. In Game 5, Colorado helped their third-string goalie but jumping out to a 5-0 in the first period and allowing Dallas just four shots on goal in the first 20 minutes.
Hutchison was one of four goalies on the Colorado roster, regularly getting in work during practices and workouts that included other reserve players not suiting up for games. He and those reserves also played a lot of cards and visited a golf simulator for relaxation. But most of he watched as many NHL playoff games as feasible, socially distanced and masked in the Edmonton stands.
"You hear everything that's being said on the ice, you hear every little sound," Hutchinson said to The Athletic recently. "The view we have, I think it's beneficial for me to stay into it. You can see where everyone is on the ice."
Staying Put in Toronto
After a jarring exit from the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Tampa Bay Lightning have secured a spot in the 2020 Eastern Conference Final. Both of the NHL's conference finals are planned for the Edmonton bubble, but, for now, Tampa Bay is in a holding pattern in Toronto. That's because all four Western Conference teams remain in contention for conference final berths, though Vancouver could be eliminated in a Game 6 showdown vs. Vegas Thursday (NBC Sports Network, 6:45 p.m.). The four teams out west are all staying at the J.W. Marriott in Edmonton, leaving no rooms available for the Lightning as yet.
The Lightning have been in the Toronto bubble for more than five weeks - 38 days to be exact - and it's time for them to leave.
No, they have not been eliminated. The NHL planned to have two bubbles from the start of the postseason through the conference semifinals, then consolidate in Edmonton. The Lightning have secured their spot in the Eastern Conference final, so it's time to move.
Except, they don't have a spot for them at the J.W. Marriott in Edmonton yet.
The league was using three hotels in Edmonton and two in Toronto. In the conference semifinals, the NHL put the four teams remaining in each city in one hotel. With both Western Conference semifinals still underway on Tuesday, everyone was still at the J.W. Marriott and the Lightning were in a holding pattern.
With at least one Game 7 Friday, the aforementioned Colorado-Dallas matchup, some media members are reporting the league could decide to start the Eastern Conference Final with Game 1 in Toronto if Vancouver stays alive against Vegas. And there's still the matter of the New York Islanders attempting to close out the Philadelphia Flyers Thursday in Game 6 (NBS Sports, 4 p.m.). "I think there's scenarios available of us staying here longer and maybe opening up here," said TBL head coach Jon Cooper said, "or jump on a plane and head off to Edmonton, depending what happens." Either way, the Lightning are hoping to continue to wipe the disappointing sweep at the hands of Columbus in 2019.
Summer of Stanley Summer Tour
During Stanley Cup summer tour of 2012, Los Angeles Kings forward Anze Kopitar took the prized trophy to huge crowds in his native Slovenia, making the central European country the 24th nation to host the Cup at least once. The Cup made its rounds that June, July, August and September, ranging from Slovenia to a "Muscle Beach" party in Venice, CA, to a boat ride off the coast of New England.
Other stops that summer: LAK captain Dustin Brown was awarded two days, one at his Hermosa Beach home out West, then back to his family home in Ithaca, N.Y. All-Star defenseman Drew Doughty took it into his childhood bedroom in London, Ontario, and laid in bed with it. Fellow defender Willie Mitchell lifted it at the highest point he could find in Port McNeill, B.C., while Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan, rookie Dwight King celebrated his Native American roots by snapping a photo of him with his uncle, Chief Norman of the Medis tribe.