I remember Petr Klima going 5 hole on Andy Moog in G1 of the '90 Cup Finals...B's were junk in G2 and split in Edmonton only to loose the Cup in 5 at the Garden...
I was at the Tim Taylor "toe in the crease" game vs. Washington in '98 too. I think that one went to only 2OT - but again, Caps won. B's looked dismal in the next game (G4) only to recover and win G5 in Washington (down in the series 2-3) and loose G6 and the series at the Fleet.
Emotionally, for the loosing team - the next game is gotta be a killer. Physically, it's no different for either team. It's not like one team played more than the other. Maybe one team outplayed the other but they were both there for the same time.
Just my 2 cents