Game 1 of the COVID-19 Cup was surprisingly fun for a party with no real dog in the race. The Dallas Stars were as scrappy as promised, finding the back of the net four times on just 20 total shots. Meanwhile, Anton Khudobin held down the crease despite getting hammered by the Tampa Bay Lightning, who failed so miserably at breaking him that the question on everyone’s mind is “How soon can Steven Stamkos come back?”
It’s shaping up to be an exciting Final. Here’s everything you need to know for tonight:
In Their Words
From SB Nation’s Defending Big D:
In some ways, this game didn’t stick to form. Offensively, Dallas got out to a lead — primarily from getting the puck into the slot. With a lead, the Stars didn’t need to utilize their net-front and shot-from-the-point offense, and by the third period, they dropped into their comfortable shell.
Defensively, the Stars controlled the center of the ice, both the slots, where the Lightning focus their offensive zone attention, and by forcing neutral ice play to the outside. Tampa Bay couldn’t generate any speed coming into the Dallas end, and once they made it into the offensive zone, they couldn’t get any space to set up their lethal offense.
From SB Nation’s Raw Charge:
If the Bolts continue to play the way they did on Saturday, they don’t have a chance of winning this series. Although they did get better as the game progressed, it wasn’t enough, as Anton Khudobin shut the door the rest of the way. They need to have a better start tonight, and it would be great if they could score first — they’ve allowed the opening goal for the last six playoff games. […]
The Lightning haven’t lost consecutive games in the entire playoffs yet. ‘Yet’ is the key word. They might be a confident team, but they will have dug themselves an enormous hole if they hand the Stars another win. Tampa Bay hasn’t beaten Dallas at all this season. The way they respond in tonight’s game is critical to how the rest of the series will play out.
Lines
DALLAS STARS (via NHL.com)
Jamie Benn — Tyler Seguin — Alexander Radulov
Mattias Janmark — Joe Pavelski — Denis Gurianov
Joel Kiviranta — Roope Hintz — Corey Perry
Andrew Cogliano — Jason Dickinson — Blake Comeau
Esa Lindell — John Klingberg
Jamie Oleksiak — Miro Heiskanen
Andrej Sekera — Joel Hanley
Anton Khudobin
Jake Oettinger
Expected Scratches: Nick Caamano, Ty Dellandrea, Jason Robertson, Gavin Bayreuther, Thomas Harley, Landon Bow, Justin Dowling, Taylor Fedun
Unfit to Play: Stephen Johns, Ben Bishop, Radek Faksa
TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (via NHL.com)
Ondrej Palat — Brayden Point — Nikita Kucherov
Alex Killorn — Anthony Cirelli — Tyler Johnson
Barclay Goodrow — Yanni Gourde — Blake Coleman
Pat Maroon — Cedric Paquette
Victor Hedman — Kevin Shattenkirk
Ryan McDonagh — Zach Bogosian
Mikhail Sergachev — Erik Cernak
Luke Schenn
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Curtis McElhinney
Expected Scratches: Carter Verhaeghe, Mathieu Joseph, Mitchell Stephens, Alexander Volkov, Braydon Coburn, Scott Wedgewood
Unfit to play: Jan Rutta, Steven Stamkos
How to Watch
Puck Drop: 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET
Location: Rogers Place, Edmonton, AB
Broadcast/Streaming: NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVAS, FuboTV
Series Schedule
Game 1: Stars 4, Lightning 1
Game 2: Monday, Sept. 21, 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET
Game 3: Wednesday, Sept. 23, 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET
Game 4: Friday, Sept. 25, 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET
Game 5: Saturday, Sept. 26, 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET
Game 6: Monday, Sept. 28, 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET
Game 7: Wednesday, Sept. 30, 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET
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