Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz: Lightning try to even Semifinals vs. Islanders

Welcome to the Stanley Cup Playoffs Buzz, a daily in-depth look at the 2021 NHL postseason. There is one playoff game scheduled for Tuesday and there was one Monday.

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On Tap

There is one game on the Stanley Cup Playoffs schedule Tuesday:
New York Islanders at Tampa Bay Lightning (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVAS): The Lightning will look to even the Stanley Cup Semifinals with a victory in Game 2 after the Islanders won 2-1 in Game 1 of the best-of-7 series Sunday. New York has won four straight games since trailing 2-1 in the second round against the Boston Bruins. During that stretch, goalie Semyon Varlamov is 4-0 with a 2.00 goals-against average and .938 save percentage. Islanders center Mathew Barzal has scored goals in four of his past five games. The Lightning trail in a series for the first time in the playoffs this season. The defending Stanley Cup champions will rely on their experience from rebounding from Game 1 losses last season against the Bruins in second round and the Dallas Stars in the Stanley Cup Final. Tampa Bay is 11-0 following playoff losses since being swept by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round of the 2019 playoffs, including 3-0 this postseason. That ties the longest such run in Stanley Cup Playoffs history with the Montreal Canadiens in 1985 and 1986. In three games after losses this postseason, Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy is 3-0 with a 2.00 GAA, .937 save percentage and one shutout.

What we learned

Here are some takeaways from Day 30 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs:
Fleury continues to shine for Vegas
Marc-Andre Fleury was the best player on the ice in the Vegas Golden Knights' 4-1 victory against the Montreal Canadiens in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Semifinals at T-Mobile Arena on Monday, according to Vegas coach Peter DeBoer. Fleury made 28 saves, including several sharp ones when the Canadiens were outplaying the Golden Knights in the first period. He's now 9-4 with a 1.84 GAA, .927 save percentage and one shutout in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, after being voted a finalist for the Vezina Trophy as the top goalie in the NHL for his play during the regular season. Not bad for a 36-year-old who lost the No. 1 job to Robin Lehner in the playoffs last season. -- Nicholas J. Cotsonika, columnist
Montreal must find way to slow Vegas defensemen
The Montreal Canadiens have faced some formidable offensive defensemen during the first two rounds of the playoffs, like Morgan Rielly of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Josh Morrissey of the Winnipeg Jets. But they hadn't yet seen a corps of defensemen flex its collective scoring muscles like the Vegas Golden Knights did in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Semifinals on Monday. Golden Knights defensemen combined for six points (three goals, three assists) in a 4-1 win against the Canadiens. Shea Theodore scored two points (one goal, one assist); Nick Holden and Alec Martinez scored one goal each; and Brayden McNabb and Zach Whitecloud each had one assist. Carey Price said it's an issue Montreal will have to address. "They've got some solid [defensemen] over there," the Canadiens goalie said, adding that, "they were getting pucks through and jumping in on the rush. That's what good D do. I just have to find a way to mitigate that." -- Mike Zeisberger, staff writer

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About last night

There was one playoff game Monday:
Vegas Golden Knights 4, Monreal Canadiens 1: Defensemen Shea Theodore, Alec Martinez and Nick Holden and forward Mattias Janmark scored goals to help Vegas defeat Montreal in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Semifinals. Marc-Andre Fleury made 28 saves to earn his 90th win in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Golden Knights, who host Game 2 of the best-of-7 series on Wednesday (9 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVAS), have won five in a row since losing the first two games against the Colorado Avalanche in the second round. Rookie forward Cole Caufield scored his first NHL playoff goal and Carey Price made 26 saves for the Canadiens, who had won seven straight games since trailing the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 in the first round. Theodore's goal that opened the scoring 9:15 into the first period Monday ended Montreal's stretch of 447:08 without trailing, the second longest run in NHL playoffs history, dating to end of Game 4 of the first round. The Golden Knights lead the NHL with nine goals from defensemen in the playoffs.

Stanley Cup Semifinals news

The Lightning are looking
for more production
from their defensemen, reports senior writer Dan Rosen.
The Islanders won Game 1 with the
help of lessons learned
in their Eastern Conference Final loss to the Lightning last season. Deputy managing editor Brian Compton with the story.
Staff writer Mike Zeisberger reports that the Canadiens are
facing some adversity
after their Game 1 loss to the Golden Knights.
Golden Knights defensemen got offensive
in Game 1 against the Canadiens, reports columnist Nicholas J. Cotsonika.
Video:
Game highlights
of the Golden Knights' 4-1 win against the Canadiens in Game 1 on Monday.
The Fantasy Hockey staff shares their
Stanley Cup Playoff pool rankings
.
Here's the
complete schedule
for the Stanley Cup Semifinals.