Those depth goals have come in key moments too. Anthony Cirelli netted the series-clinching goal in overtime of Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final. If the Lightning give up that overtime goal rather than scoring it, they might not even be in the Stanley Cup Final. Victor Hedman notched the OT series-clincher in Game 5 of the Second Round against Boston.
But Tampa Bay's gotten top-line production too from its number one forward group of Ondrej Palat, Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov. Palat has a career-high 10 goals this postseason, tied for second most in the NHL. Point leads the NHL for goals (11) and has produced the second most points (28 pts.) in a playoff season in Lightning history. And Kucherov's 30 points lead the NHL for scoring and are the most ever by a Lightning player in a single playoff year.
Kucherov, Point and Palat have combined for five goals and 10 points in Games 2 and 3 of the Stanley Cup Final, both Lightning wins.
The Lightning are getting offense from all four of their lines and up and down the blueline in a balanced attack that's made life difficult for Dallas to defend in the Cup Final.
The Stars, meanwhile, aren't getting much out of their top line, partly because of the job the Lightning's shut down lines of Alex Killorn-Anthony Cirelli-Tyler Johnson and Blake Coleman-Yanni Gourde-Barclay Goodrow are doing holding them in check. Through three games of the Stanley Cup Final, Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn have yet to register a point. And while Alexander Radulov has three assists, he also committed a pair of hooking infractions in Game 3, the first of which Hedman converted on the subsequent power play early in the second period to re-establish Tampa Bay's two-goal lead and begin their second-period rout in a 5-2 victory.
"I think our line, no matter which line we're playing against or what players, we like to play the same way," Goodrow said. "We're a line that's not, we generate from the forecheck. We like to get pucks in deep. I think we're a pretty physical line that likes to take away the other team's time and space by getting on the body. It doesn't matter which line we're playing against we're going to play the same way. And if we do happen to play against the top line then I think we take more pride in trying to shut them down."
The Stars aren't the only top players the Lightning have held in check this postseason. Anders Lee, Mathew Barzal and Josh Bailey, three of the New York Islanders' top six goal scorers from the regular season, didn't have a goal in the Eastern Conference Final. Brad Marchand, David Pastrnak and Patrice Bergeron - regularly regarded as the top line in the NHL - combined for six goals in a five-game Second Round series, but four of those goals came on the power play. At 5-on-5, Boston scored just five goals for the series. The Bolts held Columbus' top line to four goals through five games of a First Round series.
It seems, the Lightning are able to cancel out other teams' top lines.
But nobody's been able to cancel out the Bolts'.
"To be honest, we really focus on ourselves and how we need to play and hopefully the opponent's trying to adjust to what you're doing," Jon Cooper said, referencing a lesson he said he learned from Bobby Knight when he met the famed college basketball coach while coaching the USHL's Green Bay Gamblers. "But, we're not sitting here saying, 'Focus on this line.' It's not the way it works. We're focused on their team. And if some guys aren't scoring, it's because hopefully we've got a team effort and a game plan against them. We do have some depth on our team, and everybody can check. In this time of year, that's what you have to do, you have to check. And the guys have been doing a great job of that. So hopefully to finish out this series here we've got to keep continuing to do that, and guys have been doing a good job."
TEARING DOWN THE WALL: The Lightning have been getting to Anton Khudobin the last two games after the Stars goalie held the Bolts to one goal on 36 shots in the series opener.
In Game 2, the Lightning scored the first three goals in the opening period - the third and eventual game-winner coming on a shot along the right boards from the point by Kevin Shattenkirk that eluded Khudobin through the traffic - and held on for a 3-2 victory and their first win in the series.
On Wednesday, the Lightning chased Khudobin from the game after scoring five goals on 29 shots through two periods of action.
Cooper said the key to finding a way through Khudobin these last two games has been his team's ability to get inside of the Stars and make life difficult for their netminder.
