The Lightning are looking to avoid losing consecutive games for the first time this postseason and could get a boost if Brayden Point is able to return to the lineup for Game 4 Sunday in Edmonton, Alberta.
The team's top center did not play in Friday's Game 3, the Lightning's first loss of the Eastern Conference final. But Point skated in practice on Saturday, according to the league's daily practice footage, raising the possibility that he could be available.
Point participated in Friday's morning skate but was unable to play in the Lightning's 5-3 loss. It's not clear just how much of Saturday's practice Point took part in, but the video shows him in multiple drills. Coach Jon Cooper declined to share an update on Point when he spoke with reporters before the practice.
The Lightning played without both Point and wing Alex Killorn on Friday. They'll get at least one back as Killorn returns from his one-game suspension and have a possibility for both as they look to build on their 2-1 series advantage in Game 4 (3 p.m. Sunday, NBC).
Wing Pat Maroon didn't realize his team hadn't lost two straight games this postseason until it was addressed in a question from the media Saturday.
"I just think you just go into the mindset of just playing every game like it's a clinching game," Maroon said. "We've got to find ways to just keep playing. We have a good group, a good team. We're just going to have to find ways to turn the page."
That seemed to be the same message the team delivered after the Lightning's series lead was trimmed to one game.
The Lightning's most recent back-to-back losses came in March at what ended up being the end of the regular season. Tampa Bay lost in a shootout at Detroit and in regulation at Toronto, the latter coming two days before the league shut down March 12 because of the coronavirus.
To avoid a second consecutive loss Sunday, Cooper said his team needs to stick to its plan and stay the course.
The Lightning carry a quiet confidence, the coach said. Often, you can't tell if the team has come off a win or a loss, he said.
"Let's not mix the message here that guys weren't pissed off after the (Islanders) win, they were," Cooper said. "But I think I said this after we won 8-2 (in Game 1 of the series). Guys weren't jumping around, hugging each other after that game. Everybody just knows their job and our game plan, and when we stray from it, there's a chance for disaster to strike, like it did (Friday)."
The Lightning also aren't losing perspective, Cooper said.
"These guys know the task at hand, and they know this isn't a best two-out-of-three or three-out-of-five (series). They know what is ahead of them, and I like that, because you can't ride the emotions, the highs and the lows," he said. "You want to, and sometimes you really want to enjoy these wins so much, but we have a goal, and we're inching closer to it, but we're not quite there."
In the absence of Killorn and Point, Carter Verhaeghe and Mitchell Stephens stepped into the lineup and skated on a line with Tyler Johnson. Verhaeghe had an assist on Johnson's third-period goal.
Nikita Kucherov had an assist in Game 3 to tie Point for the team postseason points lead with 23. He also got attention at the end of the game when he slashed Islanders forward Jean-Gabriel Pageau as Pageau scored an empty-net goal.
Cooper said Kucherov is one of many players who has learned to adapt to adversity and take on a smaller role when needed outside of always being "the guy" in order to contribute.
"I hope (the Islanders) keep (trying to get Kucherov off his game) because the more they do it, the better he plays," Cooper said. "He's been marvelous out there. His compete has been outstanding, and it's a big reason why we're still around."
