Coaches using similar strategy

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This article was published 22/09/2020 (2006 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

EDMONTON — Sound familiar, Winnipeg Jets fans? A veteran NHL head coach, talking about the recipe for playoff success, stresses the importance of his highly skilled core making the necessary changes when it comes to the way they play when the stakes are highest, especially in their own end.

No, it wasn’t Paul Maurice on the podium discussing the likes of Patrik Laine, Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor and Nikolaj Ehlers, although the local bench boss has repeatedly made similar comments as it pertains to his club. Rather, it was Tampa Bay’s Jon Cooper, in Edmonton Tuesday, discussing players such as Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point and Ondrej Palat.

Where recent results suggest the Jets are still a work in progress in this department, the Lightning are a much more polished crew, now just three victories away from hoisting the Stanley Cup.

“We had an ability to score some pretty flashy goals, there’s no question about that. We used to be a team that it wasn’t good enough to beat you 3-0, we had to beat you 9-0. And we had to change that attitude. If you play that way, especially when you get to this time of year, bad things are usually going to happen,” Cooper said following his team’s off-day skate on Tuesday.

General manager Julien Brisebois helped the cause by acquiring some valuable depth pieces to give the Lightning more size and grit — players such as Blake Coleman, Barclay Goodrow, Patrick Maroon and Zach Bogosian, which is something Jets architect Kevin Cheveldayoff will be looking to do this off-season.

Throw in an unexpected early playoff elimination — Tampa Bay won the Presidents’ Trophy in the 2019-19 season, only to be swept in four straight first-round games by the Columbus Blue Jackets — and you have a squad hungry for redemption.

“I think experience and being humbled can help right a ship. I truly believe with last year’s experience, we’re seeing the fruits of that awful setback last April. What do they say the definition of insanity is? Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. We didn’t do that,” said Cooper.

“You need to have an attitude adjustment and guys have to buy in. And it starts with the stars, and the guys that are used to putting pucks in the net. When guys understand it’s now what you keep out of your net and not what you put in their net, good things will happen.”

Good things sure happened for Tampa in Game 2, a 3-2 victory over the Dallas Stars that turned the best-of-seven series into a best-of-five. Game 3 goes Wednesday night, with Game 4 and Game 5 going back-to-back on Friday and Saturday. That’s a lot of critical hockey being played in a 72-hour window in an attempt to end bubble hockey as quickly as possible, with each day apparently costing the NHL upwards of US$1 million.

“It’s unheard of to have back-to-backs this late in the year. I understand why it’s happening and both teams know it’s coming. I have always respected the guts of the players in this game, even more so this year. For what the guys have done in the environment we’ve played in and the intensity they’re playing with, it’s pretty remarkable,” said Cooper.

“The one thing you hope in the three-in-four is that the games are still really exciting and executing. Because that’s what happens when teams get tired, the execution is usually the first thing to go. Hopefully we can keep this pace up for both teams as it goes on.”

One thing the Stars don’t want to keep up is their penchant for taking costly penalties. Three straight minors in the first period Monday night led to a pair of Tampa Bay power-play goals that put them in an early hole.

“What we’ve done in the last two games is take three in the same period, one after another after another. And that just kills our team. That power play is going to score if you keep giving them undisciplined opportunities,” Stars head coach Rick Bowness said Tuesday. “There’s good penalties and there’s bad penalties. I didn’t like any of those penalties. They were undisciplined.”

The Lightning weren’t exactly on their best behaviour either, something Bowness attributes to the bubble life, but the Dallas power play couldn’t make them pay.

“When there’s absolutely no change in your routine, from day to day, in eight weeks, you get a little edgy, there’s no question about it,” said Bowness, who joked that his feet haven’t touched grass in two months.

“All these years I’ve been in the playoffs, we come to the rink, we’re dialed in, we’re all tense and wired up. You need to take that little break, like going for dinner with your wife, going for a walk outside or going for a run outside. All the things you want to do in a normal playoffs, that’s not there,” he said.

“This is tough, tough living, there’s no question about it. But there’s no place we’d rather be. We’re in the Stanley Cup finals. The league has done a phenomenal job of keeping everyone safe. I’m 65, and I had big concerns coming in, and I have no concerns here every day, being tested, the masks. It’s a very safe environment, so give the league credit for that. But that being said, the grind, the Groundhog Day, that is tough, and the normal things you would do to relax are just not there.”

Bowness would see his stress levels go down if he could get more from forward Tyler Seguin, who led the team in scoring during the regular season but is far down the list in the playoffs, with just two goals and six assists in 22 games.

“Do we need more from him? Yes. Do we need more from a lot of other players? Yes. I know he gets all the attention, and that comes with the territory. He’s got to deal with that. As a coach, I’m after a few other guys to give us more as well,” said Bowness.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @mikemcintyrewpg