5 Takeaways from Lightning vs. Islanders

After losing three in a row, the Tampa Bay Lightning swept their back-to-back after defeating the New York Islanders 4-1 in their first ever meeting at UBS Arena. This game had a bit of a playoff like intensity to it and may prove to be a point where the Lightning begin to turn the corner as they head down the stretch run.

The win for the Lightning snapped a six-game win streak on home ice for the Islanders. The Islanders struck first, late in the second period before the Lightning would go on to score four unanswered goals to wrap up a grueling stretch of 11 games in 11 cities.

Let’s break down what we took away.

1. Powerplay Keeps Going

Both Lightning goals on Saturday in Detroit came on the man advantage, and it got them going again on Sunday. Victor Hedman leveled the score at one off the rush as the last three Lightning goals had all come on the man advantage. When the offense dries up, the powerplay is something that can keep a team in games and they have needed it in these last two games. The goal also marked a career high in goals for Hedman with 18.

2. Killorn Reaches the 20 Goal Mark

Alex Killorn’s goal in second period to go up 2-1 brought him to 20 on the season for the second time in his career. The goal also marked a career high in points for Killorn with 50 in what has been another quietly productive season for the winger.

3. Catching a Break

With 18 seconds to go in the second period, the Islanders looked to have scored the tying goal. Andrei Vasilevskiy was beaten for a pretty soft goal that would have been a big momentum boost for the Islanders if they were able to level the score in the final minute of the second. The goal was overturned, and the Lightning were fortunate to go into the second intermission still up a goal.

4. Sergachev’s Big Third Period

Mikhail Sergachev was all over the place in the third period. His shot from the point set up a great rebound chance that Ross Colton was able to finish off, giving the Lightning a 3-1 lead. Sergachev got in on the offense again by jumping up on the play and scoring on a second chance opportunity on a play that he created. The points have come in bunches for Sergachev as this was his first time on the scoresheet since March 6th against Chicago, where he recorded three points.

5. Offensive Outburst

The Lightning offense had been held to two goals or fewer in their last four games. Their four goals in this one was the most since March 16th in Seattle. We will see if this can give the group some confidence they can build on offensively coming down the home stretch. The offense will face another strong test on Tuesday against the Carolina Hurricanes who held Tampa Bay to just one goal when the two teams met a week ago.