One of the most exciting finals series in all of sports got underway in Carolina last night with game one from the Stanley Cup Finals. Whether you like hockey or not, almost anyone can find a playoff hockey an exciting watch. Atmospheres unlike any other with sold out, raucous crowds living and dying with every shift. I feel like a broken record talking about the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but the finals is the ultimate culmination of skill, talent, a little luck and a lot of guts.
As sports fans, we are simple. We don’t ask for much, just exciting games that keep us invested for 60 minutes. However, if this finals series is going to play out the way game one did, than dare I say we are about to be spoiled blind.
Game one had it all. Carolina jumping out to a 1-0 lead on a Nik Ehlers scored goal just 25 seconds into regulation before the fans could reclaim their seats after puck drop. Lenovo Center was flipped on its head within the first minute, and it somehow got even louder after Carolina made it 2-0. What looked like a runaway quickly shifted back in Vegas favor as they were able to cut into the lead with a late first period goal to make it 2-1 and the game was on.
What ensued over the next two periods was hockey magic. Ivan Barbashev tying it up early into the second period set the tone for Vegas, and they carried that momentum to a 3-2 lead scoring again around four minutes later. A late goal for Carolina tied the game at three apiece heading into the third period when mayhem was about to unfold.
Another early goal in the third period proved just how juiced each locker room was coming out of intermission with each period seeing a goal in under 90 seconds. Veteran Knight Brett Howden scored the third period goal that gave Vegas the lead, one they would hope to hold onto all the way to game two. But this game was far from over. An icing whistle forced a faceoff in the Knights end which led to a snipe by Shayne Gostisbehere to even us up again at four. But Vegas’ Thomas Hertl delivered the dagger with under four minutes to play to give Vegas a 5-4 win and a 1-0 series lead on the road.
The biggest play of the night was not a goal, it was not a power play or penalty kill, it was Mitch Marner’s body block on the final shot of the game that almost certainly denied another game tying Carolina goal with just seconds to play. Marner hopped on one skate and puck met ankle, Marner limped off the ice but did so with his teammates celebrating around him after a gutsy and impressive win away from home. Marner wouldn’t have it any other way, either. Your duty at this point of the season is to do whatever it takes to keep the puck out of your net. If that means temporarily losing your ability to walk, so be it. You would rather be limping around the ice hoisting the Stanley Cup than walking swiftly to the team bus with your head hung after a loss.
The only thing that could have made this night any more exciting would have been overtime, but even then we lose the drama of a blocked shot ending the game. If you have a dog in the race, best of luck to you. Everyone else will be sitting back hoping and praying this series goes to seven games. Game two awaits on Thursday night, puck drop at 7:00 PM CT.
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