Tampa Bay Lightning

The Tampa Bay Lightning have traded veteran defenseman Ryan McDonagh to the Nashville Predators in exchange for defenseman Philippe Myers and forward Grant Mismash, the franchise announced Sunday.

"He's one of the best defenders in the NHL, he's a selfless player and a great leader. I would like to thank him for everything he's done for us," Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois told reporters.

Tampa Bay's decision to move McDonagh was largely to clear cap space, as the 33-year-old is under contract for four more seasons with an average annual salary of $6.8 million.

If the Lightning buy out the remainder of Myers' contract, which has been speculated, they will have cleared more than $7.3 million in cap space, per Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff. However, BriseBois told reporters Sunday that they don't plan to buy out the veteran defenseman and that they like his "toolbox," per The Athletic's Joe Smith.

That said, the Bolts are still over the salary cap by $933,333, per CapFriendly, and will need to clear more cap space if they hope to re-sign unrestricted free agents Ondrej Palat and Jan Rutta this summer.

Tampa Bay is currently set to head into the 2022-23 season with a defense that includes Myers, Victor Hedman, Mikhail Sergachev, Erik Cernak, Zach Bogosian and Cal Foote. While that's not a bad group, the loss of McDonagh is a tough blow to the unit.

McDonagh spent four-and-a-half seasons with the Lightning after being sent to Tampa Bay in a trade from the New York Rangers, with whom he began his career, in February 2018. He played a key role in each of Tampa Bay's Stanley Cup victories in 2020 and 2021 and the team's run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2022.

From 2020-22, the Minnesota native averaged 21:47 of ice time in 171 regular-season games, tallying nine goals and 41 assists for 50 points. He averaged 23:10 of ice time in 68 playoff games in that span, notching two goals and 16 assists for 18 points.

While McDonagh is undoubtedly past his prime, he still had a solid 2021-22 campaign, tallying four goals and 22 assists for 26 points in 71 games while averaging 22:27 of ice time, the highest he's averaged since the 2017-18 season.

McDonagh will now be tasked with helping anchor a Nashville defense alongside Norris Trophy finalist Roman Josi and Mattias Ekholm. It's unclear which pairing he will play on, but Josi and Ekholm will probably be ahead of him on the depth chart.

Even with the trade for McDonagh, Nashville has $18.1 million in cap space, per CapFriendly. That gives the Predators more than enough room to re-sign star forward Filip Forsberg, in addition to some of their other free agents.

However, the Preds could use an upgrade on offense even if Forsberg returns, so it's possible the franchise will look into some of the top available forwards when free agency opens.

As for the Bolts, Myers will probably be one of their bottom pairing defensemen. He tallied one goal and three assists for four points in 27 games with the Preds last season and had an underwhelming three seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers before that, posting six goals and 23 assists for 29 points in 115 games.

Mismash spent the 2021-22 campaign with the AHL's Milwaukee Admirals, tallying six goals and 12 points in his rookie year. The 23-year-old will likely remain in the AHL for the 2022-23 season as Tampa Bay has plenty of offensive depth.

TAMPA, Fla. — Cale Makar's most famous words of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final weren't his last, they were his first.

"They're a team that's looking to have a dynasty," Makar said on media day, prior to the start of the Colorado Avalanche's championship series against the two-time defending champions in the Tampa Bay Lighting. "We're a team trying to start a legacy."

Their legacy may have begun Sunday night.

The Avalanche ended the Lightning's bid for their third straight Stanley Cup. A 2-1 comeback win in Game 6 at Amalie Arena gave the Avs their first Stanley Cup championship since 2001 and the third in club history. With a talented young core in place, this might not be the last time you see this team in this position in the coming years.

It's a culmination of patience and prudence shown by Avalanche GM Joe Sakic. The team tasted bitter disappointment in recent years, losing in the second round in three consecutive postseasons and in the first the year before that.

But much like when the Presidents' Trophy-winning Bolts were swept in the first round of the 2019 playoffs, the adversity served them well. Tampa Bay stayed the course and turned into a juggernaut.

Sakic did the same, knowing his team would be better for it. He didn't fire coach Jared Bednar after the team lost to the Vegas Golden Knights last year, and he didn't make drastic changes to the roster.

