Early Storylines to Watch in 2015 Stanley Cup Final

May 31st, 2015 by Adrian Dater Leave a reply »
We're finally here. After two conference finals that each went the seven-game distance with the road teams winning both (giving road clubs a 2-3 record in seventh games in these playoffs), we have our Stanley Cup Final matchup: Chicago Blackhawks vs. Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Blackhawks are the pick of Vegas oddsmakers, per Odds Shark, and why not? This is their third trip to the Final in the last six years, and they won the previous two. They have arguably the NHL's best clutch player in modern history in captain Jonathan Toews, who burnished those credentials further with his play in Games 5-7 of the Western Conference Final against the Anaheim Ducks.

But overlook this Tampa Bay team at your own peril. This isn't its first rodeo against an Original Six team. In fact, the Lightning have vanquished three such storied franchises already in the Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers.

They were the NHL's leading-scoring team of the regular season (259 goals), and their defense is better than many people know. In fact, Tampa Bay is allowing an average of 2.45 goals per game in the playoffs, lower than Chicago's 2.94.

Ta ...

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