Bowness' knowledge of Lightning could give Stars edge in Cup Final

The Coaches Room is a regular feature throughout the 2019-20 season by former NHL coaches and assistants who turn their critical gaze to the game and explain it through the lens of a teacher. Rob Zettler and Rob Cookson will take turns providing insight throughout the remainder of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
In this edition, Cookson, a former video coach with the Philadelphia Flyers and former assistant with the Ottawa Senators and Calgary Flames, looks ahead to Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Dallas Stars at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, SN, TVAS).

When the Dallas Stars and the Tampa Bay Lightning put together their game plans for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final in Edmonton, the hub city for the Stanley Cup Final, Dallas will have one advantage right away.
Not that the Lightning won't be prepared. They've seen a lot of games, probably. They've watched the games live. They've probably looked at video and done their preparation in that regard.
But Stars coach Rick Bowness coached for Tampa Bay for five years as an associate under Jon Cooper (2013-18) and would have a good idea about most of the Lightning players.
He'd know the systems, he'd know the personalities, he'd know the characteristics of Tampa Bay far better than Cooper and his staff would know Dallas.
Bowness would know little things you might not have seen throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs. So that gives Dallas an advantage.
On the other hand, the Stars will see a brand of hockey they might not have seen before when they get on the ice for Game 1. The Lightning are very well-connected from the defensive zone through the neutral zone into the offensive zone, and play a consistent brand of hockey with a high level of skill.
And from the start of the playoffs, Tampa Bay has been determined to defend strong.
The Lightning had moments against the New York Islanders in the Eastern Conference Final when they took chances, but for the most part didn't deviate from their plan. They didn't turn pucks over at the blue line and they had first-on-puck mentality all the time, getting pucks deep and taking care of business.

Coaches talk a lot to their teams about not beating themselves, and Tampa Bay didn't do that against New York.
The Lightning have grown in that regard, not only from previous seasons, but even in this postseason. Cooper has spoken about how they've played through adversity and stuck with the way they defend.
You can't win the Stanley Cup based solely on offense. In the past, Tampa Bay might have thought it could outscore teams and it's tough to change that mentality among the players until you grow as a group.
The Lightning have nine players who were in uniform the last time they reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2015, and have added players who play the same way.
Center Yanni Gourde's line with Barclay Goodrow (acquired in a trade with the San Jose Sharks on Feb. 24) and Blake Coleman (acquired in a trade with the New Jersey Devils on Feb. 16), plays the same way all the time. And center Anthony Cirelli, who scored the winning goal in their series-clinching 2-1 overtime win in Game 6 against the Islanders on Thursday, has really come on strong, and he plays the same way.
So Tampa Bay has three lines and two extra forwards that play the same way and play connected from their end into the opponent's end.
Dallas also has an older, more-experienced group. Center Joe Pavelski and forward Corey Perry, who each signed with the Stars as an unrestricted free agent after last season, each has plenty of experience in how to play in the playoffs.
That might hurt the Lightning's defense a little bit because the Stars know what to do and how to do it in the playoffs. And with the mixture of skill Dallas has up front with center Tyler Seguin and forwards Alexander Radulov and Jamie Benn, they have a little more depth on offense than the Islanders did.
That will make things interesting.