By Jake Ricker
The Lightning looked to pick up their first set of back-to-back wins against the New York Islanders. Here were the lines for the game against the Islanders:
Hagel-Point-Kucherov
Namestnikov-Stamkos-Killorn
Colton-Paul-Koepeke
Maroon-Bellemare-Perry
Hedman-Foote
Sergachev-Perbix
Cole-Myers
Elliott
1st Period
The Lightning got into trouble penalty early as they were called for a hook just a few minutes into the game. The Bolt's penalty-killing unit continued its success from the Florida game and killed it off. Brian Elliott then made a few nice saves as the Islanders continued to make an offensive zone push.
It was the Lightning who struck first, though, as Brayden Point buried a rebound for a 1-0 lead. The Lightning seemed to get a jolt of energy after that goal picking up the pace. But it was the Islanders who responded and tied the game at one.
The Lightning were not ready to let the Islanders back into this game, so they quickly got back to work. A few minutes later, they would be rewarded. Brandon Hagel got his first of the season as he fired one home for a 2-1 lead.
The Lightning then got a late power play chance as the Islanders were called for a hook. As time began to wind down, the Islanders took another penalty giving the Lightning a 5-on-3. There was only time for one more shot before time ran out in the first.
2nd Period
The Lightning started things off with 40 seconds on the 5-on-3. The Lightning were unable to convert, though, and their lead would stay at one. Despite the unsuccessful power play, Corey Perry got to work in the dirty area and buried a shot to give the Lightning a 3-1 lead.
Sergachev was then called for tripping, and the Lightning would have to go to work on the penalty kill. The Lightning successfully killed it off once again and got back to full strength. The Islanders then got one shot to squeak past Elliott, but the white blew after the official discussed it, though, they called it a goal, and it was now 3-2 Lightning.
The Lightning kept on pushing despite the Islander's goal and put on a few great shifts pressuring the Islanders. Time then began to wind down, just when you thought the period was over, Nick Paul beat the buzzer with 0.1 seconds left on the clock for a 4-2 lead!
3rd Period
The Islanders would get an early power play chance after Myers was called for tipping. The Lightning once again shut it down and killed off the penalty. The Islanders kept pushing, though, and eventually got one past Elliott to pull within one.
Both teams continued to go back and forth, but the Islanders would not go away without a fight. The Lightning then got a chance to regain their two-goal lead on the power play after the Islanders were called for slashing. While the Bolts didn't get a goal on the power play seconds later, Killron got the monkey off his back and blasted one home for a 5-2 Lightning lead.
The islanders kept trying to create chances but were unable to get anything in the back of the net. They would then pull Sorokin for one last push. But time would run out, and the Lightning got the 5-3 victory.
Final thoughts
This is the team we all know and love. It wasn't perfect, but lots of good work offensively from guys Like Killorn, Hagel, and Paul. Special teams continues to look good, and Elliott was solid in net. The islanders did have a lot of chances, but the defense did hold things down at the end of the game.
The Lightning know they still have some work to do as they didn't love their start. But to be 3-3 and get four points on a back-to-back is huge. If the Lightning can continue to build off this win, there should be no worries for anyone.
Three Stars
1. Point (1G,1A)
2. Hagel (1G,1A)
3. Paul (1G, 1A)
The Lightning's next game will be against the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday, October 25th, at 10:30 PM ET.
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