DENVER — In this battle of attrition, it looks like the Colorado Avalanche will bring back Andrew Cogliano for Game 2.
Cogliano suffered a broken finger after blocking a shot in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals against the Edmonton Oilers and sat out the opener of the Stanley Cup Finals.
Although Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar stuck to his approach of not announcing lineup decisions, he conceded that Cogliano was an option.
During the morning’s skating, Cogliano worked alongside Darren Helm, a partner who usually kills penalties, a sign he’s trending back into the lineup.
Cogliano is likely to replace Nicolas Aube-Kubel, who had the lowest ice time of any player in Game 1 (6:07).
The Lightning did not hold a morning skate on Saturday, but are not expected to make any changes to their lineup.
Lightning striker Brayden Point returned to the lineup for the opener and had just under 19 minutes of ice time.
Although Point didn’t register a shot on goal, there were some signs he was finding his legs again after the long layoff.
The Lightning have made a habit of regrouping after tough games, and they’ll try to stick to that script on Saturday.
“After game 1 you learn better and understand your opponent better. It’s one thing to see it on video, but it’s also one thing to be in the game,” said Lightning defender Victor Hedman. “A few tweaks here and there, but nothing major. We believe in what we do. But of course you can see their tendencies up close and that’s what we’re working on in the video and on the ice.”
MAKAR HOLD WITHOUT A SHOT ON GOAL
One of the interesting stats from Game 1 was that the Lightning were able to hold off offensive Dynamo Cale Makar without a single shot on goal.
It was the first time in 15 games during the Stanley Cup playoffs that Makar finished with nine shot attempts (six blocked, three missed the net), so it’s not like he’s not looking good.
Lightning head coach Jon Cooper said that facing New York Rangers defenseman Adam Fox in the Eastern Conference Finals helped prepare his team for the task of keeping Makar in check.
“I think he’s just going to keep going and keep shooting. How many shot attempts … he’s going to keep shooting and shooting and shooting,” Cooper said. “I said this pre-series, we went against Fox. I don’t want to sit here and compare them, but they have a similar mindset and the way they shoot the puck, so we’ve had a bit of practice with them.
“But if you’re thinking he won’t have a shot on goal in the series, you’d be terribly mistaken. Eventually he’ll get through it. We were probably just lucky that we were in lanes. We were a little patient with him. But again, he’s going to pull some punches eventually and I don’t think he’s going to stop shooting. But if we can continue like this it will help our game.”
Bednar was not affected at all by the development.
“They did the same thing they did against any other player. Their front always blocks a lot of shots,” Bednar said. “We saw that sometimes in different situations, even in the playoffs with Cale. I think there was one game in the Nashville series where they had 14 tries and only had a shot or two but kept shooting. I will never tell him not to shoot, I trust him and his instincts and usually he has great movement to be able to attack those lanes and sometimes even in the last game he caught the first shift and the second guy blocked her.
“That’s part of it. But it’s just making sure you move and keep your eyes open (when you’re shooting) and that’s something he does regularly and if he sees something on the web that he likes, I want him to send it there. The blocked shots, hey, they’re going to block a lot. I don’t mind.”
JOHNSON OFFICIALLY A GRADUATE
The story of Jack Johnson is inspirational.
Not only did he make the Avalanche after attending training camp as part of a pro tryout (PTO) offer, he also became a regular in the lineup after Sam Girard lost in Game 3 of Round 2 against the St. Louis Blues sustained a broken sternum.
Johnson, a 16-year NHL veteran, is playing in his first Stanley Cup Finals and his first taste didn’t disappoint.
“It was everything I imagined,” Johnson said. “I was trying to stay pretty calm, cool and collected because I just knew it was another hockey game. The adrenaline would kick in once I was on the ice with the atmosphere and the fans and everything. It was pretty incredible. We enjoy staying in the moment. But there is still a lot of work ahead of us here.”
During his morning session with reporters, Johnson (who was voted third overall in 2005) was asked about the benefits of doing an extra year of college at the University of Michigan rather than going pro.
Johnson then voluntarily announced that he had recently graduated with a general science degree.
“No. 1, as a little kid, I never thought I’d be good enough to play in the NHL,” said Johnson, who has played 1,024 NHL games and an additional 38 during the Stanley Cup playoffs. ” My dream was to play collegiate hockey at the University of Michigan so I wasn’t going to let that opportunity pass me by. Then, after my freshman year, I just didn’t think I was physically ready for the NHL.
“So I wanted to enjoy another year at the University of Michigan, and to be perfectly honest, I wasn’t ready to leave a big university to play my minors. But I had the time of my life there and I don’t regret it one bit. Actually, not to drag on, I just graduated. I’m pretty proud of that too.”
When Johnson left Michigan after his sophomore year, he promised Wolverine’s head coach Red Berenson that he would graduate.
And while it took him a little longer than he originally intended, it’s an achievement that deserves celebration, and he called Berenson as soon as he was done with the work.
“Let’s see. It takes me 18 years for that? Most people are at least a doctor by this point,” Johnson joked. Courses, returned. I’ve taken advantage of some of the time during the pandemic where they were running some online courses that would normally require me to be on campus. I just graduated this spring.”
What was the hardest course?
“Stats. Without a doubt,” Johnson said. “It was just a big thing for me, I wanted to do it. Like I said, as a kid, I grew up dreaming of playing college hockey in Michigan. That’s where I wanted mine Graduating from the #1 public school in the country, so it meant a lot to me.”
LINE THEM
Here’s how we expect both teams to start on Saturday night:
Colorado Avalanche
Gabe Landeskog-Nathan MacKinnon-Valeri Nichushkin
Andre Burakovsky-JT Compher-Mikko Rantanen
Artturi Lehkonen-Darren Helm-Logan O’Connor
Andrew Cogliano-Nico Sturm-Alex Newhook
Devon Toews-Cale Makar
Jack Johnson Josh Manson
Bowen Byram Erik Johnson
Darcy Kumper
Pavel Françouz
Tampa Bay Blitz
Ondrej Palat Steven Stamkos Nikita Kucherov
Brandon Hagel-Anthony Cirelli-Alex Killorn
Nick Paul Brayden Point Ross Colton
Pat Maroon-Pierre-Edouard Bellemare-Corey Perry
Victor Hedman-Jan Ruuta
Ryan McDonagh Erik Cernak
Mikhail Sergachev-Zach Bogosian
Andrei Vasilyevsky
Brian Eliot