The Colorado Avalanche lost a really solid game to a really good team, a perennial Stanley Cup-contending team. And they didn’t allow 33 shots in one period (I kind of thought they might, knowing them) like the Chicago Blackhawks did.
Instead, the Avalanche held the Tampa Bay Lightning to 24 shots total while getting 22 shots of their own. Unfortunately, only two shots got past the rock-solid Russian goalies on ice, and only one of them counted. (More on that in a moment.)
Before we get into what I thought were the keys to the game — and a very special rant — let’s celebrate a couple of Semyon Varlamov‘s spectacular saves.