Colorado Avalanche

DENVER — It's the most fun an athlete could ever have.

It's also the most exhausting.

They say the Stanley Cup is the hardest trophy in sports to win, but the Tampa Bay Lightning made it look easy in 2020 and 2021. However, it doesn't look easy for the Lightning or their opponent in the 2022 Stanley Cup Final, the Colorado Avalanche.

The Avs had a chance to clinch at home on Friday night in Game 5. The city was ready. The atmosphere inside Ball Arena was absolutely electric. The Stanley Cup was in the building.

Fans broke down barriers at a watch party. The state's signature craft beer was flowing, streets were blocked off and light poles were greased in anticipation of mass celebrations.

But Ondrej Palat's go-ahead goal in the third period put those hopes on hold for at least another few days, if not ended them all together. The Bolts forced a sixth game, and everyone headed back to Tampa just 48 hours after departing, a lot more determined to win but also a lot more fatigued.

"There is a massive sense of, 'Wow, we accomplish this. I'm so damn excited. But I need my bed for a while,'" Lightning coach Jon Cooper said earlier this week in Denver. "The excitement and the thrill, and all that trumps everything. But there is a time where you're like, 'Glad this is over.'"

It's a lot of adrenaline and emotions, and when that adrenaline crashes, it can be draining. This is the culmination of two straight months of highs and lows. The Stanley Cup Playoffs are just as much about skill and depth as they are about managing emotions and mental toughness.

For the Lightning, that mental toughness comes from being battle-tested and understanding through two years of Stanley Cup Finals how and when to step on the gas and how and when to let up.

But right now, they can't let up. And that's a challenge.

"Is it tactics? Is it game plan? Is it all those other things? Yes. Part of it, too, is managing, and it's managing expectations. It's managing what's happening in the future," Cooper said.

"And if you're going to have a parade for every win, you're not going to last very long in this league. You're definitely not going to last long in the playoffs. And I think that with our group, you just have to reset and understand like, it's the first one to four. It's not the first one to three. You don't know how you're going to get there, but for us, our focus can't change. Like our approach going into last night can't change tomorrow just because we're going home."

Special teams and injuries will be key storylines heading into Game 6. The Avalanche have been dominating the special teams battle, turning the Bolts' historic strengths into weaknesses.

The Lightning are just 2-for-18 (11.1 percent) on the power play through five games, and their penalty kill is 6-for-15 (40 percent). Kucherov scored on a 4-on-3 power play Friday night to help boost that number a little, but Tampa Bay had two previous power plays that generated next to nothing.

The Colorado penalty kill has significantly limited scoring chances and forced their opponent to pass more than shoot. In nearly nine more 5-on-4 minutes than the Avs, Tampa Bay has 11 fewer shot attempts and 11 fewer scoring chances.

"It's playoffs, it's Stanley Cup Finals, I think your team's always play with a certain level of desperation," Colorado coach Jared Bednar said Saturday morning before the team departed for Florida.

"Certainly, Tampa brought it yesterday. We've seen it building with both teams as the series goes on, and there's still lots of hockey to be played. So I expect our guys to again ramp up that level as much as they possibly can. just try to put together a little bit more detailed and more disciplined game from our group."

Brayden Point and Andre Burakovsky have missed three straight games for Tampa Bay and Colorado, respectively. Burakovsky is traveling with the Avs and is a possibility for Game 6.

Both teams are tired. Both teams are desperate. One might know how to handle the roller coaster a little better than the other, but that doesn't mean the Avs aren't learning quickly. To close out the series over the two-time defending champions, the Avs need to be more desperate than the team playing underneath those banners.

"I think that's something you just kind of have to find. You have to have that desperation because it's the finals," Colorado defenseman Josh Manson said."You can't look at the amount of games that we have left. You have to be desperate every single game, and I think that's something that we've talked about, at least. We played St. Louis, and they had that game where they kind of game back on us. We felt that we needed to get desperate, and we learned from that a little bit."

Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar lamented a controversial tripping call on star defenseman Cale Makar that led to a Tampa Bay Lightning power-play goal in the Bolts' 3-2 win in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final on Friday.

According to ESPN's Kristen Shilton, Bednar questioned the validity of the call, saying:

"I didn't love that call, just because I don't think there was any intent there. I don't even think he was checking that guy [Ondrej Palat]. Looked to me like he kind of tripped over his stick. It's a tough one. They got their only power play goal on that one. So that hurt, stung a little bit. But it is what it is. You gotta roll with the punches."

The penalty led to a 4-on-3 power play for Tampa during the second period, and it cashed in with a goal by Nikita Kucherov to go up 2-1.

Colorado tied it early in the third period on a Makar goal, but Palat later scored the game-winner for the Lightning with less than seven minutes left.

With the win, Tampa shrunk the series deficit to 3-2, and the series is now set to go back to Florida for Game 6 on Sunday.

Makar was also asked about the tripping penalty during his post-game media availability, but he took the high road, saying:

"I'm not here to talk about the refs. We have to battle through that. It's playoffs, there's going to be discrepancies game-to-game with different people. It is what it is. You can't get your emotions taken into that. For me, that [tripping penalty] doesn't happen very often, but at the end of the day, you have to refocus."

Despite his diplomatic response, Makar clearly had an issue with the officiating during the game.

Aside from the tripping penalty, Makar appeared incensed when he appeared to get hooked on a rush down the ice and no call was made:

Makar ended up with a goal and an assist in Friday's loss, giving him 29 points during the playoffs and putting him in position to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as postseason MVP if the Avs are able to close out the Lightning.

