Every moment matters in the Stanley Cup playoffs, especially when one mistake or terrific decision can lead to a season-altering goal in overtime. With that in mind, we'll dive in deep with a video breakdown for every game-winning overtime goal of the 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs to highlight the little things that you might've missed while celebrating or crying.
Patrick Kane’s latest overtime playoff goal shows why he’s an elite game-breaker
Breaking down every overtime goal in the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images
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So let me get this straight.
The Blackhawks played a double-overtime game in the playoffs last night? OK. Checks out.
And they won? Makes sense.
And Patrick Kane scored the game-winner?
SURELY YOU JEST.
Of course Kane scored his first goal of the postseason in a double-overtime game. Of course he did. This story has been told before, right?
Wrong. This time the story involves superpowers.
THE DIAGRAM
Thanks again to Mike Darnay for making this. See if you can spot where Kane turns into The Flash.
If that looks like one dude freezing time to score a sports goal, then you’re right.
Surely there’s more to it than superpowers, though. Let’s discuss.
THERE’S NO WAY HE GETS NEAR THE NET.
Look, if a Blues fan actually did freeze time here they'd be pleased with how their team has played this. Sure, Richard Panik just passed to Kane at the high slot. But there are THREE BLUES between Kane and the goalie.
There is no way he scores.
UNLESS...
Oh.
Well. He did just eliminate two defenders in one deke. But the Blues still have the advantage here! Jay Bouwmeester (Blues, #19) has Jonathan Toews (Blackhawks, #19) tied up in front of the net. Even if Kane beats Alex Pietrangelo (Blues, #27) to the net, goalie Brian Elliott has most of the possible angles covered.
But Kane won’t even reach the net, because the Blues have two guys about to knock him off the puck.
Right, guys?
OH.
... guys?
So this is the fatal mistake. Maybe Paul Stastny and Pietrangelo were just exhausted after five periods of hockey. Their brains must have been firing on two cylinders. Because at some point in that sequence they needed to knock Kane off balance, whether before the shot or when the puck is suddenly up for grabs.
Instead, they went for his stick in quite a half-hearted effort. And he turned on the afterburners.
DO SOMETHING
I imagine there’s one Blues fan out there who watched this goal for hours last night, yelling that at the TV through tears. Because after Kane gets past Pietrangelo and Stastny, it sure looks like there’s four Blues just standing around watching Kane end the game.
The reality is there’s not much they can do. Alex Steen is too far away to do anything. Pietrangelo and Stastny are suddenly trapped on the other side of the net. Bouwmeester is covering Toews. And Troy Brouwer just got up from getting deked into next week.
And Brian Elliott doesn’t really know where the puck is.
No, it’s over.
And honestly, it was the moment Kane made that deke.
So the blame goes to...
You could assign it to exhaustion. The Blues looked a step slower during the entire sequence, and no doubt the grueling overtime game played a part in that.
But they had it. When the play began, they had every lane to the net blocked. All it took was one deke for it to collapse, and very few players can pull off that move with those stakes at that level. So blame the ridiculousness that is Patrick Kane's hockey skills.
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