Avalanche comeback shows Stars need to tighten things up in Round 2

It was a night of exciting Stanley Cup Playoff hockey, as the New York Rangers defeated the Carolina Hurricanes in double-overtime to take a 2-0 series lead, and the Colorado Avalanche came back from a 3-0 deficit to defeat the Dallas Stars in Game 1 of their seven-game series.

On Wednesday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Frank Seravalli and former NHL defenseman Colby Cohen discuss the Avalanche’s comeback win and what Dallas needs to do to even up the series.

Frank Seravalli: We knew heading in that this would be an unbelievable series, but be honest: when you saw the Stars roll in from their Game 7 win over the Vegas Golden Knights into Game 1 vs. the Avalanche and take a 3-0 lead, did you think Game 1 was over for the Avs?

Colby Cohen: Absolutely. I expected an Avalanche lost, I said as much to my brothers who live in Colorado and love the Avs, and I missed the first period like most people because I was watching overtime between the Rangers and Hurricanes. Keeping an eye on two screens can be challenging!

It seemed like the Avs stayed with it, they didn’t play high-riverboat hockey, and they pulled the Stars out of their structure. Give Colorado credit, they’re a team that has so much belief that they’re never out of it. Every team says they’re always in it, but they don’t believe it: the Avalanche believe it.

When they get rolling and stick to their plan, and they get saves, they’re the team to beat.

Frank Seravalli: You mentioned the Avs pulled the Stars out of their structure, did Dallas do anything in Game 1 to concern you from that angle?

Colby Cohen: A little bit, and one issue I would point to is their inability to use Nils Lundkvist on their third-pair defense. He played five minutes on Tuesday night, then I watch Miro Heiskanen get walked by Miles Wood.

I worry about the longevity of Dallas and if they’re going to keep up the pace with Colorado when they’re only playing five defenseman and their minutes are so high.

You can watch the full segment and the rest of the episode here…