Tampa Bay Times Forum Media Clips
Saturday, April 19, 2014
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Lightning in 2-0 hole after loss to Canadiens – Damian Cristodero (Tampa Bay Times)
Lightning may not be ready for this stage – Gary Shelton (Tampa Bay Times)
Loss leaves Lightning full of questions – Tom Jones (Tampa Bay Times)
Bishop’s rehab progresses for Lightning – Damian Cristodero (Tampa Bay Times)
Television lapse leaves Lightning fans livid – Joe Smith (Tampa Bay Times)
Lightning in playoff hole as Canadiens win – Erik Erlendsson (Tampa Tribune)
Price overcomes shaky start to dominate Bolts – Roy Cummings (Tampa Tribune)
Bolts might be down for the count – Martin Fennelly (Tampa Tribune)
Killorn keeps scoring touch in first full season – Roy Cummings (Tampa Tribune)
Lightning’s Victor Hedman coming into his own five years after going No. 2 overall – Bruce Arthur (National Post)
Canadiens dominate Lightning, head home with 2-0 series lead – Bruce Arthur (National Post)
Habs cautiously optimistic heading back to Montreal – Chris Johnston (Sportsnet)
Bourque, Price give Canadiens 2-0 series lead – Pat Hickey (Montreal Gazette)
Bell Centre gets dressed up for Sunday – Brenda Branswell (Montreal Gazette)
We have to keep pushing: Gallagher – Pat Hickey (Montreal Gazette)
Weaver didn’t expect to play pro – Pat Hickey (Montreal Gazette)
Lightning in 2-0 hole after loss to Canadiens
Damian Cristodero (Tampa Bay Times)
TAMPA — Lightning coach Jon Cooper would not characterize Friday's game with the Canadiens as a must-win. "If
this was Game 4 and we were down three, I would call that a must-win," he said. "But this one we really need." But
Tampa Bay failed badly in a 4-1 loss at the Tampa Bay Times Forum to fall behind two games to none in the Eastern
Conference first-round playoff series. A 2-0 deficit is not impossible to overcome, but it's not going to be easy.
According to the NHL, only 37 times in the previous 291 series that have been 2-0 has a team come from behind to
win the series. One of them was the 2002-03 Lightning, which lost its first two to the Capitals in the East
quarterfinals but won the series in six. If history is to repeat, the Lightning must find a way to generate some offense,
or a least some consistent time in the offensive zone.
It was a plus that it held Montreal, which had 44 shots in Game 1, to 26. But most of Tampa Bay's 27 shots did not
challenge goalie Carey Price, who gave up only a late third-period goal to Teddy Purcell.
Lightning goaltender Anders Lindback had much tougher shots to face. And he could not stop great second-period
goals by David Desharnais and Rene Bourque. The short-side goal he allowed with 8:14 left in the third period got
him pulled for Kristers Gudlevskis.
Does that mean Gudlevskis plays in Game 3 on Sunday at Montreal? We'll see.
The Lightning had 11 shots in the first period after getting just 16 in regulation in Game 1's overtime loss Wednesday.
Still, the Canadiens got the better chances.
Lindback was sharp at 4:49 when a long pass sprung Brian Gionta on a breakaway. Gionta deked and fired a
backhand that Lindback stopped with his right leg to thunderous cheers.
Lindback again was up to the task with 1:53 remaining when he gloved Max Pacioretty's wrist shot from the bottom
of the left faceoff circle on a partial breakaway.
The Canadiens took control in the second period with two goals and a clamp-down defensive scheme that made it
difficult for Tampa Bay to move the puck forward, much less into the Montreal zone.
Montreal took the lead 2:34 into the period on a power play as Desharnais deflected in P.K. Subban's shot from the
blue line. Desharnais also began the sequence by beating Tyler Johnson on a draw in the Lightning zone.
Alex Killorn and Steven Stamkos seemingly had prime chances carrying the puck to the net, but neither was able to
get a shot off and circled the net looking for an opening.
Right after that, Lindback had to make a good save on Gionta's wrist shot from the slot.
Montreal took a 2-0 lead with 9:25 left on a nice effort by Bourque, who forced his way around Lightning
defenseman Sami Salo in the slot. Lindback tried to poke check the puck but missed, and Bourque slid the puck past
the goalie.
Price made a tremendous save with 4:30 left when he stoned Cedric Paquette at the left post with a left-leg save.
Paquette got the puck after some nifty stick work and a pass from Purcell.
Lightning may not be ready for this stage
Gary Shelton (Tampa Bay Times)
Maybe they just aren't ripe enough.
Maybe they just aren't tough enough.
Maybe they just aren't tested enough.
For whatever reason, the players of the Tampa Bay Lightning are in trouble today. Two games into the playoffs, and
they are already halfway to the offseason. They trail Montreal 2-0, which is like staring into a deep, dark hole where
something is moving around. The Lightning must now win four of its next five games to avoid elimination.
It has happened, quickly and cruelly. Two games, two defeats against a team that has been too good. And just like
that, we are left to ponder what has been missing from the players who recorded 101 points during the regular
season.
Maybe they just aren't healthy enough.
Maybe they just aren't efficient enough.
Maybe they just aren't opportunistic enough.
In particular, Friday night's game was a crushing defeat. Everyone knew the Lightning had to win this game, and
still, it came up dry against a Canadiens team whose confidence seems to be growing by the minute. Yes, the
Lightning played better than it did in its Game 1 loss, but it could not finish its scoring opportunities.
A shame. A victory here, even after all the mistakes of the first game, and this was a series again. A victory here, and
at least the Lightning had room to breathe.
Instead, the Lighting lost 4-1. As inconceivable as it would have been to consider at the start of the series, it is now
possible that Tampa Bay doesn't even make it back home for Game 5.
So what has gone wrong?
Maybe everything. And when you get down to it, maybe nothing. For the Lightning, maybe this is just part of the
natural growth of a young team. You know, like the noogies a freshman endures on his way to being a senior. Maybe
a miserable series is something this team has to endure on its way to becoming what it will become.
Remember the 2003 playoffs, when the Lightning won a series against Washington (despite Tampa Bay losing the
first two games). The next year, it won the Stanley Cup. Maybe this year will feed into the following year, too.
After all, the postseason is a place where experience often makes the difference. Remember, the Lightning had eight
rookies play at least 41 games this season. It's hard to ask kids to kick in the door to the NHL postseason.
Of course, it wasn't just the kids who turned over the puck in these two games. A lot of veterans took their turns, too.
Maybe the roster has to get deeper, more dangerous.
Naturally, it would help if the team had its star goaltender, too.
In the months to come, you might replay this series a few times while wondering what difference Ben Bishop would
have made in the Lightning net. No, that isn't to place Anders Lindback in the dunk tank, but ask yourself, what
team would survive very long with its backup goaltender?