"Sometimes you have to go through some tough times," Sakic said. "We thought we were in a real good place last year, and it didn't happen. And it didn't happen quick. You saw the emotion from Nathan [MacKinnon] after we lost to Vegas [last year]. But I can tell you, right from day one of training camp, they came ready to go. They all had worked extremely hard in the offseason. You can tell that they weren't happy and they were ready to be prepared."

Enjoy the beers, Mac 😂🍻 https://t.co/2iOfN71ffR

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) June 27, 2022

"We learned to play the right way with a lead and manage the puck. That was the biggest difference this year from last year."

Sakic's deft management not only fortified the roster this season but also improved the team's leadership.

His deadline acquisitions included defenseman Josh Manson, who bailed out goalie Darcy Kuemper with a goal-line save in Game 6 of the second round, which ultimately allowed the Avs to win the game and eliminate the St. Louis Blues.

"The whole St. Louis trip was a turning point for our team," Makar said. "The whole experience of giving up a Game 5 and losing, the mentality flipped right after that game. We were like, 'We're going to win [the next game].' And we found a way with four seconds or so left. Manson made an incredible play for us."

Sakic also brought in Artturi Lehkonen, who scored the game-winner for the Montreal Canadiens to send them to the Stanley Cup last season and the game-winner in Game 6.

He also brought in veteran winger Andrew Cogliano, who brought the team together Saturday night and delivered a motivational speech, along with MacKinnon and captain Gabriel Landeskog.

"When a guy like that talks, you listen," Makar said. "He spoke to us, it was him and Landy and Nate, basically just calmed the guys down and made sure that, regardless of the outcome, we just put it all out there and see where the game lies."

The emotional leadership the veterans provided was a huge boost, but it also helps to have all-world players like Makar. The Avs' defensemen scored 18 goals and assisted on 49 for 67 points. Only the 1985 Edmonton Oilers received a larger contribution from their defense corps with 77 points. Makar was at the center of it all throughout the postseason, along with defense partner Devon Toews.

The newly crowned Norris Trophy winner's 29 points were the most points by a defenseman in one postseason in 28 years and the fourth-highest in Stanley Cup history. His point total was the second-highest ever recorded by an Avs player, with the highest mark (34 points) having been set by Sakic.

"Best player in the world," Colorado defenseman Bowen Byram told Bleacher Report.

The way they jump into the rush makes it feel like Colorado has five forwards on the ice, yet they're still able to contain the puck, retrieve it and slow down the opposing forwards when needed. It's incredibly effective with the right personnel.

"I feel like a difference-maker in this series, it could have been that, maybe individual-wise," Makar said. "But I feel like for us, our main thing was that we always wanted to be up in the rush and give our forwards options because they're so good at gaps and so on and so on."

For longtime veterans such as Erik Johnson, Jack Johnson and Cogliano, it's the ultimate payoff. Cogliano had come close to the Cup once before in 2015 with the Anaheim Ducks, but that team lost to the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 7 of the Western Conference Final. It was a devastating blow for a contending team. The club largely shared the same sentiment: You never know when you're going to get another chance at a Cup.

Cogliano finally got one again.

"I think the biggest thing is, to say you're a champion, that's the biggest title you can get in this game," Cogliano said. "To beat a team like that is something special. This team deserved it. I really do think that. This is a great bunch of people from the top down. And we earned it."

MacKinnon also had some famous words last year: "I haven't won s--t."

He can now say he's won it all.

The Colorado Avalanche won the Stanley Cup on Sunday after a 2-1 victory in Game 6.

Officially.

But don't let tortured handshakes and a giddy hoist in front of a respectful Amalie Arena crowd fool you. This series, and Tampa Bay's two-year run as the class of the NHL, actually ended four nights earlier.

Because that's when, even with every must-win cliche cued up, the Lightning couldn't hold off a team that attacked in waves, defended with friction and did just enough of every other little thing to beat an opponent that hadn't lost a playoff series since the spring of 2019.

There was no magic Jon Cooper speech. No timely Pat Maroon goal.

And no felonious Andrei Vasilevskiy save. Or at least not enough of them.

Instead, it was a historically great team losing to one that, this year at least, was superior.

