The Lightning are the first team to eliminate their opponent in the second round. They did it the fastest, not allowing the Islanders to reach a second win. The Lightning are going back to the ECF for the second time in two years, the third in five. They did all this without defenseman Anton Stralman and captain and forward Steven Stamkos. When those two are added back into this team, there may be no stopping them, whatever team comes out of the other series.
The Islanders were blanked. That was their problem in this series, they could never find enough offense to beat the Lightning. They came close several times, and with two OT games this series could now be 3-2 Islanders. But their offense was not there in overtime, just as it wasn’t during regulation. When a captain, especially a captain who is usually reliable and is the person a team relies on, doesn’t show up in a series, that’s likely trouble for the team. Look at the Blackhawks, the Islanders, the Ducks.
When you have one line and it does not score, you’re out of luck. That’s what happened to the Islanders. Their one line of Tavares, Okposo, and Brock Nelson did not find ways to score. Okposo didn’t score until game 4. Nelson never scored. Tavares was not a presence throughout much of the series.
The Islanders will be back, with the goaltender that got them through the regular season with Jaroslav Halak. Tomas Greiss is a solid goaltender but he folded more regularly than Bishop did. Bishop looked like a Vezina finalist and it helped the Lightning get out of the series quickly. Greiss is not a Vezina finalist. He’s not a starter. It’s the Tokarski Image. He played well in one series, but he’s most likely a backup at best in the regular season. The Islanders have some other issues to work out this summer, but if they do, and I’m confident in their GM, then they will be back, stronger and better.
The Lightning are looking solid heading forward. They will be a major factor in the rest of the post-season, and a team that beats them will most likely win the Cup. If no team beats them, they win the cup. Simple.