If there is one team that understands the truth about the well-used statement “the fourth game is the hardest to win in a playoff series”, it is Tampa Bay Lightning. The team, led by star players like Victor Hedman, Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Steven Stamkos, has won five straight playoff series and is now getting ready to win a sixth in a row as the team travels to Raleigh to take on the Carolina Hurricanes in Match 5.
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Lightning leads the match series 3-1 and would, in the event of promotion, be ahead of their fifth (!) Semi-final appearance in the Stanley Cup playoffs in the last seven seasons. In short, Lightning knows how to win playoff series.
And you know that the fourth victory is almost always the toughest.
– We’re back in their barn now, said Lightning’s back Victor Hedman in a Zoom interview on Monday night. But that does not mean we should change anything for that. We will go in with the same attitude we did in the first two matches (away).
The first three matches in the series were close right through, but Match 4 represented something of a trend breaker. Lightning ended up at a disadvantage 2-4 but managed to fight back and was able to win 6-4. Hedman scored an assist and extended his points harvest to eleven points (0 + 11) in ten games – best among all defenders in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
– The last match was an exception, from both teams, Hedman continued. For us, it is always first and foremost about winning hockey matches and I am proud of how we fought back. It does not matter how we win the matches, but of course we have a lot to sort out from the last.
– These are the matches you love to play. Decisive matches are always fun.
Video: TBL-CAR M4: Stamkos strikes for the second time in PP
Lightning has relied on breadth in the lineup, crucial efforts from key players and a good portion of experience on the way to the current 3-1 lead in games, in the second round against the Carolina Hurricanes.
– What makes good teams good is their width, said Lightning’s team captain Steven Stamkos over the weekend. We saw it last season when we went all the way. We have seen it before, the other times we have come a long way. We’ll see it again now. That is the reason why we are a good team.
Stamkos has scored 13 points (5 + 8) in 10 matches in the playoffs – second best in the league behind teammate Nikita Kucherov who accounted for 17 points (5 + 12) in as many matches.
But even good teams can encounter patrol in the big matches. And for the Carolina Hurricanes, there is no bigger game than Match 5 – a “must win” if anything.
It will thus be a “must” for Lightning to match the Hurricanes’ desperation. Something does not seem to be a problem in a team as close-knit as Tampa Bay.
Video: TBL-CAR M4: Point gives Lightning the lead
– At this time of year, you completely disconnect your ego, it’s all about profits, Stamkos said. Sure, you need your top players to play well, absolutely. We see this year in and year out. But in this team, everyone has a specific role and everyone feels good and is positive before our matches because they know exactly what to do.
An assessment another experienced Lightning forward, Tyler Johnson, agrees with:
– We only continue to implement the homework and lessons we have acquired in previous seasons. We are an extremely close-knit team. We are a family. You see guys sacrifice themselves for the team, because the guy next to one… such creates bands.
– Everyone here has the same goal and we really work together towards it.
Match 5 of the series between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Tampa Bay Lightning kicks off at 00.30 on Wednesday night. Then Lightning can secure another playoff promotion.
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