Mishkin's Musings: Bolts roll past the Red Wings in 2016

As mentioned here over the past several weeks, 620 WDAE and Lightning Power Play are rebroadcasting Lightning playoff wins from previous seasons. This week, it's the 2016 first round series against Detroit.

The Lightning, who were coming off the disappointment of a loss in the 2015 Stanley Cup Final, were excited for the start of a new playoff season. The 2015-16 regular season - particularly in the first half - had been a grind. After coming so close to winning it all in the 2015 playoffs, the Lightning didn't play especially well in the early months of 2015-16. This hadn't been an issue the prior season, when they came out of the gates quickly and never suffered a significant dip. The 2014-15 Lightning didn't lose three consecutive games until the last three contests of the Stanley Cup Final. By comparison, the 2015-16 Lightning endured an 0-3-1 skid before the season was a month old. By the time the calendar turned, they were only 18-16-4 and in jeopardy of missing the playoffs. Then, during an early January road trip, they dramatically changed the trajectory of their season. The trip began with a 3-1 loss in Calgary on January 5. In the next game, they trailed Edmonton, 2-0, in the third period. But they rallied with three late goals. The next night in Vancouver, Nikita Kucherov's OT winner helped them complete a back-to-back sweep. They finished the trip with a dominant 4-1 win in Colorado, a game in which they outshot the Avs, 38-21. They were off and running. The comeback victory in Edmonton was the start of a seven-game win streak. That streak coincided with a nine-game home win streak. Beginning in mid-February, they began a new streak. This one lasted nine games. The Lightning's second-half push propelled them into a more secure playoff position. Still, they didn't officially clinch a postseason spot until the final week of the regular season. They finished with 97 points, 11 fewer than in 2014-15. But similar to the previous year, they earned second place in the division and would face third-place Detroit in the opening round. Unfortunately, they would have to enter the playoffs without both Steven Stamkos, who was diagnosed with a blood clot just before the regular season ended, and Anton Stralman, who suffered a broken leg in late March.

What about the Red Wings? With the benefit of hindsight, we now know that the Red Wings were clearly trending down. The 2015-16 season would be their last in a string of consecutive postseason appearances that dated back to 1991. Pavel Datsyuk was in his final season as a Red Wing - the next year, he'd return to Russia and play in the KHL. Henrik Zetterberg led the team in regular season scoring, but he would only play two more years before retiring. Yet in 2015-16, they were still a strong team. Under first-year head coach Jeff Blashill, they amassed 93 points. And the Lightning remembered well how narrowly they had escaped a first-round loss to Detroit in 2015. So they were expecting a tough series.

As detailed last month when we looked back at the 2015 matchup, Detroit grabbed an early edge in that series. Goalie Petr Mrazek made 44 saves to help his team steal Game One. That didn't happen this time. In fact, Mrazek didn't even play in 2016's Game One. Instead, Blashill went with veteran Jimmy Howard as his starter.

Game One was close - neither club built more than a one-goal lead at any point. Kuchorov, with a bullet one-timer from the right circle, opened the scoring in the first. But Detroit answered with two quick goals early in the second. Shortly after their second goal, the Wings received a power play with an opportunity to extend their advantage. Instead, in an important momentum-swinging sequence, the Lightning changed the storyline of Game One. First, they successfully killed off the penalty. Then, less than a minute later, Kucherov scored his second of the game, tying the contest at two. Braydon Coburn carried the puck deep into the Detroit end and centered it for Kucherov, who was left unguarded in front of the net. After his first shot was stopped, he slid in his own rebound.

The game remained deadlocked until the 8:52 mark of the third, when Alex Killorn positioned himself in front of the Detroit net and redirected Tyler Johnson's centering feed past Howard. Similar to Kucherov's second goal, the Lightning scored within a minute after having killed off a penalty. The Lightning won it by that 3-2 final. The line of Johnson, Kucherov, and Killorn accounted for all three goals. The Lightning penalty kill went 5-5, including those two crucial kills just prior to scoring their second and third goals.

