Stanley Cup Final: Chicago Blackhawks Stun The Tampa Bay Lightning In Game 1 Victory

The Chicago Blackhawks took a 1-0 series lead over the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. The Blackhawks came back from a deficit, being down one goal for much of the game. The Lightning had led the game since scoring early in the first period.

Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said about the Game 1 loss against the Blackhawks, “You can’t sit back and just give them the puck, especially a team like that… Maybe you can get away with it with a team that’s not as skilled or a team that’s not as confident in these situations.”

The Lighting are the underdogs going forward into the Stanley Cup Final, especially now that they are down a game. The Lightning, though, had come into the series as underdogs as well.

Stamkos continued, saying, “Not a lot of people gave us a chance in this series… And for most of the game we saw we can hang. We can be better. We’ll build off that.”

It wasn’t until the Blackhawks’ Teuvo Teravainen and Antoine Vermette scored goals late in the third period that Chicago took the lead to win, USA Today reported.

Blackhawks’ Teravainen said about his goal in the third period, “I know I’m the young guy, so I try to bring energy… When I scored the goal, the first thing [I thought] was, ‘Oh, no, I have to go do media now.'”

This is the second trip to the Stanley Cup for the Tampa Bay Lightning while the Blackhawks have much more experience in the last series of the NHL playoffs. The last time Tampa Bay made it to the Final back in 2004, they had won. Chicago, on the other hand, is working on winning another a third title in six years.

Blackhawks’ Patrick Sharp said about Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, “Every year our team has had success in the playoffs… Depth has been a key to our success, whether it’s four lines and six defensemen, two goalies, you name it. We’ve got a ton of depth in our lineup. It seems like the so-called hero can come from anybody at any time.”

Tampa Bay will have to regroup and make the adjustments necessary to take back a win in Game 2 while Chicago has the 1-0 series desired foothold going forward. The Lightning will still have the home-ice advantage going into Game 2 in Tampa Bay on Saturday.

[Photo credit: Bruce Bennett/ Getty Images Sport]