The Avalanche won five more games and racked up nine more points during a regular season in which they also took more shots, scored more goals and were better on the power play.

So it was hardly shocking that they'd be ahead at the end.

But make no mistake: there had been hope on the Gulf Coast.

After all, the first game went to overtime and could just as easily have ended the other way after arriving at the third period tied at 3. And as for the second game, well, it was just one game and could be reasoned away with the "series doesn't begin until the home team loses" mantra.

Eventually, when Tampa Bay shook off an early deficit to run away with Game 3 and nursed a 2-1 lead into the final period of Game 4, its moment arrived.

It was precisely the kind of moment the Lightning had owned for 11 straight series.

They had more shots, more blocks and were 20 minutes away from tying the series and changing its narrative.

But rather than holding serve or scoring an insurance goal to seal the deal, the hosts saw Colorado get a blue-collar deflection from fourth-liner Andrew Cogliano to tie the game and a well-placed wrister from Nazem Kadri about an hour later to win it in overtime.

The Avalanche had the game. And for all intents and purposes—though the stubborn champs managed to win Game 5 on title-defense muscle memory—the series.

And as for that dynasty thing, well…maybe not so much.

As much as the eventual six-game triumph cemented Colorado's elite status after several springtime near-misses, it simultaneously illustrated just how difficult a job Tampa Bay general manager Julien BriseBois had—and Avalanche counterpart Joe Sakic now has—maintaining momentum in a salary-cap reality.

The Lightning's depth was gutted in the wake of each celebratory boat parade down the Hillsborough River—with Carter Verhaeghe, Cedric Paquette, Braydon Coburn and Kevin Shattenkirk exiting after the initial edition in 2020 before Yanni Gourde, Blake Coleman, Barclay Goodrow and Tyler Johnson followed them to other addresses after a repeat splash-fest last summer.

And while the bottom-six depth now provided by vets such as Corey Perry and kids such as Ross Colton is as good or better than 30 teams already booking tee times, the nonstop reconfiguration inhibits the cohesion symbolic of old-school teams before salary caps and free agency were a thing.

The New York Islanders won four straight Cups from 1980 to 1983 with very little significant player movement. In fact, 16 players—including Conn Smythe winners Bryan Trottier, Butch Goring, Mike Bossy and Billy Smith—won all four championships on Long Island before giving way to Wayne Gretzky.

By contrast, only 10 Tampa Bay skaters plus Vasilevskiy were in the lineup both Sunday night in Tampa and for Game 6 of the team's first Cup win against Dallas two years ago.

Another exodus seems certain after this run, too, given the imminent unrestricted free-agent status of first-liner Ondrej Palat and third-liner Nicholas Paul and the dearth of cap room for BriseBois to work with.

It's a big reason only one team—the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016 and 2017—had won repeat Cups in the cap era and no team had reached three straight finals since Edmonton from 1983 to 1985.

And don't forget Colorado, with the league's best overall record from 2019 to 2022, was good, too.

That was the bad news.

But that doesn't mean there's no more good news in West Central Florida, thanks largely to BriseBois's signature philosophy of locking down the core and filling in the periphery.

Captain Steven Stamkos is signed for two more seasons at $8.5 million apiece, and minutes-gobbling D-man Victor Hedman is locked up through 2025 at $7.88 million annually. Playmaking winger Nikita Kucherov is in the fold for five more seasons at $9.5 million each, while Vasilevskiy and center Brayden Point will also earn $9.5 million per year through 2028 and 2030, respectively.

Those five players will account for more than 54 percent of the team's 2022-23 payroll—not exactly a widely endorsed managerial M.O. in a spreadsheet-centric analytics era.

Still, if you think that means the Lightning are predestined for the draft lottery, think again.

The dynasty may be over.

But the title contention rolls on because BriseBois isn't quite ready to settle for less.

"The wheel kind of spins itself," he said. "You've got good players, you're a good team, good players want to sign with you, and it's just kind of trying to keep the wheel going."

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.

If you had plans to spend your Sunday evening with the Avs Faithful watching Game 6 at Tivoli Quad, you will want to pick a different location as the Avs watch party has been canceled. https://t.co/quPMBW1zQz

— FOX31 Denver KDVR (@KDVR) June 25, 2022

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."