Lindback, the Man Who Would Be Bishop, didn't even finish the night. He was pulled while trailing 3-0 as the team
sought a spark to change things. Yeah, it's easy to blame Lindback, who has only an .881 save percentage in these
two games, but let's face it: He wasn't going to win with zero goals, which the Lightning had as long as he was
around.
Instead, Friday night belonged to Montreal's Carey Price, who was finally the postseason goalie his country has
longed for him to be. The guy who was so beatable in Game 1 was superb in Game 2.
All of this has to be somewhat flummoxing to Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper, who went through this season with all
of the answers. Steven Stamkos hurt? No problem. Marty St. Louis wants a trade? No sweat. Bishop hurt? No biggie.
But how do you have answers when the other team seems to have more energy, more crispness, than your team?
How do you solve a night when the other team doesn't turn over the puck as often as yours does?
Over the history of the Lighting, there have been three other great coaching jobs. The first was Terry Crisp, who in
1996 took this team to the playoffs in its fourth year. The second was John Tortorella, who won the Stanley Cup in
2004. The third was Guy Boucher, who reached the Eastern Conference final in 2011.
But none of those seasons had the degree of difficulty that this one did. None of those teams overcame the adversity
that this one did.
Given that, it has been difficult to watch this team struggle against Montreal. It has not had the same spark, the
same explosion, that it had for most of the season. It is as if the Canadiens have stepped up their game, but the
Lightning has not. What a terrible epitaph that would be for the season.
Maybe they just aren't composed enough.
Maybe they just aren't old enough.
Maybe they just aren't good enough.
Loss leaves Lightning full of questions
Tom Jones (Tampa Bay Times)
Now what?
What does the Lightning do now?
Aside from signing Gretzky, Lemieux and Orr and putting them in a time machine, that is.
Ankle deep in water to start Friday, the Lightning is now waist deep in rising tides. The 2014 playoff run is about go
under, over before it really even got started.
The Lightning is now down 2-0 and heading off to a hostile building in Montreal for Games 3 and 4.
Two games. Two very different losses but both equally discouraging.
Now what?
There is no simple answer, no easy fix. That's the frustrating part for the Lightning.
As baffling as it is to understand how it lost the first two games of this series, it's even more puzzling trying to figure
out how the Lightning might win even one game, let alone four of the next five.
Sure, you can whip out the cliches.
Work harder. Score more. Play better defense. Put something special in the special teams.
But when you break it all down, pour through the video and scramble the X's and O's looking for the clues that might
lead to a victory, all you get are more questions.
"This is not what we expected," defenseman Victor Hedman said.
So far the Canadiens are just … better.
They have been faster, grittier, more determined.
They have been hungrier, smarter, more poised.
One team is playing hockey while the other is playing playoff hockey.
One team is making mistakes while the other is taking advantage of those mistakes.
One team is finding ways to win. And the other team? Well, the other team is the Lightning.
"We've just got to give a better effort, keep it simple and play better," forward Teddy Purcell said.
This is in no way to suggest the Lightning isn't trying or doesn't care. It is, and it does. But simply wanting to succeed
hasn't been, and won't be, enough.
Game 1 was a bad loss. Despite taking the Canadiens to overtime before losing, the Lightning had no business being
close in Game 1. It played poorly and was thoroughly dominated no matter what the scoreboard read.
Oddly enough, Game 2 was much better. The score suggests otherwise, but the Lightning's play seemed more suited
to playoff hockey.
"We played much better," coach Jon Cooper said, "than the score indicated."
And it still wasn't anywhere close to being good enough.
"Obviously, it's not where we want to be," forward Valtteri Filppula said. "Hopefully we can turn this thing around."
Yeah, but how?
The defense was again leaky and sloppy, with veterans such as Sami Salo and Eric Brewer once again being burned
for a key goal. If there's one area where the Lightning must get better, it's on the back end.
The offense didn't generate as many good chances as it did in Game 1, but then again, Canadiens goalie Carey Price
was much better than in Game 1. Price finding his game after a shaky opener is enough to give the Lightning cold
sweats.
As far as Lightning goalie Anders Lindback, he gave up three of the four goals in Game 2. Two weren't his fault. One
was a softie. But just like in Game 1, he wasn't the reason the Lightning lost.
In the end, when you're doing the autopsy on the first two games and trying to determine the losses' cause, all you
come up with is a little of this and a little of that. And that leads to what Hedman called a "little hole."
Little? More like the Grand Canyon.
After the game, the Lightning held a team meeting. Perhaps it would have been better served having that meeting
before the game.
"The message is to believe in ourselves and stick together," captain Steven Stamkos said.
The next team meeting might just be to figure out where everyone is going for summer vacation.
"I'm pretty confident in this group right now," Cooper said. "Every time it looked like we were going on a slide, these
guys found a way to rebound."
But this feels different. This feels more dire than anything the Lightning has been through before.
Is this series over? It sure feels like it. You get the feeling this thing will not return to Tampa Bay for a Game 5.
Then again, maybe heading to Montreal is the best thing right now for the Lightning. No one expects the Lightning
to win now. Perhaps there will be less pressure. Maybe playing in front of a riled-up home crowd will give the
Canadiens some jitters they have yet to show in this series.
As far as on the ice, the Lightning needs to get way better defensively. It needs the power play to spark the offense.
And it never hurts to have a goalie stand on his head.
"We just got to stick together in here and have a short memory," Purcell said. "It's a long series."
Unfortunately for the Lightning, it's getting shorter by the game.
Bishop’s rehab progresses for Lightning
Damian Cristodero (Tampa Bay Times)
TAMPA — Ben Bishop on Friday took another step in his rehabilitation of an injured left elbow as he took shots for
the first time since he was hurt April 8 against the Maple Leafs.
Granted, the Lightning's No. 1 goaltender skated on his own and the shots came from goaltenders coach Frantz
Jean. But, Jean said, "(Friday) was a very, very good day."
There still is no timetable for Bishop's return other than a hope he will be ready if the first-round playoff series with
the Canadiens is a long one.
Bishop, who has been seen alternately wearing a wire brace and an Ace bandage on his left arm, still isn't talking
formally to reporters, though he joked Friday that he misses his daily meeting with the media.
"Not my call," he said, indicating it's an organizational order.
Despite not being in the lineup, Bishop is participating in all team meetings, is studying video of the Canadiens and
hanging out in the locker room as much as possible, Jean said.
"He's taking the opportunity to take in as much information as he can from the Montreal side, how they play, the
atmosphere, the buzz of the playoffs and the way things happen and are done in the playoffs," Jean said. "For him, as
much as he's not involved directly, it's certainly an experience he can put in his baggage for the future."