In Game Two, both teams were able to break through on their power play. The Lightning cashed in during a lengthy five-on-three in the first period - Kucherov netting his third of the series. Detroit's Dylan Larkin tied things early in the second, but the Lightning regained the lead just over three minutes later. On a three-on-two rush, Brian Boyle snapped home a shot from the slot. Detroit's power play goal came early in the third, tying the game momentarily at two. But once again, the Lightning answered quickly. Less than two minutes later, Killorn took the puck behind the Detroit net and drew Howard out of position. Johnson finished into an open side of the cage. Johnson also provided the dagger goal at 14:48 when he ripped home a one-timer from the slot. After Killorn finished the scoring with an empty-netter, that line had accounted for six goals over the first two games. In the final minute, things turned ugly. Justin Abdelkader was assessed a major penalty after an altercation with Mike Blunden of the Lightning. In all, seven players were given misconduct penalties. The teams combined to amass 119 penalty minutes in Game Two.

Blashill switched goalies for Game Three, inserting Mrazek. In many ways, Game Three from 2016 mirrored Game Three from 2015. In both, the Wings shut out the Lightning and Tampa Bay struggled to create shots and scoring chances. Detroit netted two goals in the second and that was more than enough offense for Mrazak, who only needed to make 16 saves. As in 2015, Game Three was certainly a clunker for the Lightning. Of course, the big difference was that, in 2016, they entered Game Three with a 2-0 series lead. So despite the outcome, they were still up, 2-1. The lasting takeaway from Game Three, at least from the Lightning's perspective, was Boyle's infamous "chicken" gesture towards Abdelkader at the end of the game. Boyle flapped his "wings" at Abdelkader after the Detroit player didn't drop his gloves.

Game Four was a pivotal contest. With a win at home, Detroit would have "held serve" and it'd be a brand, new series. A Lightning triumph, on the other hand, would push their opponent to the brink and would give them a chance to finish things at home in Game Five. Based on how well they played in Game Four, the Lightning clearly understood the importance of this contest. When the teams were at even strength, they carried play for much of night. But all of their offense came on the power play. Kucherov struck again - twice. In the first period, he swept in a shot from the right circle. It was the third time he had opened the scoring in the series. In the second period, he finished a beautiful give-and-go passing sequence with Jonathan Drouin.

Despite their overall strong play, however, the Lightning couldn't maintain the lead. The Wings made two plays to tie it before the middle stanza ended, including a goal with just 10 seconds left in the period. But in the third, the Lightning's power play delivered a third time - and this time it won them the game. Jonathan Eriksson cross-checked Ondrej Palat and was called for a penalty at 15:18. With just 17 seconds left in the infraction, Palat scored the eventual game-winning goal. Moments before the goal, Drouin had narrowly missed setting up Palat in the slot. He didn't miss the second time. Palat, standing in the low slot, redirected the puck past Mzarek.

In Game Four, the Lightning broke a tie with the winning goal at 17:01. In Game Five, the deciding goal came even later. It was a 0-0 game until the final two minutes. Early on, the Lightning navigated their way through a lengthy five-on-three penalty kill. In the second period, Ben Bishop made 14 saves to preserve the scoreless tie. Then, with just under two minutes left in the third, Ryan Callahan dumped the puck behind the Detroit net. Mrazek came out to play it into the corner towards one of his defensemen. But Callahan pursued the puck, stole it before it reached the Detroit player, and centered it. Killorn, on his backhand, directed it in before Mrazek could get reset. With 44 seconds remaining, the Red Wings received one last power play chance. They pulled Mrazek to make it a six-on-four. But the Lightning killed it off to win the game and the series.

The series may have lasted only five games, but the contests were tight. In all four third periods of the Lightning wins, the game was tied at one point or another. So the Lightning consistently made key plays at crucial times. Special teams were also a factor. The Lightning held Detroit to one power play goal in the series. The Lightning's power play was the difference in their critical Game Four victory.

Individually, several players contributed big series. Kucherov netted five goals and posted eight points. Johnson had seven points. Killorn scored three goals, including two game-winners. Drouin had four assists, including three power play helpers in Game Four. Bishop allowed only eight goals over the five games and, as he did in the 2015 series against Detroit, pitched a shutout in the clinching game.

It was a satisfying win to open the playoffs. And it was only the beginning of another long postseason run for the Lightning.