The Avalanche had a golden close-out opportunity on their home ice in Game 5, but now the margin for error is shrinking against two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Lightning.

As is often the case during the playoffs, the officiating has been under the microscope lately, including during overtime of Game 4 when Nazem Kadri scored the game-winner for Colorado, but Lightning head coach Jon Cooper suggested it shouldn't have counted because the Avs had too many men on the ice.

In Game 5, Colorado was called for five penalties compared to just three for Tampa, including a late too-many-men call that essentially sunk the Avs' chances of scoring the equalizer.

The Lightning are 3-0 so far in this year's playoffs when facing elimination, but the Avalanche will have another chance to send them packing Sunday night in a massive Game 6.

The Colorado Avalanche are one win away from their first Stanley Cup since 2001. And on Friday night, they'll get an opportunity to celebrate in front of their fans on their home ice.

That's the situation after the Avalanche took a 3-1 lead in this year's Stanley Cup Final by outlasting the Tampa Bay Lightning for a 3-2 overtime win in Game 4 in Tampa on Wednesday night. The Avs notched their second OT victory of the series, while the Lightning's eight-game home winning streak was snapped.

It was only fitting that Nazem Kadri scored the game-winning goal for Colorado in his return from a thumb injury that required surgery. The 31-year-old center, who was playing in the first Stanley Cup Final game of his 13-year NHL career, hadn't been in action since Game 3 of the Western Conference Final.

"It was a rollercoaster of emotions," Kadri said, per ESPN's Kristen Shilton. "Just thinking I was done and having a sliver of hope, and then sitting here right now is kind of surreal. I just was excited to join the team again and be in the dressing room. This is what I've been waiting for my entire life, so it certainly was exciting to get back into the lineup."

The Lightning had a 2-1 lead after two periods before Andrew Cogliano scored for the Avalanche only two minutes and 53 seconds into the third to tie the game. Nobody scored again until Kadri's game-winner 12:02 into overtime.

"I think for what he's dealing with, it's pretty remarkable, to be honest," Cogliano said of Kadri, per NHL.com's Nick Cotsonika. "He's in a tough spot. He was in a tough spot a couple days ago. But I think everyone at this point, you get adrenaline, you get that fire in you, and you find a way."

There was a bit of controversy surrounding Kadri's goal to end it, though.

After the game, NHL Hockey Operations (h/t The Athletic) issued a statement that the four on-ice officials "advised that they did not see a too-many-men-on-the-ice situation on the play" on which Kadri scored. However, it seemed like Tampa Bay head coach Jon Cooper had a different opinion.

"We’re all in this together. Players, coaches, refs, everybody," Cooper said, per Fred Goodall of the Associated Press. "But this one is going to sting much more than others."

It also has the Lightning in a difficult position. If they're going to win a third straight Stanley Cup, they'll need to win three straight games to end the series. That includes Game 5 and a potential Game 7 in Denver.

Tampa Bay overcame an 0-2 deficit to win the Eastern Conference Final by recording four straight victories against the New York Rangers. Can this experienced team now pull off an even more improbable comeback?

"For us, our backs are against the wall," Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said, per NHL.com's Tom Gulitti. "We've done it before in these playoffs. We're going to have to do it again."

Game 6 would be back in Tampa. And Game 7 would come with the series tied. So there's still a chance for the Lightning if they can get some momentum going.

But they're first going to need to find a way to win in a hostile environment in Game 5. The Avalanche are also 7-2 at home during the playoffs, having won their past four games at Ball Arena.

Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper was emotional after his team's controversial 3-2 overtime loss to the Colorado Avalanche in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday.

Cooper only answered one question during the postgame press conference, telling reporters his "heart breaks" for his players because of how the game ended:

Prior to Nazem Kadri's game-winning goal, there was some confusion that the Avs may have had too many men on the ice. Nathan MacKinnon was being subbed out for Kadri, but it took him more than five seconds to get to the bench.

At the same time, it also appeared the Lightning had an extra man on the ice when the substitutions were happening:

The official game sheet from the NHL showed six Colorado players were on the ice when the game-winning goal was scored:

NHL Hockey Operations issued a statement after the game about the controversy.

"A too many men on the ice penalty is a judgment call that can be made by any of the four on-ice officials," the statement read (via NHL.com's Mike Zeisberger). "Following the game, Hockey Operations met with the four officials as is their normal protocol. In discussing the winning goal, each of the four officials advised that they did not see a too many men on the ice situation on the play."

There was a similar situation that the Lightning benefited from in last year's playoffs. Yanni Gourde scored a shorthanded goal in Game 7 of the semifinal that wound up being the difference in a 1-0 win over the New York Islanders.

Andrew Gross of Newsday noted that an image was circulated that appeared to show Tampa Bay had five skaters on the ice. Barclay Goodrow was serving a two-minute penalty for cross-checking at the time.

No one on the Islanders was asked about the situation. The Lightning then went on to win their second consecutive Stanley Cup Final by defeating the Montreal Canadiens.

Wednesday's loss put the Lightning on the brink of defeat, facing a 3-1 series deficit heading back to Ball Arena for Game 5.

The only team to erase a 3-1 deficit in the Stanley Cup Final was the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1942. They dropped the first three games of their series to the Detroit Red Wings before winning four straight.

The Lightning and Avs will play Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final on Friday at 8 p.m. ET.