NHL Playoffs: Lightning, Islanders Get Heated In Pre-Game Warmups (Video)

The puck hadn’t even dropped to kick off Game 3  of the NHL Playoffs between the Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Islanders and things were already heating up on the ice.

There is no denying the second round series between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the New York Islanders didn’t exactly start off the way the Lightning or their fans would have liked. Thankfully, the Tampa Bay Lightning were able to focus their efforts and capture a 4-1 victory in Game 2 before heading north into Islanders country for Games 3 and 4.

While the Tampa Bay Lightning may have brought home the victory in Game 2, there was plenty of heat between these two teams that spilled out onto the ice on more than one occasion. This is rather interesting considering, up until now, there hasn’t been a whole lot of history between these two teams.

As the two teams made their way to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn for Games 3 and 4, there was no denying the tensions that only began to boil in Games 1 and 2 would carry over into the series in Brooklyn. What no one expected was for things to get down and dirty before the first puck dropped and the game got underway.

The Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Islanders had just taken the ice for their pre-game warmups as usual. Both teams were skating with purpose, preparing themselves for the battle that was about to ensue. Then, before anyone had any idea what was going on, there was quite the squabble going down at center ice.

Tampa Bay Lightning center Brian Boyle skated along center ice simply minding his business when he was strong-armed by New York Islanders defenseman Travis Hamonic. As you can imagine, Boyle didn’t exactly take the cheap shot lying down. In an instant, there was some mild pushing and shoving followed by quite a bit of smack talk between the two Eastern Conference opponents.

As a former New York Ranger, you would think it would be someone like Boyle, or even Ryan Callahan, who would have a beef with the New York Islanders, but that didn’t seem to be the case to kick off the game.

Not long after the brief altercation, the NBC Sports Network broadcasters asked Boyle about what happened between him and Hamonic at center ice, to which he replied it was nothing more than a matter of “boys being boys.” Given Boyle’s response, we have a good feeling we have not seen the final jab in this exchange.

Whether it was intentional or not, the New York Islanders set the tone of the game from the very beginning. They made it clear this is going to be a hard-hitting, physical game between these two budding rivals. If the Tampa Bay Lightning wants to keep momentum on their side and bring home a victory in Brooklyn, they will need to match them jab for jab and never let up on the pressure.

Next: Islanders Attempt to Spark Controversy Before Game 3

The New York Islanders are going to be ready to put on a show in front of their hometown fans, but if the Tampa Bay Lightning can block all the noise of out their heads and focus on the task at hand, they will have a good foothold on tonight’s game. Should the Lightning back down, they are going to find themselves in quite a bit of trouble in Islanders country.