3 Takeaways: Isles Blitzed by Bolts in 5-0 Loss

Amalie Arena hasn't been a friendly place for the New York Islanders of late and Saturday night was no exception.
The Islanders fell 5-0 to the Tampa Bay Lightning, snapping a two-game winning streak in the process. Saturday marked the sixth time the Islanders were shut out this season, their sixth straight loss to the Lightning, and their fourth straight defeat in Tampa Bay.

"Some uncharacteristic mistakes tonight," captain Anders Lee said. "On top of some bounces, it turns into four or five nothing game on a night that we weren't sharp at all."
Brayden Point (1G, 2A) led the way with a three-point game, while Mikhail Sergachev (1G, 1A), Tanner Jeannot, Nikita Kucherov (1G, 1A) and Steven Stamkos scored for the Lightning, while Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 38 shots for his fourth shutout of the season. Tampa clinched a playoff berth with their win over the Islanders.

SOROKIN PULLED IN LOSS TO BOLTS:

Ilya Sorokin's been one of the top goalies in the NHL since entering the league in 2020, but the Tampa Bay Lightning have given the Islanders netminder consistent trouble.
The Lightning remain the only Eastern Conference team Sorokin has yet to beat, as his record dropped to 0-4-0 vs the Bolts. Sorokin has allowed four-or-more goals in each of his last three games against Tampa.
Saturday's outcome wasn't necessarily Sorokin's fault, though he was pulled in favor of Semyon Varlamov after allowing four goals on 21 shots in 31:45. Two of Tampa's four goals were deflections, as Mikhail Sergachev's point shot caromed off Alex Romanov's leg to open the scoring at 17:53 of the first period. Darren Raddysh's cross-ice pass clinked off Steven Stamkos' skate to make it 4-0 at 11:45 of the second, ending Sorokin's night.
"Regardless of the bounces, we have to have a better game," Lee said. "You have to earn your bounces some nights and I think they did that at times. Tonight we didn't do that and we didn't get to our game at all."
There wasn't a lot that Sorokin could do about Tanner Jeannot's backdoor tap-in at 3:42 of the second period to make it 2-0. Nikita Kucherov - one of five players with over 100 points this season - also beat Sorokin stick side on an uncontested breakaway off a home-run pass from Point.
Head Coach Lane Lambert said the move to Varlamov was about trying to find a spark for his team.
LIGHTNING 5, ISLANDERS 0
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Varlamov stopped 10-of-11 in relief of Sorokin, allowing a power-play goal to Point late in the third period. Lambert did not reveal his goaltender for Sunday's game in Raleigh, though Sorokin's half game seemingly opens the possibility of back-to-back starts for the 27-year-old.
"We're just thinking about tonight's game," Lambert said.

LIGHTNING STARS SHINE IN WIN OVER ISLES:

Tampa's top players led the way on Saturday night, inflicting plenty of damage on the Islanders.
Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov (1G, 1A), and Brayden Point (1G, 2A) each scored, with Point netting his 48th goal of the season on a late third period power play. Mikhail Sergachev, who entered the game as a top-12 offensive defenseman in the league, also racked up a goal and an assist, though he left the game late in the third.
The Point-Stamkos-Kucherov line was on the ice for seven high-danger chances for at five-on-five (per Natural Stat Trick) so their six combined points may have undersold how they carried the play on Saturday.
"We didn't have the awareness we should have," Lambert said, specifically referencing the Kucherov breakaway. "That was the case against the Brayden Point line, but give them credit, they execute those plays. We have to be better."
The Islanders had their chances in the game as well, but Bolts goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped all 38 shots he saw for his second shutout in three games. Vasilevskiy is a perennial continued his home dominance against the Isles
In the Islanders last seven games vs Vasilevskiy at Amalie Arena (including the 2021 playoffs), the Islanders have only scored six total goals.

STANDINGS IMPLICATIONS:

Despite a humbling loss, the Islanders did not lose their standing as the first wild card in the Eastern Conference, though the landscape around them changed on Saturday.
The Isles (87 points) still sit in the first wild card, but the second wild card now belongs to the Florida Panthers (85 points) after they drubbed the Columbus Blue Jackets 7-0. Both the Isles and Panthers have played 77 games this season.
The Pittsburgh Penguins (84 points) dropped out of a playoff spot after a 4-3 loss to the Boston Bruins on Saturday afternoon. The Penguins have a game-in-hand on both the Isles and Panthers.
"Unfortunately, it was bad timing to have a game like this, but we've got an opportunity tomorrow night," Lee said. "So let's get back tonight, rest up tomorrow afternoon and roll tomorrow evening."

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders wrap up a back-to-back Southeast swing on Sunday evening against the Carolina Hurricanes. Puck drop is at 6 p.m.