Tampa Bay Lightning vs New York Islanders Picks and Predictions March 29th 2025

Locked in Tense Wild-Card Race, Isles Face Red-Hot Lightning

The New York Islanders have little room for error in their pursuit of a playoff berth, but they’ll need to right the ship quickly as they run into one of the league’s hottest teams — the Tampa Bay Lightning — in a critical Saturday afternoon clash in Sunrise, Fla.

The Islanders (32-29-10, 74 points) are riding a three-game home losing skid and have gone just 1-1-2 over their past four games. As a result, they’ve slipped one point behind the Montreal Canadiens for the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

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What stings most is that New York nearly had a regulation win against Columbus earlier this week, only to see Kyle Palmieri’s would-be game-winner waved off due to goaltender interference — a ruling upheld after review.

“If Toronto is afraid to overturn calls made by the referee, we don’t need Toronto,” Islanders head coach Patrick Roy said following the emotional 4-3 shootout loss.

Palmieri has been one of the few bright spots of late, scoring eight goals in his last 18 games and continuing to provide a steady offensive spark. Goaltender Ilya Sorokin has carried a heavy load all season and enters with a 2.76 GAA and .905 save percentage across 54 starts.

But it hasn’t been enough to push the Isles forward in the standings — especially not with a juggernaut like Tampa Bay standing in their way.

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Lightning Blazing Through Opponents

The Tampa Bay Lightning (42-25-5, 89 points) are peaking at the right time. They’ve outscored opponents 14-1 in their last two games, routing the Pittsburgh Penguins 6-1 and shutting out Utah 8-0 on Thursday.

Nikita Kucherov has been unstoppable, tallying seven points over those two wins to bring his season total to 105 — just three behind league leader Nathan MacKinnon.

“These games over the last couple we’ve had here, they don’t happen often,” said Lightning head coach Jon Cooper. “But we’re doing the right things, and when it’s constantly on repeat, good things are going to happen for you.”

The milestones keep coming for the Bolts. Brayden Point scored his 300th career goal on Thursday, and veteran defenseman Ryan McDonagh notched two assists in his 1,000th game. On the back end, Andrei Vasilevskiy delivered his sixth shutout of the season, tying for the league lead.

Now winners of 15 of their last 18 home games, the Lightning are 26-8-2 at Amalie Arena and boast one of the NHL’s most potent offenses, averaging 3.57 goals per game.

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Critical Matchup in the Wild-Card Picture

With just over two weeks left in the regular season, every point matters — and for the Islanders, a poor showing against Tampa could be costly. After Saturday’s clash, the two teams will face off again on Tuesday, this time in Elmont, New York.

The Lightning will look to maintain momentum and solidify their playoff seeding, while the Islanders are simply trying to stay in the race.

There’s urgency on both sides, but only one team is currently playing like it.