TRAIKOS: Nazem Kadri is an early return OT hero as Avalanche won the 3-1 Stanley Cup Finals lead.

Tampa, Florida — Complete fracture in case of injury It may take at least 6 weeks to heal.

Nazem Kadri managed to cut its recovery time in half.

Colorado Avalanche Forward, who needed surgery to repair his broken thumb on June 4, miraculously returned to ice for Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals on Wednesday. Kadori can be a quick healer. However, it is possible that his thumb did not recover 100%. 

And again, everyone will be overwhelmed at this time of the year.

"I think it's just about managing the pain he's dealing with," said Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar.

Score 6 goals and 14 points before being hit from behind in Game 3 of the West Finals Knowing the Kadori he had won, the pain of missing out on the Stanley Cup Finals was probably worse than his way, the thumb might have felt. But his earlier-than-expected return also spoke to the desperate level of Colorado in the series, which was at risk of slipping through a smashed finger.

After winning 3-2 overtime, that's no longer the case. Kadori pulled the outer inner deck around the defense Mikhail Sergachev and quickly shot the blocker side of Andreiva Silevsky. Looking at the puck, his shoulders appear to have disappeared — stuck at the top of the net above the crossbar behind.

"This is what I've been waiting for for the rest of my life," Kadori said. "It's a little surreal when I'm sitting here now."

That was exactly what Avalanche wanted. He then had the chance to win the championship in Game 5 in Colorado on Friday, winning a 3-1 lead in the Best 7 Series.

Kadori skating on the wings alongside Gabriel Landeskog and Valerie Nichushkin wasn't the most element of the game. His best chance was the first time he sailed a wrist shot with Andrey Vasilevsky's glove hand clipped. But most of the time, his shots had no purpose.

"To be honest, I'm not surprised. It's like him. He does everything to win," said Gabriel Landescog, captain of Avalanche. rice field. "It wasn't easy to come back, but if you're playing for what's at stake right now, he won't fall down easily. The inspiration everyone else sees. It was. "

But for Toronto Maple Leafs fans, it was even more reminiscent of what they once had and what they exchanged. Kadori was the player they wanted to be the Stanley Cup hero for them. However, he was shown the door after being interrupted in both the 2018 and 2019 playoffs due to an illegal hit that eventually cost him to beat Boston in the Toronto playoffs. 

A few years later, everything was gathered for the 31-year-old center.

This year was Kadori's breakout year and he scored the highest 87 points in his career in 71 games. But it was in the playoffs and he really stood out. That made his injury so devastating. And that is also the reason why his return was such a welcome sight.

"He delivers when we need to," Bednar said.

This was a game of greasy goals and lucky bounces. One goal was knocked in from the goalkeeper's mask. The other stopped skating. The other is kneeling. In the playoffs, this is what you get. Not all games are a disaster. The playoffs are grind. And by the end of it, it's the one who can grind the hardest. And apparently who took the biggest break?

Now it looks like Colorado. When Kadori entered the attack zone, the goal of victory probably couldn't be counted, as there seemed to be too many men on the ice for Avalanche.

"It would be difficult for me to speak," said John Cooper, head coach of Lightning. "Looking at the winning goal, you can see what I mean, and my heart breaks for the player, probably because I should still be playing. I can respond (on Friday)

The end of the game, which could swing in either direction, was difficult. Unfortunately for Lightning, they are currently one win from blocking bids on three petes.

This was the game Tampa Bay should have won. It was just beginning when Tampa Bay's Anthony Cirelli gave the writing a 1-0 lead 36 seconds after the opening pack drop. That was also a somewhat controversial goal. Cirelli jumped into the loose pack in the second Stanley Cup final, as several Colorado players expected to blow the whistle after a point shot smashed Darcy Kaempfer's mask cleanly from the goalkeeper's head.

Lightning recorded 17 shots in the first period alone. This is one shot more than the overall 7-0 defeat in Game 2. But what was far more impressive was the defense of Tampa Bay. .. Clogged the neutral zone and blocked countless shots, they set up a defense clinic against high-flying avalanches and barely gave up in the process.

Tampa Bay led 1-0 and Avalanche led to power play in the second period when Nathan McKinnon scored the first goal of the Stanley Cup Finals with a pinball. Of his skates. 

About five minutes later, Tampa Bay regained the lead when defensive Victor Hedman wanted to rush the puck every time he seized a chance. .. He stepped into the defense and defeated Kaempfer with a backhand that the goalkeeper should have stopped.

Avs Credits will be granted. They didn't disappear. They dragged one and tied the game with another body bounce early in the third period. This time, it was Nico Sturm who redirected the point shot online. He then tracked the rebound and banked shots that appeared to be off Andrew Coriano's knees.

It wasn't because of lack of opportunity, but it's the way it stayed until overtime.

Colorado picked up pace later in the match, Vasilevsky stopped Logan O'Connor with overtime breaks, and Avus's Arture Relay Konen and Bowwen Byram both rang the puck from the post. rice field.

Eventually, Colorado broke through. And you wouldn't have been able to choose a bigger hero.

"It tells a lot about what we already know about him," McKinnon said. "A super-elastic man. A big boost to get the guy back."

mrtraikos@postmedia.com

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