Vasilevskiy finding his groove
Andrei Vasilevskiy showed again that he's one of the best goaltenders in the NHL by making 33 saves in the Tampa Bay Lightning's 4-1 win against the Florida Panthers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Second Round. Vasilevskiy didn't play at the level expected of him through most of the Lightning's first-round series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, allowing at least three goals in each of the first six games. But Vasilevskiy made 30 saves in a 2-1 win in Game 7 against Toronto and carried that into Game 1 against Florida, providing a reminder of why he won the Conn Smythe Trophy, voted to the most valuable player of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, when he helped Tampa Bay win its second consecutive Stanley Cup championship last season. -- Tom Gulitti, staff writer
Power outage a concern for Panthers
Power-play problems have followed the Panthers into the second round. Florida survived going 0-for-18 on the power play against the Washington Capitals in the first round, winning that best-of-7 series in six games. They hoped beginning a new series would give them a fresh start on the man-advantage. Instead, Florida was 0-for-3 on the power play Tuesday and Tampa Bay was 3-for-6, which proved to be the difference in Game 1. The Panthers, who have allowed 10 power-play goals during the postseason, likely will need to find a way to break through with the man-advantage against the Lightning to knock off the two-time defending Cup champions. -- Gulitti
Face-offs area of concern for Blues
The St. Louis Blues did not have the puck much during a 3-2 overtime loss to the Colorado Avalanche in Game 1 of the Western Conference Second Round. They were outshot 54-25 and the Avalanche had 106 shot attempts to 45 for the Blues. But that tells only part of the story. The Avalanche spent serious time in the attacking zone while limiting the Blues' offensive-zone opportunities. St. Louis' inability to gain possession from face-offs was a big part of the problem. The Blues won 19 of 53 face-offs (35.8 percent) in Game 1 after winning 51.8 percent during the first-round series against the Minnesota Wild. The Blues will have to be better in Game 2. -- Shawn Roarke, NHL.com Senior Director of Editorial
Focus needed for Avalanche
The Avalanche won Game 1, but it took longer than needed and became a trickier proposition after they allowed Blues forward Jordan Kyrou to score a power-play goal with 3:14 left in the third period. Kyrou was freed up to score because the Avalanche made an ill-advised line change, switching players before the puck had been moved completely out of danger. The same thing happened several times against the Nashville Predators during the first round. Coach Jared Bednar said his team needs to be more disciplined and it will be a point of emphasis during preparations for Game 2. "It's a discipline thing," he said Tuesday. "You're trying to change all the time with your teammates and put the next line out in a good situation, not a bad one. Normally if you are doing the opposite, it'll cost you. It might not cost you every time, but it will cost you." -- Roarke
