Tampa Bay Lightning Fall to New York Islanders

The Tampa Bay Lightning fell to the New York Islanders (6-1) Thursday night in Uniondale, New York. This is the first time the Islanders beat the Lightning since December 9, 2019 and the Bolts are struggling to keep up with multiple injuries.

Lightning Loss

The Lightning struggled to put up points against the Islanders on Thursday. After the first period, the Lightning was able to keep the Islanders scoreless.

In the second period, things took a turn for the worst. Not only could the Bolts stop the Islanders from scoring, but the Lightning could only put one point on the board. Islanders defenseman Adam Pelech shot the puck straight into the goal giving the Islanders the lead. Islanders’ forwards Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri also worked to score one point each for the Islanders making the score 3-0 Islanders.

The only point that was made was in the game was by Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov. The Islanders were already up by three in the second period when Tampa’s Brayden Point managed to steal the puck from the Islanders and make a quick pass to Kucherov, finally putting the Lightning on the board.

Kuch gets us on the board!! pic.twitter.com/HNvgTIUJqP

— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) April 7, 2023

After the Bolts’ point, Islanders Ryan Pulock, Simon Holmstrom and Bo Horvat all managed to capitalize on Tampa Bay’s injuries and score. The Islanders were able to score six points on the Lightning. This was the second game in a row the Lightning’s opponent was able to put up six points on the board.

Suffering Injuries

The Lightning bench is struggling to have healthy players that are capable of playing. Anthony Cirelli, Brandon Hagel, and Erik Cernak were all unable to play in Thursday’s game and considered day-to-day.

During the actual game, Tanner Jeannot seemed to suffer a very serious lower-body injury as he needed to be helped off the ice in the second period. Jeannot twisted his right leg when Islanders defenseman Scott Mayfield fell on top of him.

Pat Maroon also left the game holding his left arm after hitting the boards. Jeannot and Maroon did not return to play.

On the Lighter Side

On a lighter note, this was Lightning captain, Steven Stamkos’ 1,000th game. Stamkos is the second player in Bolts history to reach 1,000 games in 15 seasons. This may have been the only highlight for Tampa Bay from Thursday’s game.

⚡@TBLightning captain @RealStamkos91 becomes just the second player in franchise history to reach 1,000 games with the club.

Congratulations to the two-time #StanleyCup champion on his silver stick! pic.twitter.com/cf14l6dICb

— NHLPA (@NHLPA) April 7, 2023

Another game on the road is next for Tampa Bay. The Lightning (45-28-6) will play the Ottawa Senators (37-35-7) on Saturday. The Bolts currently have a two-game losing streak after its losses against the Rangers and now the Islanders. Tampa Bay will attempt to break the losing streak on Saturday in Ottawa, Canada against the Senators.