As for now, Bishop is day to day and at the mercy of Jean's lethal snap, which he fired at close range into Bishop's leg
pads so the goalie could concentrate on rebound situations.
Asked if he has to be careful not to shoot at Bishop's left arm, Jean laughed. "You have to be careful, but I'm a good
shooter."
PALAT OUT: Coach Jon Cooper indicated rookie LW Ondrej Palat was doubtful for Game 2, and Palat was
indeed scratched.
Palat, with a team-best 59 regular-season points, left Game 1 early in the third period after a knee-to-knee hit with
Montreal D P.K. Subban, though Cooper said Palat's injury is upper body.
Palat missed Sunday's regular-season finale because of a hard hit Friday from Columbus D Jack Johnson that
included contact with Palat's head.
Palat also took a big hit in Game 1 from Montreal's Andrei Markov. Cooper said Palat does not have a concussion.
"It's a big hole for us, but we've dealt with this before," Cooper said. "Every team deals with it. Look at Montreal,
they're probably saying the same thing about not having (forward Alex) Galchenyuk."
BIG EVENTS COMING? We know the Lightning has asked the league to host an All-Star Game and perhaps even
a draft, and commissioner Gary Bettman said owner Jeff Vinik "vigorously reminded me of his interest when we
were chatting. But it's not something I'm in a position to announce or discuss at this time."
"What Jeff has done here is nothing short of sensational," Bettman said, "but there are lots of teams that want these
events, and we have to do the best we can to address all the interest.''
FILL-INS: Alex Killorn took Palat's spot on a line with C Steven Stamkos and Tyler Johnson, and rookie D
Andrej Sustr and G Kristers Gudlevskis became the ninth and 10th Lightning players this season to make their
Stanley Cup playoff debuts.
BIG SAVE: Who knows how Friday's game might have turned if rookie C Cedric Paquette could have scored with
4:30 left in the second period. But Canadiens G Carey Price went post-to-post to stone Paquette at the left post and
preserve a 2-0 lead. "I just tried to lift it over Carey, but he made a great save," said Paquette, who whacked at a
perfect pass from Teddy Purcell. "He knew I was coming. He's a great goalie. You have to give him credit."
ODDS AND ENDS: The Lightning played with 11 forwards and seven defensemen. … It will not practice today
before flying to Montreal for Sunday's Game 3.
Television lapse leaves Lightning fans livid
Joe Smith (Tampa Bay Times)
TAMPA — With the Lightning playing a critical playoff game against the Canadiens on Friday night, fans watching
on television were hoping to catch captain Steven Stamkos.
Instead, some saw the Seattle Mariners.
Due to technical difficulties, Bright House customers in central and north Florida, including the Tampa Bay area,
missed most of the first period on Fox Sports Florida, which was carrying Game 2 of the Eastern Conference series.
The Marlins-Mariners game, which was intended only for viewers in south Florida, was shown until the problem was
resolved with 50 seconds remaining in the period and the score 0-0.
After the Lightning game returned, play-by-play announcer Rick Peckham read an apology during the second
period.
"During the first period of tonight's game, we had a technical issue at master control that impacted Bright House
customers in north and central Florida," Peckham said. "We take great pride in delivering the very best Lightning
broadcast year-round, and tonight we fell short of that. From all of us at Fox, we sincerely apologize and promise
we'll take the steps necessary to make sure this does not happen again."
The Lightning games are usually on Sun Sports. But conflicts with Rays games have pushed some of the playoff
games to Fox Sports Florida. The Marlins broadcast crew of Rich Waltz and Tommy Hutton also apologized on the
air for the Lightning game not being on and explained what was happening.
While the Lightning game was off the air, frustrated fans voiced their displeasure. Some complaints from Twitter:
Kevin Johnson @KevinDGJohnson: "Why would I want to watch the #Bolts playoff game in Tampa anyway when I
could be watching the Marlins-Mariners?!!!! Thanks @SunSportsFOXFL!"
@LegendaryIsles: " '@SunSportsFOXFL: Aware of and apologize for the technical difficulties with the #TBLightning
game' BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Unacceptable"
Drew Garabo @DrewOnTheRadio: "It's 2014. How do you need to 'work on a technical issue,' @SunSportsFOXFL
when you could just push one button? It's the NHL Playoffs!"
Lightning in playoff hole as Canadiens win
Erik Erlendsson (Tampa Tribune)
TAMPA — As promised, the Lightning looked better in Game 2 against Montreal than they did in Game 1.
It barely mattered or even showed in a 4-1 loss to the Canadiens on Friday in front of an announced sellout crowd of
19,204 at The Forum.
Montreal grabbed the opening two games of the playoff series and has a stranglehold on the best-of-seven series as the
scene switches to the Bell Centre for Game 3 on Sunday.
“It's not going our way right now,'' center Valtteri Filppula said. “We have to give them credit, they are playing well
defensively, we don't get a whole lot and we are struggling certainly to get into their zone.
Rene Bourque scored twice for Montreal while Carey Price stopped 26 shots to pick up the victory. David Desharnais
scored a power play goal for Montreal, Brendan Gallagher also scored and P.K. Subban added a pair of assists.
Teddy Purcell spoiled Price's shutout bid with 1:59 left in the third period. Anders Lindback stopped 21 shots before
being lifted late in the third, giving way to Kristers Gudlevskis, who allowed a goal on the three shots he faced.
For the second consecutive game, the Lightning were knocked off their puck possession, speed style of play by a
Montreal neutral zone trap that slowed Tampa Bay's attack down to a crawl at times. Though the Lightning finished
with 27 shots on goal, other than a few spurts early in the first period, there were few sustained attacks and limited
Grade A scoring chances.
“It's tough right now, they are clogging it up,'' right wing Ryan Callahan said. “They are really good in the neutral zone
right now and we have to find a way to get pucks behind them, not just get one chance and be done, try to sustain some
pressure. We had some success in the second (period) doing that, it's just a matter of doing that for the full sixty
(minutes) that we are missing.''
Tampa Bay did cut down on its turnovers to a certain extent, but too often fell right into the Montreal trap and wound
up chasing pucks back for most of the night.
“It seems like we are coming back on pucks a lot,'' captain Steven Stamkos said. “They are a good team over there, but
we are a good team, too, and when we are successful we are getting speed through the neutral zone, getting pucks in
deep. And that happened the first five or ten minutes of the game, shot from everywhere and had them running around
a little bit. But we just couldn't sustain that in the game.''
Tampa Bay did come out looking fast to start the game, generating five shots on goal in the opening two minutes of the
game. But it was Montreal that had the best scoring chances, forcing Lindback to stop a Desharnais tip-in attempt at
2:05 and then robbing Brian Gionta on a breakaway chance at 4:48.
