Islanders need power-play goals in Game 3 of East Final against Lightning

The Coaches Room is a regular feature throughout the 2019-20 season by former NHL coaches and assistants who turn their critical gaze to the game and explain it through the lens of a teacher. Rob Zettler and Rob Cookson will take turns providing insight throughout the remainder of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
In this edition, Cookson, a former video coach with the Philadelphia Flyers and former assistant with the Ottawa Senators and Calgary Flames, breaks down Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final between the Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Islanders, and suggests adjustments each team might make heading into Game 3 at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Friday (8 p.m. ET; USA, CBC, SN, TVAS).

The New York Islanders coaching staff is undoubtedly happier with what it saw in a 2-1 loss in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final on Wednesday than it did in an 8-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 1 on Monday.
In saying that, Barry Trotz and his assistants need to quickly find ways to get the entire Islanders group performing the way it did earlier in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. New York needs to find ways to exploit a Tampa Bay team that is playing with a lot of confidence.
The Islanders recognized areas they had to shut down, such as the Lightning's rush game and inside game. This allowed them to keep Game 2 close and winnable before it lost on forward Nikita Kucherov's goal with nine seconds remaining.
Adding forwards Andrew Ladd and Leo Komarov gave New York a heavier lineup in Game 2. The entire group played more of an Islanders-type game.
Still, if New York hopes to climb back into this series, it needs better individual performances from some of its key players. I'm sure that will be the message leading into Game 3.
First, the Islanders need to figure out how to solve Tampa Bay goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy, who has allowed a total of three goals through the first two games. That begins with establishing a net-front presence and having a shot-first mindset.
New York again did not have as strong net-front presence in Game 2, and it needs to continue to work on getting inside and getting traffic to the net. Getting to retrievable pucks off the forecheck and controlling pucks along the boards can create breakdowns inside and more of those are needed. Its defensemen must get pucks in and allow the forwards to go to work down low.
Another area the Islanders need to improve is the power play. They had 10 minutes of power-play time, including a five-minute major in the first period and a 5-on-3 for 38 seconds in the third, in Game 2. They had some good looks but went 0-for-4 with the man-advantage.
One power-play goal could have been the difference in the game.

The Lightning penalty killers have done a great job denying clean zone entries and limiting the Islanders' time and space to execute with a top-down push. Zone entries are mostly about speed, depth and timing.
The 1-3 alignment Tampa Bay uses on the penalty kill is daunting, but if the power play uses a drop-pass breakout, it can use speed and lateral puck movement to create seams or positioning problems at the blue line for the penalty killers. Another option is to use two forwards swinging with speed up one side of the ice with a third forward skating across the blue line. The combination of speed up the one side and a forward skating at the blue line often creates indecision among the penalty killers, which again opens seams for zone entry.
Most of the entries are coming on Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman's side of the ice, and most of the in-zone puck control is on his side. Hedman was a monster on the penalty kill in Game 2, controlling it for the most part with his stick and his ability to anticipate the play. The other side of the ice is a more attractive area to target, but that's not always an option.
In the zone, Tampa Bay's top-down pressure requires New York to have quicker puck movement and to exploit seams with passes through the box as well as sliding pucks inside to the crease area. That will kill the pressure of the top-down push and allow the power play to converge more to the crease for loose pucks.
From the Lightning's perspective, they are probably excited that they dodged a bullet. They played most of the second and third periods with nine forwards after forward Alex Killorn received a game misconduct (he was suspended one game and will not play in Game 3) and center Brayden Point was injured.
The Lightning are showing the rest of the hockey world and themselves that they can play a strong defensive game. Every one of Tampa Bay's players had a mindset to defend, keep the game close and look for opportunities.
The Lightning got those opportunities on the very last shift of the game, when Kucherov scored.