Trying to figure out a way to inspire the Capitals three seasons ago, Trotz turned to Jamie Clark, who failed to reach the top of Mount Everest twice but accomplished the feat in 1997 and again in 2010.
“I think that applies to his individual experience, it applies to teams. You’re not going to go as far as you think you can and you have to harden, you have to learn from it and then you have to go back and push to get to the next level.
But following a 2-1 win at the Lightning in Game 1 on Sunday, the Islanders are three victories from their first appearance in the Cup Final since 1984.
The Detroit Red Wings lost in the Cup Final in 1995 and the Western Conference Final in 1996 before winning back-to-back championships in 1997 and 1998.
Then there are the Lightning, who won 62 games and the Presidents’ Trophy in 2018-19 but were swept by the Columbus Blue Jackets in four games in the best-of-7 Eastern Conference First Round.
“There’s a lot of stories like that through the NHL,” Trotz said.
“You have to learn from experiences.
Not really desperation, but another level of bite where we say, ‘You know what? You can raise your level, but we’re going to raise ours here.’ That’s what you try to look for and try to replicate.
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