Lightning strikes again

Associated Press

TAMPA, Fla.

Victor Hedman and Ben Bishop lifted the Tampa Bay Lightning into the Eastern Conference final for the second straight year.

Hedman scored twice and Bishop stopped 28 shots Sunday, helping the defending conference champions beat the New York Islanders 4-0 and end their second-round playoff series in five games.

The Lightning advanced by winning four straight after dropping the series opener at home. They also eliminated Detroit in five games in the opening round, making them 2-0 in close-out situations this postseason.

“I think we learned last year we had a couple of series where we had chances to close [opponents] out at home and we kind of let them slip,” Bishop said. “We really wanted to take pride in closing teams out this year.”

Hedman scored an unassisted goal from the slot at 13:49 of the first period, then beat Islanders goaltender Thomas Greiss again on a second-period power play that gave Tampa Bay a three-goal lead.

“Brutal. It’s hard to believe it’s over,” Islanders captain John Tavares said. “You put a lot into this and we didn’t accomplish what we set out to do.”

Nikita Kucherov and Brian Boyle also scored for the Lightning, who will face either the Pittsburgh Penguins or Washington Capitals in the East final. The Penguins lead that series 3-2, with Game 6 Tuesday night in Pittsburgh.

“Back to back, it’s pretty impressive what our guys have done,” Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. “Once you get there, you want to get back. I’m really impressed with our drive. We didn’t play perfect playoff games every time, but we’re getting contributions from everybody in the lineup. If you want to win, you need that.”