Montreal's power play, which was 0-for-14 against Tampa Bay in the four games during the regular season, broke the ice
early in the second when Desharnais deflected a Subban point shot 2:24 into the period. Bourque would then make it 20 when he gained the zone with speed to catch Sami Salo flat-footed before pushing a puck past a Lindback poke-check
attempt at 10:35. Cedric Paquette had the best chance to cut the deficit in half late in the second, but Price slid over to
his left to get a pad on Paquette's chance with 4:31 left in the period.
From that point on, the Canadiens slid back into their trap before adding to their lead, with Gallagher's goal at 11:46
chasing Lindback as Cooper said they were looking for a spark that never materialized, not because of any poor play
from Lindback.
“We needed something because it was dire straits at that point,'' Cooper said. “But there is no goaltending controversy
or anything like that.''
Price overcomes shaky start to dominate Bolts
Roy Cummings (Tampa Tribune)
TAMPA — Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price has always had a tendency to struggle when the Stanley Cup
playoffs begin, and the first game of this year’s postseason was no exception.
Price struggled in Game 1 of the first-round series against the Lightning on Wednesday, allowing four goals on 25 shots.
But when he had to be, he was back in world-class form in Game 2 at the Forum on Friday night.
Though he admitted he wasn’t tested all that much, Price stopped all but one of the 27 shots he faced in leading
Montreal to a 4-1 victory. The win gave the Canadiens a 2-0 edge in games in the best-of-seven series.
“They threw a lot of pucks toward the net, but we’ve got those guys out in front of me that are willing to do whatever it
takes to blocks shots, and that helped me a lot,” Price said.
The Canadiens were credited with 11 blocked shots in the game, but Price made the biggest block of all when he got his
left leg pad on a shot from rookie Cedric Paquette in the second period.
Taking a pass fed through the crease by Teddy Purcell, Paquette tried to beat Price with a simple redirection from the
edge of the crease. Price answered, though, with a stiff denial.
“It was really just an act of desperation,” Price said. “I was just trying to put anything on it that I could. I mean, it’s my
job to stop pucks and I was fortunate enough to get a pad on that one.”
It’s the job of the Lightning forwards to create scoring chances and score goals, but the feeling in their locker room after
this one was that they didn’t necessarily do a good job of that.
“He played well,” Lightning center Ryan Callahan said of Price. “He made some key saves, especially in the second
period, but we obviously didn’t generate enough against him.
“Against a guy like that, a guy that is that good, you have to get more looks. One shot and out isn’t going to get it done.
We needed to get in there and get some rebounds, and we didn’t do that.”
Purcell, who had not scored a goal since March 20 — a span of 12 games — was the only one to solve Price.
However, his goal came late in the third period, long after the outcome had been decided.
“We know he’s a world-class goalie, and he was good when he had to be tonight, but we didn’t get as many quality
chances on him as we would have hoped to,” said Lightning captain Steven Stamkos, who scored twice against Price in
the series opener. “I thought the second period was one of our better periods. We got the puck in deep and created some
chances there, but after going down 2-0 in that period we didn’t respond the way we wanted to in the third.
“We just have to get back to simplifying the game for ourselves and being confident. There’s going to be nerves, and we
know it’s a different stage, but we have to play with confidence.”
Bolts might be down for the count
Martin Fennelly (Tampa Tribune)
TAMPA — All season, the Lightning have thrived on adversity.
So this ought to be in their wheelhouse.
“This is just piling up,” Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said.
Down 0-2 heading for 21,000 people and 42,000 lungs at the Bell Centre.
Now what?
This time the Canadiens didn’t need overtime. They beat the Lightning, soundly, 4-1 on Friday night at the Forum. It
was over well before 60 minutes were up. The Lightning needed a team meeting, called by the players. That’s where it’s
at.
Les Habitants completely inhabit this series right now, every bit of it. They have pushed the Bolts around, slowed them
up, shut them down. The Lightning look befuddled. They’re frustrated. They have no answers. Neither does their coach.
At the moment, this isn’t a series.
My guess is it won’t ever be one.
Now what?
This is the 292nd time an NHL team has trailed 2-0 in a playoff series. That team has come back to win the series 37
times, or a little less than 13 percent of the time. Only 15 times has a team that lost the first two games at home come
back to win a series.
Granted, one of those teams was the 2003 Lightning, who roared back to beat Washington.
That was then.
This is very much now.
Now what?
“The odds are against us,” Lightning winger Ryan Callahan said. “It’s a tough place to play. But we stick together in here.
We have to go and show our character.”
Friday, the Bolts came out and played Montreal even for a period, but after that it went away.
This is a puck-moving team, armed with speed, and it can’t get the puck or move it, at least not enough.
The Bolts can’t free themselves up. They can’t find a way or the will. And if they can’t do that on home ice, what’s going
to happen in Montreal, beginning with Game 3 on Easter night?
“It’s what we’re doing to ourselves,” Stamkos said. “We’re not playing well. We’re not going to sugar coat anything. We
have a lot more than these first two games. It’s turnovers, it’s compete level. But we know what’s in here. We now this
group. We’re not going to make excuses. We’re going to man up and realize we have more to offer.”
Now what?
Slowly and surely, this game turned in the second period. A power-play goal early in the period, a deflection of a P.K.
Subban shot from the point, which David Desharnais redirected past Anders Lindback. That was large.
Then a breakdown: Lightning winger Richard Panik couldn’t control a puck at the Canadiens’ blue line. Habs winger
Thomas Vanek fed ahead to Rene Bourque, in stride, and Bolts defenseman Sami Salo was completely flat-footed.
Bourque blew on in, Lindback came out too late, and it was 2-0. That was as much as Carey Price needed.
Of course, long lost Teddy Purcell, who hadn’t scored in 12 games, and who’d gone 19 games without a goal just before
that, spoiled Price’s shutout with two minutes left. Great, just what the night needed — a punch line.
Now what?
Change lines?
Change goalies?
Cooper did the latter late in Game 2, throwing in 21-year-old Kristers Gudlevskis after Lindback let in a third goal.
Gudlevskis, poor kid, let one in on the first rush at him.
“We needed a spark,” Cooper said. “As a coach, sometimes you’re grasping for straws at one point, because you’re trying
to win the hockey game ... we were looking for a spark.”
There were none.
Suddenly it feels like the brink.
This team has performed well all season when people were trying to push it off a cliff.
“We found a way every time and we expect the same,” Stamkos said.
“We may bend a little, but we’re not going to break,” Cooper said during the last week of the season. “Give us your best
shot. OK, we’ll take it, but then we’re going to counterpunch, and it might be one that knocks you out.”
Games 1 and 2 felt like haymakers.
Start the count.
Killorn keeps scoring touch in first full season
Roy Cummings (Tampa Tribune)
TAMPA — Lightning coach Jon Cooper knew he had someone special in center Alex Killorn the first time he coached
him.
