from Tom Gulitti of NHL.com,

One of the narratives entering the Eastern Conference Final focused on the comparatively easier path the Tampa Bay Lightning had to the NHL's Final Four.

The Lightning were impressive in defeating the Detroit Red Wings, who finished with 93 points, in the first round and the New York Islanders, who earned the first wild card with 100 points, in the second round, taking each series in five games.

But some wondered what would happen what would happen when they faced stiffer competition.

Regardless of what you think of the Red Wings and Islanders, it's been abundantly evident in the past two games that the Lightning's opponent in the Eastern Final, the Pittsburgh Penguins, is a completely different animal. The Penguins dominated for the second game in a row on their way to a 4-2 victory in Game 3 of the best-of-7 series at Amalie Arena on Wednesday.

Although the Lightning were one shot away from winning Game 2 and taking the first two games of the series in Pittsburgh, they were badly outplayed for long stretches of that 3-2 overtime loss Monday. After a good opening seven minutes of Game 3, the Lightning had few answers again for the Penguins' relentless speed and depth, other than relying heavily on 21-year-old goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy, who made 44 saves.

continued

Game highlights are below...