Lightning vs. Islanders Stanley Cup Semifinal preview

Welcome to NHL.com, the official site of the National Hockey LeagueBienvenue à LNH.com , le site officiel de la Ligue nationale de hockeyДобро пожаловать на NHL.com, официальный сайт Национальной хоккейной лигиTervetuloa NHL:n viralliselle nettisivustolle NHL.comiinVälkommen till NHL.com, NHL:s officiella web-sidaVítejte na NHL.com, oficiálních stránkách National Hockey LeagueVitajte na NHL.com, oficiálnych stránkach National Hockey LeagueWillkommen auf NHL.com, der offiziellen Seite der National Hockey LeagueBienvenido a NHL.com, el sitio oficial de la National Hockey LeagueThe third round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs features four teams in two best-of-7 series, which start Sunday.Today, NHL.com previews the Stanley Cup Semifinals between the Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Islanders. Lightning: 4-1 to win Stanley Cup Second Round against No. 1 Carolina Hurricanes; 4-2 to win Stanley Cup First Round against No. 2 Florida Panthers; 36-17-3, 75 points in regular season (third in Discover Central Division)Islanders: 4-2 to win Stanley Cup Second Round against No. 3 Boston Bruins; 4-2 to win Stanley Cup First Round against No. 1 Pittsburgh Penguins; 32-17-7, 71 points in the regular season (fourth in MassMutual East Division)Game 1: Sunday (3 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, SN, TVAS)The Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Islanders will meet in the third round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the second straight season when they play in the Stanley Cup Semifinals.The Lightning eliminated the Islanders in six games in the Eastern Conference Final last season before defeating the Dallas Stars in the Stanley Cup Final. "We feel like we still have some unfinished business," New York forward Josh Bailey said.This will be the first time the Islanders and Lightning will play each other this season; all teams were limited to playing against divisional opponents during the regular season and through the first two rounds of the playoffs."Whether we played each other last week or last month or three months ago, it doesn't really matter," Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. Tampa Bay forward Nikita Kucherov leads the playoffs with 18 points (five goals, 13 assists) in 11 games after not playing at all during the regular season because of hip surgery on Dec. 29, 2020.The Lightning are first on the power play at 41.7 percent during the postseason. So it's going to be tough, but we believe in ourselves and we know we're going to need our best to find a way to take them down."Video: NHL Tonight on the Lightning moving on past Carolina Lightning: Brayden Point is tied for the playoff lead with eight goals, including five on the power play. The center scored six points (three goals, three assists) in Games 2-5, including the game-winning goal in Game 4, a 4-1 win that allowed New York to even the series. New York is comfortable with either goalie and could use each in the series.Video: NYI@BOS, Gm2: Varlamov thwarts Krejci at the doorstep Lightning: They are 41.7 percent on the power play (15-for-36) after going 7-for-16 against the Hurricanes, including 6-for-11 in the final three games. New York has played 42 playoff games since 2019, second behind Boston (48). And they will need to stay healthy; they have lost eight man-games to injury in the playoffs but enter the Cup Semifinals at full strength.Islanders: In addition to excellent goaltending and strong depth, New York must remain the least penalized team in the NHL to have a chance.