That was late in the 2011-12 season, when Killorn made what Cooper described as a seamless transition from college to
the pro game during a stint with the then title-bound Norfolk Admirals of the American Hockey League.
Killorn has been making smooth transitions up the pro hockey ladder ever since, including an impactful jump to the
Lightning’s top scoring line during Game 1 of their first-round Stanley Cup playoffs series with Montreal.
Pushed to the top line by an injury to leading scorer Ondrej Palat, Killorn helped maintain that unit’s potency by quickly
producing a goal and an assist during the Lightning’s 5-4 overtime loss on Wednesday.
“He has that ability to play with anybody anywhere, and he was certainly hot that night,’’ Cooper said of Killorn, who
skated alongside Steven Stamkos and Tyler Johnson on the top line. “They had a lot of chemistry going.’’
They hoped to keep it going in Game 2 on Friday as Palat was forced to sit out the game with what the Lightning are
calling an upper-body injury. Cooper was confident they would achieve their objective.
“Killorn has played (on the top line) before,’’ Cooper said. “He was there when Stammer went down (with a broken leg),
and he played there a little bit before that with Marty (St. Louis) and Stammer. He’s bounced around a bit.”
All that bouncing around hasn’t affected Killorn’s scoring touch. He scored 17 goals and chipped in 24 assists to rank
sixth on the team in scoring during his first full season with the Lightning.
Of course, that’s pretty much what the Lightning expected. No matter where he’s been, whether it was with Norfolk two
years ago, Syracuse last year or the Lightning this year, Killorn has always been a steady goal scorer.
The Lightning first noticed that seven years ago when Killorn was playing for the Deerfield (Mass.) Academy prep
school. He scored 18 goals in 25 games for the Big Green that year and, a few months later, Tampa Bay spent its third
pick in the 2007 draft on him.
That began an unusual journey to the NHL, one that weaved through the ivy covered walls of Harvard, where Killorn
spent four years studying, in order, hockey and political science.
“I really wanted to play in Boston, so Harvard seemed like a good choice,’’ Killorn said. “The hardest part is getting in,
but playing hockey made it a little easier for me.”
It took him two years, but Killorn eventually made the transition to big-time college hockey, as well, scoring 38 goals in
68 games as a junior and senior before joining Cooper’s Norfolk team late in the year.
“We had a really good team that year, and it was hard to come in and crack that lineup, but he was the one guy that did
it, and that’s when we knew we had a player,” Cooper said.
“Then last year we went to Syracuse and Killorn carried our team. We went through this one stretch where he kind of
single-handedly bailed us out, and it wasn’t long after that he got the call to Tampa, and he’s been here ever since.”
Lightning’s Victor Hedman coming into his own five years after going No. 2 overall
Bruce Arthur (National Post)
TAMPA, FLA. — Victor Hedman was always the kid in the back row of the school picture, and it didn’t change when he
arrived in the NHL. The experts said he was faster, more skilled, and stronger than Chris Pronger at the same age. He was
not as mean, of course, and he would never be as mean. Pronger used to say that the US$70,000 or so in fines he paid
every year was the cost of creating fear. Hedman was the boy who was teased for the pink birthmark on his left cheek, until
he grew.
But in his first four years after being the No. 2 pick behind John Tavares, the 6-foot-6 Hedman didn’t become a dominant
defenceman. He showed flashes, and some of them were long and bright; he drove possession of the puck like a monster in
the 2010-11 season, and he dropped back in subsequent years. Mostly, he was figuring it out. This season, he leapt forward
again, and the Lightning leapt with him. Going into Game 2 of Tampa’s first-round playoff series with Montreal, he has
become a critical chess piece.
“I think it’s different from player to player,” says Hedman, sporting a golden beard. “I mean you see guys come in right
away like Drew Doughty, who’s been phenomenal since he got into the league.
“But I think Tampa’s had great faith in me. This is my fifth season, and obviously for me it’s been a little bumpy. I mean,
you always want to contribute, and you see other guys putting up a lot of points, and being that high a draft pick, it puts a
little bit more pressure on you, even though you don’t want to admit it all the time. It puts a little bit more pressure on
you.”
“Sometimes I look at the way [Hedman] goes, the way our team goes,” says Lightning coach Jon Cooper, who has
encouraged Hedman to attack more. “He’s been that valuable to us … I think Victor Hedman’s had a coming-out party this
year.
“And the one thing he had is he’s had the weight on his shoulders of being the No. 2 overall pick, and that now comes with
a lot of cement on your back. And to jump in the league at 18 and kind of find his way … you want to pick MVPs on our
team, a lot of people might point at [goaltender Ben Bishop], or different directions, but it’d be hard not to throw Hedman
in that mix there. He’s learned to play 200 feet of the ice, he’s got outstanding instincts on when to jump into plays, and I
swear to you — and I have to find this one tape — I think he beat out his own icing. He iced the puck and then beat it out to
negate the icing. So he’s got great foot speed. I’ve been really happy with his game.”
If you look at Hedman’s advanced numbers this season in terms of shots attempted and shots allowed, he made teammate
after teammate better: Sami Salo, Alex Killorn, rookies Ondrej Palat and Tyler Johnson, even Martin St. Louis before his
departure. Tampa controlled 53.8% of shot attempts with Hedman on the ice at even strength, versus 50.9% as a team
over the season. He shattered his career highs with 13 goals and 55 points, including the first three power-play goals of his
career. Asked what he learned he said, “Don’t try to get too down on yourself when you do a mistake; don’t try to force
things when they’re not there: Let the game come to you.”
He is still just 23 years old.
“Kind of took a step backwards this summer,” Hedman says. “Watched a lot of other people play the game. [Niklas]
Lidstrom a lot, watching Erik Karlsson play. I changed the way I worked out this summer, too. I wanted to be a little
quicker, and I think that’s one of my strengths as a hockey player, just my speed. So I wanted to make sure I was quicker
those first few steps.”
Wait a minute: if you’re 6-foot-6, don’t you try to find tape of guys who are big, who use their reach and their stick?
“I look at those guys too, but the way I play the game — I’m not [Zdeno] Chara,” says Hedman. “I don’t think I’m playing
the way Pronger played the game. I’m not mean. I need to get some of that into my game, obviously, but I’m a mobile
defenceman who can skate the puck. You want to have a lot of parts to your game.”
Instead, he sought out tape of Scott Niedermayer and marvelled at his positioning, how he moved with the puck, his
incredible skating. He pored over Lidstrom, and was awed by his presence of mind — “just the way he always had his head
up, even on the blue line, walking the line, he always had his head up. He knew exactly what he was doing, he knew exactly
where the puck was and where his teammates were. It’s very hard, and he was one of the few that was so calm with the
puck.”
