3 Keys: Lightning at Rangers, Game 5 of Eastern Conference Final

(3A) Lightning at (2M) Rangers
8 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, CBC, SN, TVAS
Best-of-7 series tied 2-2

The New York Rangers are hoping a return to Madison Square Garden for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final allows them to retake control of the series after the Tampa Bay Lightning won Games 3 and 4 at Amalie Arena.
The Rangers have won eight straight home games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including Games 1 and 2 against the Lightning, 6-2 and 3-2.
"We're 8-1 at home, so let's go play our home game again and get right back at it," Rangers coach Gerard Gallant said Wednesday. "It's going to be a battle. We're playing against a team that had a lot of experience the last three years, obviously. They're not going to give it to us. We've got to go out and take it. That's what we have to do."
The Lightning are hoping the losses in Games 1 and 2 were part of overcoming the rust they built up in the eight full days they had in between sweeping the Florida Panthers in the second round and opening the conference final.
They have gotten back to playing their typical strong defensive game and managing the puck better, limiting the turnovers that fueled the Rangers' offense in Games 1 and 2.
"They get a lot of energy from their fans, but I've said this before, that's got to be white noise to us," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. "We have a plan and we need to go execute it. The Rangers are in the way of that, and they are going to try to disrupt things we want to do. How are we going to fight through that? Are we going to stick to what we know has worked? Are we going to be able to fight through checks? Are we going to be able to fight through the crowd noise? Those are things if you want to win a Stanley Cup you have to do. And, in the end, you have to win on the road. That's the bottom line. We have an opportunity tonight to do that."
Rangers forwards Ryan Strome (lower body) and Filip Chytil (upper body) each will play, Gallant said. They had been listed as game-time decisions.
RELATED: [Complete Rangers vs. Lightning series coverage]
Strome did not play in Game 4 after leaving Game 3 in the second period. He skated in pregame warmups prior to Game 4 but was ultimately unable to play. Chytil was injured in the second period of Game 4 and did not return for the third.
Tampa Bay won't have center Brayden Point for the ninth straight game because of a lower-body injury.
The team that wins Game 5 when a best-of-7 series is tied is 223-61 (78.5 percent) winning the series, including 4-3 in the 2022 playoffs.
Here are 3 keys to Game 5:

1. Pay a price

Gallant was critical of the Rangers after Game 4, saying the Lightning "paid a price to win" and the Rangers did not.
His said the Rangers didn't get in shooting lanes enough, finish enough checks or get enough pucks and bodies to the front of the net enough to make life difficult on goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy.
They did those things more in Games 1 and 2 and won each game. They have to pay the price again to win Game 5.

2. Matchup mayhem

The Lightning controlled Games 3 and 4 at home partly because they could get the matchups they wanted, most notably using their forward line featuring Anthony Cirelli, Alex Killorn and Brandon Hagel against Rangers center Mika Zibanejad and whoever he was playing with.
But now the Rangers are the home team, which means they have the last-change advantage and should be able to get the matchups they favor. Zibanejad scored a goal in Games 1 and 2 and his line was on the ice for four of New York's eight 5-on-5 goals.
"Well, you can either go into the game and chase matchups or you can challenge your guys to win their matchups," Cooper said Wednesday. "We've had success doing it both ways, but in the end, stick to our plan. Go out and do your job and if we do that, I'll take our chances."

3. Front the puck

The Lightning prevented the Rangers from getting many Grade A scoring chance in Games 3 and 4. Most of what the Rangers generated was from the outside and Tampa Bay controlled the area in front of Vasilevskiy too. They also limited the Rangers off the rush.
Sticking with those defensive principles will serve the Lightning well in Game 5. The more open the game becomes, the better it suits the Rangers. That was evident in Games 1 and 2.
"When we talk about our 'D' zone, it's closing fast, not allowing teams to get to the cycle game and get to those prolonged shifts in your zone," Lightning defenseman Ryan McDonagh said. "We try to get on them quick and get going, so we can play on the offensive side."

Lightning projected lineup

Ondrej Palat -- Steven Stamkos -- Nikita Kucherov
Brandon Hagel -- Anthony Cirelli -- Alex Killorn
Ross Colton -- Nicholas Paul -- Corey Perry
Pat Maroon -- Pierre-Edouard Bellemare -- Riley Nash
Victor Hedman -- Jan Rutta
Ryan McDonagh -- Erik Cernak
Mikhail Sergachev -- Zach Bogosian
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Brian Elliott
Scratched:Cal Foote
Injured:Brayden Point (lower body)

Rangers projected lineup

Chris Kreider -- Mika Zibanejad -- Frank Vatrano
Artemi Panarin -- Ryan Strome -- Andrew Copp
Alexis Lafreniere
-- Filip Chytil -- Kaapo Kakko
Tyler Motte -- Kevin Rooney -- Barclay Goodrow
Ryan Lindgren -- Adam Fox
K'Andre Miller -- Jacob Trouba
Justin Braun -- Braden Schneider
Igor Shesterkin
Alexandar Georgiev
Scratched: Ryan Reaves, Patrik Nemeth, Libor Hajek, Greg McKegg, Julien Gauthier, Jonny Brodzinski, Dryden Hunt
Injured:Sammy Blais (knee)

Status report

Point took part in an optional morning skate but will not play.