Avalanche beat Lightning in OT to open Stanley Cup Final

DENVER (AP) — Facing the two-time defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning put the Colorado Avalanche at a sizeable experience disadvantage going into the Stanley Cup Final.

When the puck dropped, the Avalanche showed they could use their speed to offset Tampa Bay's players who have been here, done that. And it doesn't hurt to have a guy who also hoisted the Cup.

Andre Burakovsky scored 1:23 into overtime to give Colorado a 4-3 victory in Game 1 on Wednesday night and put the Avs up in a series that's shaping up to be a classic. Burakovsky is one of only two Colorado players with Stanley Cup rings, and that came in handy.

“I've been there, and I kind of know the situation,” said Burakovsky, who also scored two big goals in Game 7 of the East final against the Lightning in 2018 when he won it all with Washington. “I’ve been though it, and I kind of know what to expect and the pace and what’s at stake here.”

The pace? Furious. The stakes? Either Tampa Bay finishing off the first NHL three-peat in almost four decades or this Colorado core's first championship after years of playoff disappointments.

The Avalanche with a fast start how they can use their speed to knock even the most seasoned opponents back on their heels. Backstopped by Darcy Kuemper, the no-doubt after all choice to start in goal now that he's healthy, the penalty kill was aggressive in going a perfect 3 for 3 against the Lightning's potent power play.

“We had a great forecheck and we were pretty good on clearing pucks when we had the chance,” forward Artturi Lehkonen said.

An early penalty kill built momentum for Colorado, which opened the scoring on captain Gabriel Landeskog’s goal 40 seconds after Josh Manson’s penalty expired. Manson — one of general