Lightning coach Jon Cooper wryly joked that the last time his team faced the Islanders, they were trailing by three goals “before the anthem was over.”
That’s not likely to be the case on Friday night at NYCB Live’s Nassau Coliseum when the teams meet for the third and final time in the regular season. The Metropolitan Division-leading Islanders are coming off their extended All-Star break and bye week, having not played since a 3-2 shootout loss at Chicago on Jan. 22.
The NHL-leading Lightning exited their extended rest with a 4-2 loss at Pittsburgh on Wednesday night.