In a shocking turn of events, the Islanders fight back into the series with a 5-3 win in Game 3. They not only won the game but prevented the Lightning from securing their 3rd consecutive win.
Islanders’ Brock Nelson breaks the tie with only 3:25 left on the clock, and Semyon Varlamov goes on to make 34 saves in the game.
They were almost at the point of saying goodbye to America before even having had the chance to properly introduce themselves.
On Friday, in the Edmonton bubble and amongst viewers who weren’t impressed by them in Game 1 or 2, the Islanders showed that they had what it takes.
Trotz said “This is our fourth series…We’ve had to battle through double overtime losses, a lot of different things”.
How Did The Game Proceed For The Islanders And The Lightning?
Tampa Bay smashed a deficit of two-goal around the first 13 minutes of the final period before Nelson, who also had an assist, defeats goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy.
At the last minute, Jean -Gabriel Pageau scored an empty-netter.
Islanders’ Tyler Johnson says that “You really want to be up 3-0 compared to 2-1, but its playoff hockey”. Throughout the game, you have to continue to learn new things and proceed accordingly.
What Did The Coach Of Lightning Have To Say About The Game?
Jon Cooper said “We handed that one to them. It was gift-wrapped,”.
He believes that the loss is on the team and not because of some incredible game of hockey played by the Islanders. The team was well-aware of what was in store for them and were not even under any imminent pressure.
Two points were awarded to three of the Islanders, namely Nelson, Beauvillier and Pageau. They also had goals from Clutterbuck and Pelech while forming the 3-1 lead through two periods.
Tampa Bay cuts into its deficit of 2 goals with Palat’s power-play goal in the third period. Later they settled it with Tyler Johnson redirecting Erik Cernak’s shot from the right circle over Varlamov.
The Islanders, however, did not give up.
Clutterbuck said that the team is not one to pack it in. He said that they were not really perplexed with Nelson making them lose the lead. They simply stayed the course and played the game.
