10 keys to winning the Stanley Cup Final

Some teams win the Stanley Cup with speed, talent and skill while being powered by a dynamic offense.

Other teams do it with a more defensive, conservative approach that emphasizes systematic play and 5-on-5 dominance.

Then there are teams that ride hot goaltending and special teams play to a title.

The point is there is no set recipe for how to win, and every team does it a little differently. It is never just about any one thing; it always comes down to a number of factors all working in unison.

With that in mind, here we take a look at some of the factors that will be in play for the 2019 Stanley Cup Final between the St. Louis Blues and Boston Bruins.

The Bruins' power play — When the Bruins won the Stanley Cup during the 2010-11 season, they did so despite having an all-time bad postseason power play performance. It is quite the opposite story this time around, as their power play unit has been an unstoppable force at times, converting on more than 30 percent of its opportunities entering the Stanley Cup Final. When you can dominate 5-on-5 play the way the Bruins did and combine that with a lethal power play unit, you are going to be an extremely difficult team to stop.

Blues' special teams — An extension of the point above will be the Blues' special teams overall, not only in stopping what the Bruins can do with the man-advantage but also what the Blues can do when they get opportunities. Throughout the first two rounds, the Blues' power play was a complete mess and looked downright incompetent at times. The unit started to convert a little more in the Western Conference Final against the San Jose Sharks. Penalties don't figure to play a huge role in the Final, as referees tend to "let them play" at this time of year, but there will still be opportunities and this could be a huge game-changer for both teams.

The goalies — Tuukka Rask is playing at a Conn Smythe level and trying to get a championship in which he played a major part added to his resume. Jordan Binnington is authoring one of the most improbable rookie seasons we have seen in recent history, as he emerged out of nowhere at midseason, after starting the year as a backup in the American Hockey League, to help save the Blues. It is not a stretch to argue that the goalie who plays the best will be the one lifting the Stanley Cup.

The Bruins' health — Brad Marchand is entering the series a little banged up, while Zdeno Chara missed the clinching game of the Eastern Conference Final. It is not always the best team that ends up winning but the team that is the healthiest. If Marchand and Chara are at less than 100 percent and limited in any way, it could be a problem — especially when it comes to Marchand because he is such a focal point of the offense.

Vladimir Tarasenko staying hot — The Blues have a fairly deep team that doesn't have a lot of weaknesses but also not many true impact players. The exception to that is Tarasenko, one of the league's best goalscorers and a consistent postseason performer. He played great in the first two rounds but was a little snakebitten when it came to his goalscoring. His luck definitely started to change in the Western Conference Final where he recorded a point in every game. He enters the series on a six-game point streak and as one of the hottest players (on either team) in the series.

Secondary scoring — A lot of times in a playoff series the teams' top players have a tendency to cancel each other out, either by matching their production goal-for-goal or shutting each other down. At that point it comes down to the depth. The Bruins have addressed their depth issues in a big way over the past year thanks to the emergence of young players like Jake DeBrusk and the trade deadline acquisitions of Marcus Johansson and Charlie Coyle. The Blues did the same over the summer by adding O'Reilly, Patrick Maroon, Tyler Bozak and David Perron.

Unsung heroes — Because of the point above, it is not always the superstars who score the most impactful goals. St. Louis' biggest goal this postseason, a double overtime Game 7 goal in Round 2 against the Dallas Stars, was scored by Maroon, not Tarasenko or O'Reilly. The Bruins have received big contributions from their fourth line, including from Sean Kuraly, and have gotten a quietly productive defensive performance from Brandon Carlo on the blue line. It is quite possible that one of these players will make a big difference at some point in the series.

The individual matchups — The way the two coaches decide to match lines is always a big factor, and both teams have two of the best shutdown centers in hockey. How Bruce Cassidy deploys Patrice Bergeron and how Craig Berube decides to counter with Ryan O'Reilly will be a good chess match to watch. You know Bergeron is going to be on the ice as often as possible against St. Louis' duo of Brayden Schenn and Tarasenko when the Bruins have home ice.

Getting some luck — San Jose Sharks coach Pete DeBoer bristled at the suggestion that his team had been lucky in the Western Conference Final, but saying a team has some luck on its side is not an insult. Luck is a necessary ingredient for winning in the playoffs, and there is not one Stanley Cup-winning team that has not had its share along the way. Sometimes it is a good bounce. Sometimes it is a call that goes your way. Sometimes it is an opponent failing to capitalize on an open net or a shot that rings off the post. Good fortune may not be the biggest key to winning, but it is a factor.

The Blues' road success — If the Blues are going to win the Stanley Cup, they will need to win at least one game on the road. Based on what we have seen so far in these playoffs, that should not be a huge problem. The Blues entered the series with a 7-2 mark on the road this postseason, including a dominant 5-0 win in San Jose in their most recent road game. Winning one of the first two games in Boston seems like a good place to start.