Burakovsky's OT Winner Lifts Avalanche Over Lightning in Game 1 of SCF

Finding a way in the Stanley Cup Final.
Andre Burakovsky scored the overtime winner as the Colorado Avalanche defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-3 in overtime of Game 1 of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday night at Ball Arena. Colorado leads the best-of-seven series 1-0.

Gabriel Landeskog (1G, 1A), Valeri Nichushkin and Artturi Lehkonen (power play) scored in regulation for the Avalanche. Mikko Rantanen handed out two assists. Darcy Kuemper made 20 saves on 23 shots in his first start since Game 1 of the Western Conference Final.
For Tampa Bay, Nick Paul, Ondrej Palat, Mikhail Sergachev scored. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 34 saves on 38 shots. Brayden Point returned to the lineup for the first time since Game 7 of the First Round against Toronto after being sidelined with a lower-body injury.
OVERTIME:
Andre Burkavosky has a knack for big moments and big moments against Tampa Bay. The Swedish winger rose to the occasion as the overtime hero in Game 1 to lift the Avalanche over the Lightning in the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The winger sealed the victory for Colorado 1:23 into the extra period. Vasilevskiy came up with a big stop on J.T. Compher and the puck kicked out to the slot where Nichushkin redirected it over Burakovsky and the winger unleashed his siganture wrist shot to score the overtime winner.
Burakovsky had scored two goals for the Washington Capitals in Game 7 against the Lightning of the 2018 Eastern Conference Final en route to the Capitals first-ever Stanley Cup victory.

REGULATION SUMMARY:
From puck drop, the Avalanche pushed the pace and capitalized as they took a 3-1 lead and 15-8 shot advantage heading into the first intermission.
After being denied by Vasilevskiy on an early partial breakaway for Rantanen and having to - successfully - kill off a Tampa Bay power play at 5:07, the Avs drew the game's first strike at 7:47 from Landeskog on a gritty effort. Bowen Byram jetted up ice, through the neutral zone and dished the puck out to Rantanen. The Finnish winger sent a wrist shot on net and as the puck skimmed Vasilevskiy's glove, Landeskog ensured the puck crossed the goal line.

Colorado doubled its lead 1:33 later on Nichushkin's goal. As the Lightning attempted a zone exit, the Avs forechecked the puck and Nathan MacKinnon chipped it out to the high slot for Nichushkin, who wired a low bouncing shot into the net at 9:23.
Tampa Bay trimmed the deficit down 2-1 temporarily as they chipped a puck past Colorado's blueline for Paul. The Lightning centerman took the puck forehand-to-backhand before Erik Johnson's stick deflected it and Paul scooped it over Kuemper's skate at 12:26.
Despite drawing with one goal of tying the score, the Lightning did themselves no favors as they took back-to-back penalties at 15:53 on a Sergachev tripping penalty on MacKinnon and then an Anthony Cirelli tripping penalty at 16:20 which afforded the Avs 1:33 of 5-on-3 time.
Colorado capitalized to take a 3-1 lead as Lehkonen converted on the power play. Rantanen wired a shot on net and Lehkonen got his stick on the puck on the backdoor.

The momentum shifted in favor of the Lightning in the middle frame as the Bolts fired off a pair of quick strikes 48 seconds apart to tie the score up 3-3.
After failing to convert on a power play - an Avalanche too many men penalty at 6:28 - Tampa cut its deficit down 3-2 at 12:51 on a quick transition play ending with a Palat goal. The Lightning's top line went to work on a dominant shift and eventually capitalized as Nikita Kucherov and Palat weaved through Colorado's blueline. Kucherov toe dragged past
Devon Toews and centered the puck to the backdoor for Palat's tap-in.
Just 48 seconds later, the Lightning struck again to equalize the score 3-3 on Sergachev's goal. Tampa Bay hemmed the Avs into their own zone and as the puck was sent out to the blueline, Sergachev wired a high long-range shot over Kuemper's glove and off both posts.
Neither team got on the board in the third period despite a back-and-forth period, but the Avs took a 12-5 shot advantage and came up with another tremendous effort on their penalty kill. Bolts forward Patrick Maroon took a delay of game penalty as he chipped the puck over the glass at 18:36 and the Avs ended the period on the power play with 36 seconds carrying over into overtime, which was killed off.
IN NET:
Kuemper made 20 saves on 23 shots as he returned to the net and made his first start for the first time since Game 1 of the Western Conference Final.
The Avalanche netminder came up with a big stop on a Jan Rutta one timer from the point early in the first period and finished the frame with seven saves on eight shots. In the middle frame, Kuemper came up with seven saves on nine shots. The Avs netminder was perfect in the third period despite not facing a large workload and came up with three saves.
Tweet from @NHL: Game 1 in OT. Right in the feels for @Avalanche fans.This #StanleyCup Final is going to be fun. pic.twitter.com/Mzi2uyGPKo
NOTEWORTHY:
NEXT GAME:
The 2022 Stanley Cup Final continues in Denver between Colorado and Tampa Bay with Game 2 scheduled on Saturday night at Ball Arena. Puck drop is scheduled 6 p.m. MT.