“It doesn’t really matter the size, really,” says Hedman. “I don’t think I play that game — for a big guy, I’m not as physical
as I could be. I think my mobility is what I want to do, I think that’s part of the strength in my game … Just the small
things. Seeing the small things that made them consistent was the most important thing for me.”
He is a big man who wants to play like a smaller man, in order to be great. Hedman, of course, was not calm enough with
the puck in Game 1 against Montreal; Tampa lost the puck and the possession battle in approximately equal measure, and
the game 5-4. Hedman, as much as anybody, was seen as one of the ways to turn it around, and to head in the right
direction. He believed, finally, that he could.
“It just took a long time for me to grow into the player I knew I could be,” Hedman says. “But my career has just started,
hopefully. Still young, still learning, and I’m trying to get better every day.”
Canadiens dominate Lightning, head home with 2-0 series lead
Bruce Arthur (National Post)
TAMPA, FLA. — The last time this happened for the Montreal Canadiens it was the Boston Bruins
who were on the ropes, and that ended with a bearded Zdeno Chara hoisting the Stanley Cup two
months later like he was a Viking, and downtown Vancouver in flames. This time, the Habs are up 2-0
on the Tampa Bay Lightning after a 4-1 win in Game 2, and they are headed back to the furnace of
Montreal. And again, nobody knows how it’s going to end.
“Hey listen, I remember three years ago when we were playing Boston and we took two games on the
road and they came back to win three straight and ultimately win the series in Game 7,” said
Canadiens defenceman P.K. Subban, who factored into Montreal’s first two goals in Game 2 at the
Tampa Bay Times Forum. “They’ve got lots of character on that side … As you go deeper and deeper in
these types of series the games get more and more important. We’re going to have to be ready.”
Tampa does seem to be listing, though. The Lightning were roundly outplayed in a 5-4 overtime loss
in Game 1, and this time they seemed to adjust through the first 20 minutes of Game 2. Then Subban
found David Desharnais on a power play with a slap pass that Desharnais deflected in off Anders
Lindback’s shoulder, and midway through the second Subban flipped a bomb to Thomas Vanek, who
hit Rene Bourque in stride, and he busted past Eric Brewer and stepped around Sami Salo and snuck
the puck past Lindback’s poke check. It was 2-0, and Montreal was in control.
“I don’t know if it’s what they’re doing, it’s what we’re doing to ourselves,” said Lightning star Steven
Stamkos, who was held scoreless on four shots. “We’re not playing well. We’re not going to sugarcoat
anything. We have to be a lot better than these first two games.
“It’s turnovers, it’s compete level, but we know what’s in here. We know we have this group. People
can make excuses. I’m not going to sit here and make excuses. We’re going to man up and realize we
have more to offer.”
Lindback was pulled after Brendan Gallagher’s goal midway through the third, and Latvian backup
Kristers Gudlevskis came in. He became a bit of a legend after his 55-save performance against Team
Canada in Sochi, but was beaten by Bourque on a wraparound on the first shot he faced. Lindback is
trying to replace the injured Ben Bishop, who is a Vezina candidate with a bum arm, but Cooper
insisted there was no goaltending controversy. The Lightning, meanwhile, held a 10-minute playersonly meeting after the game.
“I don’t think the final score reflects how the game was played,” said Lightning coach Jon Cooper.
“They’ve played two good, solid road games. They got a lead, and shut ‘er down.”
“Nobody likes to be suffocated,” said Subban. “It’s pretty frustrating if you got a bag over your head
and you can’t breathe. It’s not the best feeling the world. It is tough when you turn up the ice as a
defenceman and you see three forwards, two defencemen and Carey Price standing in the net. It’s not
easy to create and generate offence when you’re always in the right position. For us, we’ve got to
continue to do that at home.”
There was almost no difference between the Canadiens and the Lightning this season: a point over 82
games, an atom, nothing. When they played, about every game was decided by one play.
But Tampa is without Bishop and rookie star Ondrej Palat, their leading scorer in the regular season,
and Price was sharp again after a leaky Game 1. Tampa’s in trouble.
Montreal actually did this in 2006, too, taking a 2-0 lead in Carolina before Cam Ward became a hero
and the Hurricanes went on to win the Stanley Cup. The Habs blew a 2-0 road-won lead against the
New York Rangers in 1996, too, but that’s ancient history. This is now. Cooper said, “They’ve got to go
home and deliver. We’re coming in fighting.” The fight isn’t over, but Montreal’s halfway there.
Habs cautiously optimistic heading back to Montreal
Chris Johnston (Sportsnet)
TAMPA, Fla. – The belief had seemingly been squeezed out of the Tampa Bay Times Forum before the final
buzzer even sounded on Game 2.
So thorough was the Montreal Canadiens dominance here that a planned fan whiteout melted into large patches
of empty blue seats in the late stages of Friday’s game. More than a few paying customers had to wonder if
they’d seen the last of the Lightning in person with Montreal marching out of town with a 2-0 series lead.
However, there were cautionary voices to be found at both ends of the hall on this night. Not only did you have
Lightning coach Jon Cooper delicately hinting that the Habs would encounter some different pressure and
expectations once this series shifts to the Bell Centre, you also had Canadiens defenceman P.K. Subban
essentially echoing those sentiments.
“We’ve got to make sure that we’re going to play the same game,” Subban said after Friday’s 4-1 victory. “We
don’t need to change anything. Obviously, we know the building’s going to have a ton of energy, we know that
they’ll be chanting the whole game and that they’ll be yelling and screaming, telling us to shoot on the power
play every time we get it.
“We’ve just got to stick to our gameplan.”
So far that has been the story of this series.
Montreal has looked like a team on a mission, one that won’t be deterred or deflated by anything that happens
on the ice. After remaining patient during a 5-4 overtime victory in the opener – a game that was more lopsided
than the score suggested – the Habs weathered an early storm on Friday and eventually sucked the life out of the
Lightning.
It helped that they ended an 0-for-27 run on the power play with a David Desharnais deflection goal early in the
second period and then saw Rene Bourque burst past Sami Salo and beat Anders Lindback to make it 2-0. You
could see the confidence growing.
Once Carey Price robbed rookie Cedric Paquette later in the frame – the only five-bell save he was called on to
make in Game 2 – the result was never really in doubt. Tampa wasn’t able to mount much of an offensive attack
save for a late Teddy Purcell goal that ended Price’s shutout bid.
“If there’s one thing that I have to say that our team’s done well over the last two games it’s suffocating the
middle of the ice and making it tough for them to come through the neutral zone,” said Subban, who had two
assists. “I know as a defenceman that likes to skate the puck, that likes to move it up the ice, it’s always tough
when every time you look up you’re looking at three forwards and two defencemen every time. It’s not easy.
“We have to continue to do that.”
