N.Y. Islanders Pushed to the Brink of Elimination

From the desk of: NO SLEEP TILL BELMONT

NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE

2019   EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS   2020

Lightning lead Isles; 3-1

I - TBL 8; NYI 2

II - TBL 2; NYI 1

III - NYI 5; TBL 3

IV - TBL 4; NYI 1

Onus Now on Goalie Semyon Varlamov to Steal Game Five 

The Islanders spend the first half of game four playing their style of hockey.  They're finally rewarded when Brock Nelson finds net unassisted at 11:27 of the second period.  But after the ensuing face-off Long Island comes apart like wet toilet paper.  A mere fifteen seconds after Nelson's goal, Tampa's Blake Coleman ties the game.  Just twelve seconds later Ondrej Palat puts the Lightning ahead for good.  The Lightning add goals early and late in the third period en route to a 4-1 victory.

The Islanders go another 0 for 3 on the power play and are now just 1/14 for the series.  Tampa dominates face-offs 34-21 and out-shoot the Isles by a 36-27 margin.  In other words Long Island has no answer for the Lightning over the final half of the game.

Tampa has centers Brayden Point and Alex Killorn back on the ice but the Islanders are officially without center Casey Cizikas who did not play game three and has now exited the bubble.

The Islanders appear slow and neglectful on defense.  But if I'm picking one game out of four wherein the net minder needed to save the day, this was it.  Blake Coleman plays through a feeble poke-check attempt by Semyon Varlamov for Tampa's first goal.

Long Island has identified a roof top weakness in Andrei Vasilevskiy's game but aren't getting the requisite numbers of shots on net.  Last two games Tampa has unleashed 72 shots on goal (back-to-back games of 30+ shots on goal), while the Islanders muster 62 shots and are held under 30 shots for the third time this series.

• Andrei Vasilevskiy: 4 games; 114 SOG; 106 Saves; 8 Goals; .930SV%
• Semyon Varlamov: 4 games; 118 SOG; 105 Saves; 13 Goals; .914SV%

The Islanders are actually getting good opportunities.  But Vasilevskiy has other plans.  At the other end, it seems as if Varlamov is back in regular season form. 

• Varlamov: regular season .914 SV%; post-season .914SV%.
• Vasilevskiy: regular season .917 SV%; post-season .930SV%.

Advantage Tampa.