When it comes to the Stanley Cup Final, the stakes are simply too high for players to bring anything less than their A-game.
However, some have an easier time coming up clutch in big moments than others. Here are three players who are at the height of their powers in the NHL's ultimate series.
Tuukka Rask
No player has dominated the field this spring quite like Rask has. The Bruins netminder is in the thick of the Conn Smythe conversation thanks to an absurd stat line that features 14 wins and a .938 save percentage.
Rask hasn't allowed more than three goals in a single contest since Game 4 of the first round, and his icy-cool demeanor has the Bruins on the cusp of winning their second Stanley Cup of the decade.
Ryan O'Reilly
O'Reilly is tied for first on the Blues in postseason scoring with 18 points, and he's notched four of those during this series.
The 28-year-old two-way pivot had the performance of a lifetime in Game 4, registering two enormous goals - including the game-winner - to help provide the Blues their first ever Cup Final win on home ice.
Torey Krug
The Conn Smythe could very well end up in the hands of Krug - who leads all players this postseason with 14 assists in 21 games - if it doesn't go to Rask. The 28-year-old is also tied for third in scoring on the Bruins with 16 points.
Krug is the catalyst for Boston's lethal power play and put together a signature performance in Game 3 - a one-goal, three-assist effort that put him alone in franchise history as the only player to record four points in a single Cup Final game.
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