Tampa Bay Lightning/New York Islanders

from John Romano of the Tampa Bay Times,

Sometimes, memories take a while to find a place in your heart.
They might start off bitter and, against all odds, are eventually recalled fondly. Or they could start ominously, and slowly grow even worse.
To tell you the truth, Game 4 could go either way.
You’ve got to admit, it was a glorious affair. Twenty-five minutes of on-the-edge action, 15 minutes of misery, and then 19:58 seconds of absolute hair-raising, super-charged suspense that ended with an empty net and a last-second block for the ages.
Yes, the Lightning lost to the Islanders 3-2 to even the series after four games and there is no joy in that for a Tampa Bay fan. But the story does not end here, and neither will the memories. Games 5, 6, and possibly 7, are still to come.
And, because of that, Ryan McDonagh’s final spinning shot will either be recalled as an indelible moment on the way to further glory, or the beginning of the end for the 2021 Tampa Bay Lightning.

continued

from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,

But there had never been anything like this at the Old Barn.
I’d venture to say there has never been anything like this, anywhere.
Hockey, ladies and gentlemen.
Playoff hockey.
There were seconds remaining in Saturday’s pulsating Game 4 of the Stanley Cup semifinals. The Islanders were desperately attempting to preserve a 3-2 lead over the Lightning, the teams were five-on-five with Tampa Bay’s goaltender pulled while shorthanded, killing a penalty....
“I think everybody’s breath was kind of taken away when that puck was coming,” said Mathew Barzal, who had scored the 2-0 goal and was watching from the bench. “I thought they … I thought it was going in and then just a miraculous play by Poolie, so I’m not going to be forgetting that one.”
A Miracle on Ice.
“McDonagh made a heck of a play with the spin-o-rama, the net was open and I just tried to make myself big and take it away and I was able to [make the play],” Pulock said. “You hear the sound of the clock going and the boys jump on you. It’s a good feeling.”
Understatement, anyone?
“It’s playoffs. Nothing should surprise anybody, really,” said head coach Barry Trotz, whose Islanders played with verve, confidence and to their Identity in building the 3-0 lead and then settled back in after the Lightning closed to 3-2. “That’s the great thing about our game.
“We can bring you out of your seats right ’til the last minute. What a save by Poolie. That will be remembered.”

Tampa Bay Lightning/New York Islanders - Still To Be Determined

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