Tense atmosphere in Tampa: the Habs could give the Lightning a run for their money

Pablo Herrera-Vergara
Tense atmosphere in Tampa: the Habs could give the Lightning a run for their money
Credit: X-Canadiens

We've been saying it since the start of the series, but the Lightning have a lot of experience on their roster.

Nikita Kucherov, Brandon Hagel, and Jake Guentzel have been through it all, and this is certainly not a game that will discourage the team.

Despite everything, Martin McGuire, the Habs' play-by-play announcer on 98.5 FM, found the atmosphere at the Lightning's practice to be very heavy.

He mentioned that the energy wasn't as high as it had been before the series began and that you could tell the loss had stung.

It's clear that the festive atmosphere wasn't going to be there, but it's surprising to hear that the energy wasn't there either.

I don't think the Lightning are shaken, at least not yet. However, it's clear that some doubts have crept into Jon Cooper's team.

It started with Tampa Bay's coach's press conference last night, where he said he was disappointed with his players' penalties, but also that the series could be shorter if his team kept playing that way.

We saw it at the Four Nations Tournament and the Olympics: Cooper is very patient with his squad. He remains very calm, but we could sense his frustration from the very first game.

Add to that the team's attitude today and their playoff performance in recent years, and things are looking interesting for the Habs.

The Lightning have been eliminated in the first round for the past three years, the last two of which were fairly decisive losses to the Florida Panthers.

Clearly, the Habs have a chance tomorrow. I expect a storm from the home team in the first ten minutes, but if the Canadiens hold their ground, it could work in their favor and put a lot of pressure on Tampa Bay.


In a nutshell

– What a performance by the Flyers!

– Great story with Caufield!

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Sportsnet (@sportsnet)

– Pretty funny!

facebook icon Share twitter icon Tweet linkedin icon Share
Copied!