Ondrej Palat played hero for the Tampa Bay Lightning once again Friday night as he scored the game-winning goal in a 3-2 Game 5 victory against the Colorado Avalanche in the Stanley Cup Final at Ball Arena.

With Friday's game tied 2-2 a little past the midway point of the third period, Palat found the back of the net for his 11th goal of the playoffs, seven of which have come in the third period, thanks to a perfect pass from defenseman Victor Hedman.

Palat was praised for his heroics as the Bolts hung on to force a Game 6 at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.

Ondrej Palat is so clutch.

— luke fox (@lukefoxjukebox) June 25, 2022

Late in the third period:

Ondrej Palat is that dude. Routine.

— Mike Benton (@Benton_Mike) June 25, 2022

Ondrej Palat's go-ahead goal is his 11th of the postseason, T-3rd most in the 2022 playoffs.

7 of them have come in the third period, most of any player. pic.twitter.com/clH77dZT6h

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 25, 2022

Ondřej Palát is just the fifth player since 1995 with at least 7 third-period goals in a single postseason.@TBLightning | #GoBolts pic.twitter.com/RSjSHFv5Sl

— Hockey Reference (@hockey_ref) June 25, 2022

Palat has been such a force for #GoBolts during this playoff. He epitomizes how this team plays. As Gene Hackman said in “The Replacements” “Miles and Miles of Heart” https://t.co/3zF5anpTD9

— Brent Axe (@BrentAxeMedia) June 25, 2022

Is there anyone more clutch than Ondrej Palat? pic.twitter.com/Tj6ccia5EC

— Shayna (@shaynagoldman_) June 25, 2022

Ondrej Palat is pretty clutch... pic.twitter.com/lxKMRaXIIH

— Brady Trettenero (@BradyTrett) June 25, 2022

Ondrej Palat, gutsy player. Tampa Bay Lightning, gutsy hockey team

— Joe Haggerty (@HackswithHaggs) June 25, 2022

Most career postseason game-winning goals among active players

Joe Pavelski 14
Evgeni Malkin 13
Ondrej Palat 12#GoBolts pic.twitter.com/Xn6xdn0vJm

— Sportsnet Stats (@SNstats) June 25, 2022

Ondrej Palat is a nutcase. He should have teams lining up for him in free agency. Absolutely MONEY in the playoffs

— Mike Cratty (@Mike_Cratty) June 25, 2022

In this house we love and appreciate Ondrej Palat pic.twitter.com/yw0Zf7dm00

— Andrew Weiss (@WeissHockeyTalk) June 25, 2022

What a player. Ondrej Palat what a legend

— Bolts By The Bay (@BoltsByTheBay) June 25, 2022

Palat with a goal when his team really needs a goal … clutch

3-2 Tampa Bay Lightning with 6 and change on the clock

— Gabby Shirley (@Gabby_Shirley_) June 25, 2022

ONDREJ PALAT GREATEST SEVENTH ROUND PICK OF ALL TIME

— Trevor Sikkema (@TampaBayTre) June 25, 2022

Palat is so clutch, that man is getting PAID

— xTech (@xTechHockey) June 25, 2022

GIVE ONDREJ PALAT THE CONN SMYTHE

— morgan ⚡️ (@morganbolts) June 25, 2022

Ondrej Palat scores one big goal after another. Crazy.

— Brian Compton (@BComptonNHL) June 25, 2022

This type of postseason production is nothing new from Palat. Entering Friday's game, the 31-year-old had notched 47 goals and 45 assists for 92 points in 136 playoff games.

During Tampa Bay's 2020 Stanley Cup run, Palat tallied 11 goals and seven assists for 18 points in 25 games. He followed that up with five goals and eight assists for 13 points in 23 playoff games during the Bolts' 2021 Cup run.

The Lightning selected Palat in the seventh round of the 2011 NHL draft, and he has been a staple in the lineup since making his debut during the 2012-13 campaign.

With the series set to shift back to Tampa Bay, the Bolts will be hoping Palat can help the team force a Game 7 and keep their hopes of winning the Stanley Cup for the third straight season alive.

Game 6 between the Lightning and Colorado is set for Sunday at 8 p.m. ET. Colorado leads the series 3-2.

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.