Fansided

Lightning strikes the Capitals in Game 3: 3 takeaways

By Jeremy Lambert

WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 15: Andrei Vasilevskiy #88 of the Tampa Bay Lightning celebrates with his teammates after defeating the Washington Capitals in Game Three of the Eastern Conference Finals during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Capital One Arena on May 15, 2018 in Washington, DC. The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Washington Capitals with a score of 4 to 2. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 15: Andrei Vasilevskiy #88 of the Tampa Bay Lightning celebrates with his teammates after defeating the Washington Capitals in Game Three of the Eastern Conference Finals during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Capital One Arena on May 15, 2018 in Washington, DC. The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Washington Capitals with a score of 4 to 2. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /
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WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 15: Alex Ovechkin #8 of the Washington Capitals looks on against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the third period in Game Three of the Eastern Conference Finals during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Capital One Arena on May 15, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 15: Alex Ovechkin #8 of the Washington Capitals looks on against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the third period in Game Three of the Eastern Conference Finals during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Capital One Arena on May 15, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

2. Road team wins again

It’s a shame Tampa Bay played so hard in the regular season to secure home ice advantage in this round. Because home has not been kind for teams thus far. Why is that? I have some theories:

  • Comfort level is too much. It’s possible to be too comfortable at home. I imagine hockey players have very nice parents who cooked for them all the time and took them to all their youth hockey games and did their laundry. That’s the kind of service they are used to at home. It can be too comfortable and breeds complacency. Maybe the home team should start staying at a hotel.
  • Kids, man. I don’t know how many kids the two teams have between them. I’m going to guess between five and 30. Not everyone on the team has kids, but some players have multiple kids. Kids are tough to deal with. They want you to pay attention to them. You have to let them win any game you play. Kids will forever ruin things.
  • Silence is golden. I haven’t seen A Quiet Place, but I quietly hear it’s a very good movie. It’s certainly doing well amongst critics and at the box office. Maybe it’s a sign that America is starting to gravitate towards silence. After years of “loudest opinion wins the argument,” we’re finally hearing the little people. Home crowds are loud. Road teams want to silence crowds. Maybe home crowds should start being silent? Don’t knock it until someone tries it.
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