This was not how it was supposed to go for a Tampa team that worked hard over 82 games to earn home ice
advantage in this series. It was telling that the players held a post-game meeting to try and rally themselves. It
won’t be easy.
The Lightning are facing a daunting task, especially with No. 1 goalie Ben Bishop (elbow) and top scorer
Ondrej Palat (upper body) currently sidelined by injuries. On top of that, they are playing with an inexperienced
roster that is three years younger on average than Montreal and might simply be in too deep.
This is the first significant test since Steven Stamkos assumed the captaincy from Marty St. Louis last month.
The Tampa star had a fairly quiet night in Game 2 and vowed to be better.
“We’re not playing well,” said Stamkos. “We’re not going to sugarcoat anything. We have a lot better than
these first two games. It’s turnovers, it’s compete level, but we know what’s in here. We know we have this
group.
“We’re going to man up and realize we have more to offer.”
Perhaps the most intriguing decision facing Cooper is who to start in goal on Sunday night. During the third
period, he replaced Lindback with 21-year-old Kristers Gudlevskis – the Latvian who nearly upset Team
Canada at the Sochi Olympics – in a failed attempt to try and spark his team.
At the very least, Cooper will have to seriously ponder whether giving Gudlevskis his second career NHL start
in Game 3 might produce the intended effect.
The Lightning coach projected his usual calm and cool demeanour while surveying where this series stands.
Changing venues to the Bell Centre, the cathedral of hockey, is bound to change the dynamics at play, Cooper
reasoned.
He clearly sees an opportunity for his team to plant a seed of doubt.
“I’m sure they’re tickled pink to go up 2-zip, but they’ve still got to win games,” said Cooper. “We’re coming
in fighting. We like the way we’ve played there. We like the ice, we like the rink, we like the atmosphere.
“If I was going to pick any rink we wanted to go to and play, we’ve enjoyed playing in Montreal.”
That train of thought is not as naively hopeful as it may sound. Strangely, the Canadiens have lost the last three
series that they’ve started by winning consecutive games on the road. In fact, six members of the current team
were part of the 2011 squad that had it happen against Boston.
“Hey listen, I remember three years ago,” said Subban. “I’m not pleased until the series is over.”
Halfway there, but still a ways to go.
Bourque, Price give Canadiens 2-0 series lead
Pat Hickey (Montreal Gazette)
TAMPA, Fla. — The Canadiens are coming home with a 2-0 lead over the Tampa Bay Lightning in their best-ofseven Eastern Conference quarterfinal playoff series. The Canadiens defeated the Lightning 4-1 Friday night at the
Tampa Bay Times Forum as Carey Price made 26 saves. He missed his fourth career playoff shutout when Teddy
Purcell scored a power-play goal with 1:59 remaining in the third period. Rene Bourque scored twice and David
Desharnais and Brendan Gallagher each had one for Montreal.
End of the drought: Desharnais tipped P.K. Subban’s shot from the blue line to open the scoring with a power-play
goal at 2:34 of the second period. The goal, which came only six seconds after Richard Panik went off for hooking,
was Montreal’s first power-play goal in 10 games. The team was 0-for-27 before the goal. The Canadiens finished
the night 1-for-4 on the power play while the Lightning was 1-for-2.
On his own: A strong individual effort by Bourque put the Canadiens ahead 2-0 at 10:35 of the second period.
Bourque took a pass from Thomas Vanek at centre ice and muscled his way past Sami Salo before pushing the
puck past Anders Lindback with one hand.
Lindback pulled: Lindback’s night ended at 11:46 of the third period after Gallagher’s goal. His first shot was
blocked but he stayed with it and scored on his second try. Lindback, who gave up three goals on 23 shots, was
replaced by Latvian Olympian Kristers Gudlevskis. The rookie gave up Bourque’s second goal. He made the initial
stop on Bourque, who picked up the rebound, skated behind the net and scored on a wraparound.
Right save at the right time: Price preserved Montreal’s 2-0 lead late in the second period when he made a skate
save on Teddy Purcell and then moved across the crease to stop rookie Cedric Paquette on the rebound.
Wasted opportunity: The Canadiens were handed a four-minute power play in the first period when Steven
Stamkos clipped Brandon Prust with a high stick off a faceoff. But the Canadiens gave back part of the advantage
when they were called for too many men on the ice and they failed to get a shot on goal.
Tempers flare: Canadiens coach Michel Therrien says there’s no heated rivalry between these teams bevause they
don’t have a playoff history, but that didn’t stop Prust and Radko Gudas from dropping the gloves in the first period.
Give the decision to Prust.
What’s next: The series moves to the Bell Centre for Game 3 Sunday and Game 4 Tuesday. Both games start at 7
p.m. with coverage on CBC, RDS and TSN Radio 690.
Bell Centre gets dressed up for Sunday
Brenda Branswell (Montreal Gazette)
As the Canadiens-Tampa Bay Lightning playoff series shifts to Montreal for Game 3 on Sunday (7 p.m., CBC, RDS,
TSN Radio 690), the Bell Centre is dressed and ready for the occasion.
The playoff decor went up last week, including the red, white and blue bunting hanging from the press gallery.
Tens of thousands of white towels are in stock for fans to wave at the Bell Centre, where ‘loud’ takes on new
meaning during the playoffs.
And a new pregame video also awaits fans.
For the pregame presentation, the Canadiens try to change things up during the regular season when they can, but
for the playoffs “we raise it up a notch,” said Kevin Gilmore, the club’s chief operating officer.
“Which is what we will be doing on Sunday,” he added.
There are different technologies and approaches that allow the Canadiens to give the pregame presentation a little
bit more of a “wow effect,” Gilmore said.
“The key being to get fans prepared and excited about the game and make sure that when our guys step out on the
ice, we’ve got 21,273 chanting as loud as they can,” he said.
Gilmore added that the club’s marketing department probably starts thinking right after the Christmas holidays about
what it should be doing for the playoffs.
The great thing, he said, is that everybody in the marketing department is a passionate fan. “So it’s a great incubator
for ideas.”
Gilmore said he believes the club has “upped the level” for how it presents the pregame presentation and what it
does on the video boards and on the ice with its projection system, for example.
“I keep saying I need to feel the pregame (presentation) in my chest ... and I need to get the goosebumps,” Gilmore
said.
“So if I can feel it in my chest and I get the goosebumps, I think it passes at least my test.”
Having spoken to players, Gilmore said he knows that the feedback and energy they get from fans has an impact.
Gilmore said from their standpoint in the marketing department they always have to raise the bar on themselves.
“We’re often viewed as the cream of the crop in the NHL. ... I’m very objective when I look at game presentation,”
Gilmore said. “I’ve seen other teams that do a great job as well.
