NHL Playoffs: Who will Lightning play in Round 2?

After beating the Detroit Red Wings in the Eastern Conference first round, what’s up next for the Tampa Bay Lightning?

Following a physical five-game series with the Detroit Red Wings, the Tampa Bay Lightning will deservedly get a few days off before starting their Eastern Conference Semifinal playoff series.

Tampa Bay beat the Red Wings in the first round for the second consecutive year with a 1-0 win on Thursday night at Amalie Arena in Game 5. The Lightning will now await the winner of the series between the Florida Panthers and New York Islanders in Round 2.

New York and Florida are currently tied at two games apiece in their first round series. The series will go till at least Sunday, with a potential Game 7 scheduled for April 26.

Alex Killorn scored the series-clincher on a Red Wings defensive mistake with just under two minutes to go. While the Lightning won Game 5, they were outplayed at even strength for much of the night.

The difference was Ben Bishop. who made 34 saves for his only shutout of the series. Overall, Bishop allowed just eight goals in the series, with some help from an excellent penalty kill that held the Red Wings to 1/25 on the Power Play.

Even with Steven Stamkos out, the Lightning still managed to get offense from their top line. Nikita Kucherov has an NHL-high five goals in the playoffs, while Tyler Johnson continued to torment the Red Wings with seven points.

Tampa Bay didn’t have much success against either team in the regular season, going 1-3-1 against Florida and 1-2 against New York.

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