DENVER – On the eve of the Stanley Cup, Tampa Bay Lightning received a gift.
Braden Point was buzzing in the club’s final training session before the puck gave up three peat bids on Wednesday at the Ball Arena.
Between winger Nick Paul and Ross Colton and regaining his usual position on the armor of Tampa’s frightening top power game, Point looked like a man ready to return to action.
Just in time.
Without action for a month, while rehabilitating an undisclosed lower body injury suffered in Game 7 of the first round of the series against Toronto, Point is already leaning towards a suit for Game 1 in the final against Colorado Avalanche.
The lightning will see how the central player will react to the work on Tuesday, but if he does not give a thumbs up for Wednesday, match 2 on Saturday is a sure bet – and an incredible boost.
“It’s all about how he feels. “He felt pretty good today,” said coach John Cooper. “If he’s healthy, he’ll be there.”
“The playoffs are the reason we play hockey – to have a chance to win the Stanley Cup. So, it was difficult. But just seeing them play makes it a lot easier to sit down, “said Point. “You can’t repeat playoff hockey in training. This simply does not happen. So it will certainly be a correction.
“You have to make sure that when you return, you will help the team. The boys played well. “
The upcoming return of Point should give guests a significant step in the X-factor battle of the series, as Avalanche also hope that their second-line pivot, Nazem Kadri (thumb), can recover quickly enough to make the difference.
Point – five feet, 10 inches of experience – is the highest level, which makes a difference that increases your performance on the greatest stage.
He has scored 77 points in 74 playoff games in his career. He has scored more points (56) in consecutive Lightning Championships than any of his team-mates and has scored more goals in the playoffs (30) in the last three postseasons than anyone else.
During the Eastern Conference finals, New York Rangers coach Gerard Galant admitted that Tampa managed to leave, even though he dropped out “probably of his best player.”
Galant will not receive any dispute from Nikita Kucherov.
“He is the best player in our team for several years. He proved it [to] anyone he can play. He is not a big man, but he is such a racer and such a fun player to watch and learn from “, says Kucherov, 5 feet 11 feet tall.
“If you watch him play, you can take his vision, his ability to skate, the way he pushes hard to win the puck battles. He is so angry when he plays. For a small man like him, he plays big.
“It’s something that moves me. I see him doing this and then I will do the same. I want to compete with him, even though we are on the same team. I want to do better than him. “
Point suffered his injury by falling awkwardly on the board in the first period of Game 7 in Toronto on May 14, twisting his right leg as he overtook Mark Giordano to the puck. Screaming in terrible pain, he limped off the ice, only to boldly try a shift in Period 2.
Walking around the ice like a wounded deer, the man could barely skate. It was ugly to watch.
Point says he was so obsessed with the “do or die” elimination game that he desperately wanted to overcome the pain. His body just wouldn’t help. So he slides to the bench and applauds the boys.
“You don’t want to feel like you’re leaving the battle,” Point said. “I just knew I wouldn’t be able to help the team anymore. So, you know, then you sit down. ”
In Point’s absence, role-players such as Brandon Hagel, Paul and Corey Perry have responded well to increased responsibility, and coach John Cooper has at times simply spun seven defenders.
What Lightning lacked in scoring, they made up for by preventing goals.
The Tampa Bay Find-A-Ways – as smiling Captain Stephen Stamkos calls them – survived this game in Toronto 7 plus two more rounds, gaining enough time on the list to fix Point.
“It simply came to our notice then. But we didn’t know how long he was wounded. Everyone had to step up and play in the right way and play for each other, “says Kucherov,” in order to have a chance. [to] we will play in the final if we succeed.
“We’re all excited to see him again.”
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