NHL Three Stars: Hedman scores twice, Bishop shuts out Islanders
No. 1 Star: Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning
No Stamkos? No problem. The defenseman had 2 goals in 3 shots and was a plus-3. He logged a team high 27:43 time on ice as the Lightning dominated the New York Islanders in their 4-0 win.
No. 2 Star: Ben Bishop, Tampa Bay Lightning
The goaltender made all 28 saves against in the shutout to move Tampa to their third Eastern Conference Final in six years. Check out this incredible leg save to deny Johnny Boychuk of a sure goal.
No. 3 Star: Ryan Callahan, Tampa Bay Lightning
On the box score, Callahan was unremarkable with no points 1 shot on goal and 2 missed shots. He was credited with a team high 7 hits. He did yeoman's work in out on the ice to get in the Islanders heads early. They were often caught by the officials retaliating for something Callahan had done to them on the play prior.
Honorable Mention: Valtteri Filppula had an 85-percent success rate on the faceoff dot going 11 and 2. One positive for the Islanders is their penalty kill. They held the Lightning to only one power play goal in five opportunities. Matt Martin led the Islanders with 9 hits.
Did You Know? "Per Elias, Hedman became just the third defenseman in franchise history to score twice in a playoff game and first to do so in a series-clinching victory. He also became the first defenseman on any team to score twice in a series-clinching win since Nicklas Lidstrom (DET) in Game 7 of the 2010 Western Conference Quarterfinals at PHX." (Via NHL)
Dishonorable Mention: John Tavares was held without a point for the fourth straight game. Cedric Paquette was whistled for three dumb penalties (on his part). Lucky for him, the Isles couldn't score. Kyle Okposo, Nikolay Kulemin and Frans Nielsen were all minus-2.
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Jen Neale is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow her on Twitter! Follow @MsJenNeale_PD.
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