Tampa Bay Lightning’s Ryan Callahan, left, ties up Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews during Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final. The Lightning held the lead for most of the game, but lost 2-1.Scott Iskowitz/Getty Images
Captain Everything had almost nothing in Game 1.
If the Tampa Bay Lightning need something concrete to build on, down by a game in the Stanley Cup final, it should be that they limited Jonathan Toews incredibly well, using a makeshift checking line and their top defensive pairing to nullify the Chicago Blackhawks' captain in a 2-1 loss.
Toews was the driving force in Chicago's impressive come-from-behind series win over Anaheim in Round 3, which put plenty of focus in this series on who Lightning coach Jon Cooper would match against him.
When the answer was a line that included little-known rookie Cedric Paquette, it raised eyebrows.
So did Cooper's plan not even to tell his young charges about their assignment before the game.
"Well, he's a young kid," Cooper explained on Thursday. "If I said there was going to be a million-dollar cheque, would [a young kid] run out and buy a Porsche right away because you knew you were getting a million-dollar cheque? I don't know if that makes any sense at all…
"In any of these situations, I don't want him thinking [about what's coming]. I don't want him thinking, 'Oh, my gosh, I'm going to have to check Captain Everything.'"
Given the way these two teams are built, this kind of matchup minutiae will be a big part of this series. At home, with last change, Tampa's benefit is considerable as Cooper can get his top defence pair of Victor Hedman and Anton Stralman on Toews the majority of the game.
In Game 1, that added up to 11 of his 17 even-strength minutes and 14 minutes overall, and the difference was dramatic when Toews (and his linemates) were against any other pairing.
The Blackhawks had only a 28-per-cent possession rating when Toews was on the ice versus Hedman, for example; in every other situation, Chicago was at 63 per cent – downright domination – at even strength.
That makes Game 2 a nearly must-win game for Tampa, as it won't get that matchup nearly as much in Chicago.
"It's almost impossible to get them away from D pairings at their home," Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said.
Cooper's methods here make a lot of sense. The Lightning aren't getting much offence from their bottom two lines and can't afford to have Toews – a Selke Trophy finalist as the NHL's top defensive forward for the fourth time in five years – wipe out the contributions of either Steven Stamkos's line or the Triplets.
So Cooper has dealt shutdown duties to those not generating a lot at the other end of the ice, asking them to simply try to keep Toews in his end and away from their stars.
With Hedman-Stralman – two of the best defencemen in the game at getting out of their end – lending a hand, it worked.
"If we can neutralize that line with [our depth forwards], that's going to give our other guys hopefully a little bit better chance to score," Cooper said, explaining why matching up with Toews is as much about his defence as his offence.
That didn't materialize in Game 1, given Tampa's big guns were kept quiet, but it's a gamble they need to take.
The Blackhawks have slightly more offensive options from their depth players – which became a big factor late in the game when their third line scored twice – but this will be a close series if that's what they have to rely on every night.
That closeness is why, on Thursday, the Lightning players' mood was rather positive, as they felt they had proved they could execute on Cooper's game plan and play with a Chicago team they have heard so many superlatives about.
"I think we look at all the positives in that game," Stamkos said. "There was a lot. I know that was the first game for a lot of us in the final, but I don't think that's an excuse for our group anymore. We got that out of the way. We played extremely well, especially the first two periods."
"Our game seemed to work," defencemen Jason Garrison added.
The Blackhawks, meanwhile, felt fortunate to win the way they did.
"We found a way to get a couple bounces and walked out with a win, knowing we can play a lot better," Toews said. "And we're going to play better."
"No chance of being overconfident," Quenneville said. "I think we need to play Game 2 like it's a must-win game."
That's a bit overboard. But there was nothing there in those first 60 minutes of this series that indicates it'll be a short one, not with the stars on both teams bottled up and the goaltenders playing as well as they did.
It'll likely be six or seven games where each can turn on a moment, which makes little things like the matchups all the more vital.