“But there’s a high level of expectation from our fans and from the media because of what we’ve done in the past —
and, most importantly, because of what our brand represents to people. It comes with a very high standard and in
order to meet that standard you almost have to always better yourself.”
Given how loud the Bell Centre gets during the playoffs, fans probably won’t need much prompting from the ‘make
some noise’ sign on the Jumbotron to make a racket.
“You tap into that when you need to kind of throw a bit of life in the crowd,” Gilmore said.
“I’d like to think that playoff time you don’t need to resort to that. But I’ll leave it up to my guys to hit the ‘faites du
bruit’ button as they feel the need to.”
The action starts Sunday at 4 p.m. with a ‘Fan Jam’ outside the Bell Centre on avenue des Canadiens-de-Montréal
between de la Montagne and Stanley Sts. The area for the event is a little more restricted this year because of all
the construction nearby, Gilmore said.
The fan jam will be held before every home game during the playoffs and starts three hours before game time. The
activities include music, face-painting, and Canadiens’ alumni autographs.
We have to keep pushing: Gallagher
Pat Hickey (Montreal Gazette)
TAMPA, Fla. — Carey Price said he didn’t have to wait long to get his head into Friday night’s playoff game against
the Tampa Bay Lightning.
“We knew they were going to come out strong, but we were ready for them,” said Price, who faced five shots in the
first 74 seconds of the game.
When it was all over, Price had stopped 26 shots in a 4-1 win, which gave the Canadiens a 2-0 lead in the best-ofseven series which now moves to the Bell Centre for Game 3 Sunday (7 p.m., CBC, RDS, TSN Radio 690).
Price had a shaky moments in the 5-4 overtime win in Game 1, but he said he gained confidence when he stopped
the nine shots he faced in overtime.
“I think the first game was overhyped, but tonight I felt better than I did in Game 1,” said Price. “We didn’t play our
best hockey in Game 1 but we found a way to win.”
Coach Michel Therrien said Price played an excellent game, but he described the game as a “complete team effort.”
The Canadiens continued to find offence from unexpected sources, and the extra work the team has put in on the
power play paid off when David Desharnais tipped P.K. Subban’s shot from the blue line for Montreal’s first powerplay goal in 10 games.
“We not only scored that goal but we also had some chances on our last power play, so I’m feeling good about that
part of our game,” said Therrien.
Rene Bourque showed energy early in the game and led the offence with a pair of goals, including one on a rush
that saw him power his way past defenceman Sami Salo.
“(Thomas) Vanek made a great pass, which allowed me to go into the zone with speed,” said Bourque. “I yelled for
the puck but I think he saw. He’s very underrated as a playmaker.”
Therrien noted that Bourque has had a difficult season but that he was played well since he returned from a period
of exile in the press box late in the season.
Brendan Gallagher scored the other Montreal goal and said one of the keys was the Canadiens’ relentless pressure.
“You don’t want to take your foot off the pedal,” said Gallagher. “Going up 1-0 on the power play gave us momentum
and we have to keep pushing.”
The Canadiens are 49-5 in series when they led 2-0, but here’s a note of caution: The last three times the
Canadiens took a 2-0 lead on the road, they lost the series.
Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said he was disappointed to fall behind 2-0 in the series but he said he felt good
about the series moving to Montreal.
“In my brief history here, we’ve played well there,” said Cooper, whose team was 2-0 at the Bell Centre in the
regular season. “If we have to go anywhere, that’s where we want to go. There’s a good atmosphere, good ice and
the people are hockey fans.
Cooper said the Canadiens got the breaks while the Lightning failed to take advantage of its chances. He praised
Price for coming across to make a save on Cedric Paquette and said Steven Stamkos failed to shoot when he had
an opening.
“I thought we played well in the first half of the game,” said Cooper. He said the Lightning got a lift when Anders
Lindback stopped Brian Gionta on a breakaway in the first period.
“We were 0-0 coming out of the first period and then they scored the power-play goal and they went ahead 2-0 and
they shut it down in the third,” said Cooper.
Cooper said he was trying to give his team a spark when he pulled Lindback midway through the third period, but
the ploy backfired when Bourque scored his second goal of the game on Kristers Gudlevskis.
“I felt bad for Gudie when they scored on the first rush against him,” Cooper said.
Weaver didn’t expect to play pro
Pat Hickey (Montreal Gazette)
TAMPA, Fla. — Mike Weaver has played 13 years in the National Hockey League and he can thank Don Waddell
for opening the door.
Waddell was the general manager of the Atlanta Thrashers when he went to watch a game at Michigan State
University. The reason for the trip was to watch a hot prospect named Bryan Adams, but he couldn’t help noticing
Weaver.
Waddell, who is now a scout for the Pittsburgh Penguins, recalled: “He hit everything that moved and I said, ‘Who is
this guy Mike Weaver?’ I talked to our people about him and they told me he was 5-foot-nothing. But when he
graduated a year later I offered him a contract. I was almost embarrassed because all I had to give him was a
$25,000 signing bonus.”
That was $25,000 more than Weaver ever expected to make from playing hockey.
“I was just hoping to get a scholarship,” said Weaver, who is actually a tad shorter than his listed height of 5-foot-10.
“I wasn’t drafted and I didn’t think pro hockey was in my future.”
Thirteen seasons, six teams and 602 games later, the 183-pound Weaver has become a valuable member of the
Canadiens’ defence corps. He was acquired from the Florida Panthers at the NHL trade deadline in exchange for a
fifth-round draft pick as insurance after Josh Gorges broke a bone in his hand and Weaver stayed in the lineup after
Gorges returned.
Weaver, who will turn 36 on May 2, is a survivor of the hockey wars. He grew up in the Toronto suburb of Bramalea
and his claim to fame is that he played on a lot of teams that no longer exist.
“I played for the Bramalea Blues, a Tier 2 team in Brampton, the Thornhill Islanders and a team in Vaughan, and I
think they’re all gone,” Weaver said.
He also played for the defunct Orlando Solar Bears of the American Hockey League (the team recently emerged
from hibernation to play in the ECHL) and he broke into the NHL with the Thrashers, who later moved to Winnipeg.
Weaver, who is delighted to be in the playoffs after starting the season with the dreadful Panthers, said there was
one point in his career when he thought it was over. That was in 2006-07, when he played only 39 games with the
Los Angeles Kings.
“I was filling out the papers to buy a Tim Horton’s franchise,” explained Weaver, who changed his mind when the
Vancouver Canucks offered him a one-year deal.
A number of Weaver’s Michigan State teammates went on to play in the NHL. They include goaltender Ryan Miller,
Shawn Horcoff, John-Michael Liles, Andrew Hutchinson, Mike York and Adam Hall.
Bryan Adams?
Waddell also signed the 6-foot, 190-pound forward, but he played only 11 games in the NHL and has spent the past
decade playing in Germany.