New York Islanders Stave Off Elimination in Double OT Thriller

Facing double overtime, the New York Islanders managed to extend their series against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

With their backs against the wall, the New York Islanders would have to play their best hockey of the postseason, as the Tampa Bay Lightning were one win away from advancing to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2015.

This game would need double overtime before it was all said and done, as the struggling Jordan Eberle finished off a great pass by Anders Lee on an odd-man rush to keep the Islanders’ season alive.

For the Islanders, this game was all about surviving. The entirety of this game was dictated by Tampa, but key saves in critical moments by Semyon Varlamov gave this Islander team a chance to continue their fight. Both overtime periods saw the Bolts own much of the possession game, with the Islanders struggling to create any type of play towards goal.

When warmups began, Islanders’ head coach Barry Trotz made some changes to his lineup. The biggest changs was having fourth-liner Cal Clutterbuck slot alongside Lee and Mat Barzal on the top line. Also for the first time since August 1st, veteran defenseman and Stanley Cup winner Johnny Boychuk was back in the lineup, as seven defensemen were dressed.

For the Lightning, they would be without Brayden Point, as he seems to still be dealing with an injury he sustained in Game Two, which kept him out for the entirety of Game Three. He did return and play the entirety of Game Four, but head coach Jon Cooper decided it was best to rest his young superstar who clearly was not at 100 percent.

The Islanders needed to take advantage of this.

As they have done in the last three games, the team from the island tallied the first goal. With 4:19 to go in the first, Ryan Pulock would come through on the powerplay, rifling a 101 mph one-timer past a screened Andrei Vasilevskiy.

The Islanders would enter the second period with a 1-0 lead, despite only recording five shots on goal in the first period.

But just as the Isles have done in each game they have scored first, the Lightning were able to tie it up eventually.

Just four minutes into the second period, as Victor Hedman lit the lamp for the eighth time this postseason. After Varlamov made a pad save, the rebound shot out to his right, with a few Islanders lifting sticks to deny any chance of a rebound goal. There was a clear miscommunication among Brock Nelson and Devon Toews, as Hedman walked in and let it go, beating a screened Varlamov blocker side to knot the game at one.

Later in the period, it seemed the Lightning took the lead, but the goal would be challenged for offsides.

And it was offsides by a mile. Not sure how the linesman missed this one, but fortunately for the Islanders’ replay was available at their disposal.

Flash forward to the third.

With 18:37 to go in the final frame, Anthony Beauvillier would hit Mikhail Sergachev up high with his stick, being assessed a double-minor penalty for high sticking.

But fortunately for him, and this team, the penalty kill unit was brilliant, forcing the game to overtime. And in overtime, the team was able to kill off the remaining 2:37 to get back to even-strength.

In overtime, the chances for the Islanders were slim to none. Mat Barzal had the greatest chance, but Andrei Vasilevskiy made a brilliant save.

The Islanders found a way to make the most out of their slim chances in this one. Eberle’s goal at 12:30 of the second overtime sent the team into a frenzy, as the Islander faithful could breathe a sigh of relief. The series could have been over. The season could have been over.

When it was all said and done, the Islanders were outshot 37-24. But for a team in survival mode, they did everything else right to give themselves a chance to win this game. The team from the island won 55 percent of the draws (Pageau won 23 of 43, 53.49%), outhit their opponents 75 to 70, and out-blocked their opponents 32 to 30. And the only place it truly counts is on the scoreboard, which read Islanders 2, Lightning 1.

The celebrations by Semyon Varlamov and the Islanders’ bench tells a story in itself. The battle, the grit, the brotherhood. This team did not want to head home and it took a true team effort.

While this win was a must on the brink of elimination, the Islanders will have to do this all over again when the puck drops for Game Six on Thursday in another do or die scenario.