Tampa Bay Lightning Steal Game 3 From Islanders In Overtime

The Tampa Bay Lightning stole a victory right out of the hands of the New York Islanders as they defeat the Isles 5-4 in overtime of Game 3.

The Tampa Bay Lightning did not get off to the start they wanted to in their second-round series with the New York Islanders, dropping the first game of the series 5-3 at the Amalie Arena here in Tampa Bay. Thankfully, the Lightning were able to regain their composure and come up with a big 4-1 victory in Game 2. This is where things would really start to get interesting in the series between these two Eastern Conference rivals.

Now, the Tampa Bay Lightning would be forced to leave their loyal fans here in the Bolts Nation and travel north, deep into the heart of Islanders country, to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn for Games 3 and 4 of the series. As most hockey fans know by now, New York fans are some of the hardest fans in the league to play against, but if the Lightning wanted to keep momentum on their side, they’d have to put that out of their minds.

Things got heated between these two teams long before the players ever took the ice tonight. The New York Islanders sparked some controversy this morning when they included the hit from Casey Cizikas that inadvertently injured Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Erik Condra in their sizzle reel for pre-game.

Just when you thought things couldn’t possibly get any more heated between two teams that, other than this series, have no real rivalry between them, in comes New York Islanders defenseman Travis Hamonic. As the Lightning and the Islanders took the ice for their pre-game warmups, Tampa Bay Lightning center Brian Boyle was skating along the center ice line when he was strong-armed by Hamonic.

This set the tone of the entire game. No matter what happened between these two teams, every other play seemed to end in some sort of fisticuffs. Unfortunately, the pressure laid earlier in the game would eventually wear down on the Lightning and it would be the Islanders who would draw first blood. It would be Islanders right wing Josh Bailey who would score his first goal of the postseason.

As the time continued to tick off the clock, it seemed a certainty the Lightning would be heading into the first intermission trailing the Islanders. This is where Tampa Bay Lightning alternate captain Ryan Callahan comes into play. Callahan was able to tip in a shot from Lightning center Alex Killorn with just 13 seconds left in the period to tie the game for the Lightning.

Finally, the buzzer would sound to end the first period of play. The New York Islanders definitely outshot the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first, going 17-9 in shots on goal through 20 minutes of play. Thankfully, the Lightning abides by the quality over quantity game and entered the first intermission tied with the Isles.

When these two teams hit the ice for the second period of play, it seemed as if the Tampa Bay Lightning were ready to take command of the game and really start to dig deep. Unfortunately, most of the air blew right out of the Lightning’s sails when Lightning left wing Jonathan Drouin was forced to make his way to the locker room after a nasty hit to the head from Islanders.

In fact, as if losing Drouin wasn’t bad enough, the New York Islanders would end up with a power play opportunity for the aftermath of the Drouin hit. The good news here is the Tampa Bay Lightning penalty kill was able to keep the Islanders out of the back of the net during the Islanders’ man advantage.

Just before the halfway point in the second period, the Tampa Bay Lightning would show they weren’t prepared to walk out of the Barclays Center without putting up a heck of a fight. The Lightning would win the faceoff in the offensive zone. The first person to get their stick on the puck is defenseman Victor Hedman.

Without hesitation, Hedman would unleash a bomb from the blueline that would soar past Thomas Greiss and into the back of the net to give the Tampa Bay Lightning their first lead of the game. Unfortunately, the Lightning would not make it to the intermission without the Islanders taking a stand and evening things up. Islanders defenseman Nick Leddy would capitalize on a Lightning miscue to tie things up for the Isles.

While it may not seem like it on the scoreboard, the Tampa Bay Lightning actually made up a lot of ground in the second period. The Lightning outshot the Islanders 17-12 in the second period for a two-period total of 29-26 Islanders. Unfortunately, it was not all wine and roses for the Lightning. At the end of the 2^nd period, Tampa Bay Lightning fans still hadn’t received an update on injured forward Jonathan Drouin.