"You've got to make him busy in front of the net," Cooper said. "There's one thing about screening shots, but you screen passes, guys have been really good on faking shots and moving pucks and being deceptive around the net. But the key is just making it busy down there. You can't let him rest. You can't let him sit in one spot and see everything and when you're making them work, then you're hoping that moving goalies have holes. And so you just have to be constant. It just can't be a one or two shift thing. It's got to be an every shift thing. Hopefully you get a little lucky and some of the pucks go by him."
Goodrow said the Lightning have done a better job getting pucks to the net in Games 2 and 3 after struggling in that area in the Cup opener.
"Maybe not looking for that extra play or the extra pass, just trying to get as many pucks towards the net with guys in front, guys crashing, crashing rebounds," he said. "Just kind of more focusing on getting the puck there and going to work from there."
THE RARE CUP FINAL BACK-TO-BACK: In an effort to limit the amount of days the Cup finalists have spent in the bubble - 61 nights and counting for the Lightning - the NHL scheduled a back-to-back set for Games 4 and 5 of the Stanley Cup Final Friday and Saturday, respectively.
The Lightning have played a back-to-back previously this postseason, downing the Boston Bruins 4-3 in overtime of Game 2 of the Second Round to level the series 1-1 and then routing the Bruins the next day 7-1 in Game 3 to take control.
This weekend's back-to-back set will be the fifth in Lightning playoff history and first in the Stanley Cup Final. The Bolts are undefeated in the first half of a playoff back-to-back, going 4-0.
"I think especially this time of year you just focus on the first game," Kevin Shattenkirk said when asked how the team will tackle what will no doubt be a taxing couple of days. "We have the luxury that we don't have to travel and worry about any sort of issue there. It's just a matter of worrying about tomorrow and not really even looking forward to Game 5 because tomorrow's such an important game. We're kind of laser focused on that and making sure that we realize it's going to be a much different game tomorrow. It's not going to be 5-1, 5-2 lead for most of the game. We're going to have to battle for it. We know they're going to come out hungry because it's a desperate time for them as well."
Game 5 on Saturday will be the third game in four days for the Lightning and Stars. Cooper indicated the plan is to start Andrei Vasilevskiy in net for both ends of the back-to-back, but if Game 4 goes into overtime or multiple overtimes, the coaching staff might have to adjust.
STAMKOS' GAME 4 STATUS: Lightning captain Steven Stamos scored one of the most iconic goals in franchise history when he got into his first game of the 2020 Playoffs - and first since February 25, 211 days between games - and scored from the right dot on a 2-on-1 rush with Pat Maroon to put the Bolts up 2-0 early in Game 3.
Stamkos, though, wasn't seen much after that. He skated just five shifts and 2:47 of ice time and didn't take another shift after 14 minutes had elapsed in the first period.
After the game, he said there's "an issue" he's been working through, and it was too early to tell whether he'd be available for Game 4.
On Thursday, Cooper said basically the same thing as the Lightning's media availability came before their practice and the coach's chance to watch his captain skate during the session.
"I won't be able to answer that probably until tomorrow morning," Cooper answered when asked how Stamkos was feeling on Thursday.
BONDS FROM THE BUBBLE: Jon Cooper said his team was close-knit when it left for the Toronto bubble on July 26.
But after two months stuck in the same hotel -- whether it be in Toronto or Edmonton - and going through one of the toughest playoff runs maybe ever in the NHL, the team has really come together through the extraordinary circumstances.
"I can speak really with our coaching staff, the hours we spend every single day with each other and the players, you watch some of the things they're doing together, the games they play, the practical jokes, everything. There's no cliques. There's no guys going in different directions. They're just all together and they're all happy," Cooper said. "Naturally winning helps with that, but even the games that we haven't won, nobody's kicking the can with their head down. Everybody's there to pick each other up. To your point, tight knit is an understatement. The group, they'd lay in traffic for each other. And that's what I've seen grow during this playoffs and probably a reason why we're having some success."
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Notebook: Lightning's top line is leading from the front - Official site of the Tampa Bay Lightning
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