It was easy to see the Tampa Bay Lightning came into the third period with something weighing heavily on their minds. Just 16 seconds in the third period and the Lightning would find themselves on the power play as Islanders center Casey Cizikas would head to the penalty box for boarding Vladislav Namestnikov. Thankfully, Namestnikov was not injured in the incident.

Unfortunately, before the power play had reached its conclusion, the Lightning would suddenly find themselves in a 4-on-4 situation before going down a man as Jason Garrison would be sent to the sin bin for high sticking on Islanders center Frans Nielsen. This opened the door for Josh Bailey to score his second goal of the night and regain the lead for the Islanders.

In what has turned out to be one heck of a playoff game, the Tampa Bay Lightning simply refused to be denied. Just under one minute after the Bailey goal, Vladislav Namestnikov would come back with a goal of his own with assists from centers Valtteri Filppula and Alex Killorn.

Regrettably, the Tampa Bay Lightning’s defense would betray them as a completely uncovered Cal Clutterbuck would shoot the puck from in front of the net right through Ben Bishop’s five-hole and into the back of the net. It has been mistakes like this one that has continued to hold the Lightning back in the series.

With just over two minutes left in the period, Tampa Bay Lightning Head Coach Jon Cooper would elect to pull Ben Bishop in order to get the extra attacker on the ice. This is something that has always scared us. While it seems like a necessary evil, more often than not it tends to bite teams in the end.

Surprisingly enough, tonight turned out to be one of those occasions when we are incredibly happy for the Tampa Bay Lightning to prove us entirely wrong. The Lightning were able to use the extra attacker to crash the net and Lightning right wing Nikita Kucherov would bury the puck in the back of the net and tie the game with a mere 39 seconds left in the game.

When the buzzer would end regulation, the Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Islanders would be all tied up at four goals apiece. Much like the previous period, the Lightning made up a lot of ground in the realm of shots on goal, outshooting the New York Islanders 12-10 in the third for a three-period total of 39-38 Isles.

The time has come for the Tampa Bay Lightning to leave everything out on the ice. The New York Islanders fans have been incredibly unforgiving and so has the Islanders defense. If the Tampa Bay Lightning want to take the series lead, it is time to put one skate in front of the other and play the game of their lives. It’s not a do or die situation just yet, but the Tampa Bay Lightning would have to play as if it was.

When the Lightning hit the ice for the third period, we saw a team we hadn’t seen for a good majority of the game. The Tampa Bay Lightning applied pressure, keeping the Islanders out of their zone for the whole of the period. It took a mere three shots on goal in two minutes and 48 seconds into the period before Lightning center Brian Boyle would get back the goal he was robbed of earlier to bring home the victory.

This game has to rank up there in the Top 10 most heart-pounding games in Tampa Bay Lightning history. While this was far from a do or die situation for the Lightning, the pressure was just the same. Unfortunately, if the Bolts want to remain successful, they are going to have to focus their efforts when they hit the ice on Friday night for Game 4.

Tonight’s encounter was far from a perfect game, and it showed on the ice. There were entirely too many defensive miscues that led to at least two of the Islanders’ goals. Also, while the Lightning’s penalty kill has been fairly solid throughout the postseason, the Lightning needs to be much more careful what they consider to be acceptable penalties and stop giving the Isles time with the man advantage.

As much as it absolutely pains us to say this, the Tampa Bay Lightning stole this game from the New York Islanders, plain and simple. The Lightning were outplayed for most of the game, but in the end, they were able to come together as a team and get the job done.

At the end of the day, a win is a win no matter how you slice it. Of course, as we have said a million times before, the Tampa Bay Lightning has built a reputation of overcoming all kinds of adversity, and if there was any team who could get the job done tonight, it was the Bolts.

Next: Lightning/Islanders Get Heated In Pre-Game Warmups (Video)

The Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Islanders have two days off before they will meet in the center of the ice once again. The puck is scheduled to drop at 7:00 p.m. on Friday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. After tonight’s game, you can bet your bottom dollar the Islanders are going to be hungry for a win. All we can say is the Lightning need to be prepared for a physically challenging game.

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