TAMPA, Fla. -- The Tampa Bay Lightning need only one more victory to advance to their second Eastern Conference finals in as many seasons. They host the New York Islanders in Game 5 of this second-round series on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET at Amalie Arena. Here’s what to watch for:

Home ice: The Lightning are 4-1 at home this postseason, with the only loss coming against the Islanders in Game 1. Tampa coach Jon Cooper said it best after the team’s 2-1 overtime win in Game 4 Saturday in Brooklyn: "We can’t take for granted that we’re going home," he said. "The one thing we have learned is you get the other team’s A-game on those opportunities to close a team out. We saw it when we played Detroit [in the first round], and they were giving us everything we could possibly handle and I’m sure that’s going to happen in Game 5."

Last spring, on their run to the Cup finals, the Lightning were 6-7 on home ice. The Islanders have thrown everything they had at Tampa in Games 3 and 4 but New York came away on the losing end both times. Amalie Arena is going to be loud and Lightning fans are going to be jacked up, so the Islanders need to strike early and often. If New York is able to get a lead, it needs to keep pressuring and not give up. The Lightning have struggled in first periods this postseason and they need to clean that up if they want to advance and have success if they’re able to reach the conference finals again.

"It's a quick turnaround here on Sunday, afternoon game," said Islanders captain John Tavares. "We've just got to win one, so we'll start there. We believe in this team. Everyone's been sticking together all year and overcame a lot. It's a great opportunity for us. We'll just focus on Sunday."

Masked men: Because of those slow starts by the Lightning, goalie Ben Bishop has bailed out his team time and again in the playoffs. The Islanders are doing a good job of getting plenty of pucks on net, but Bishop has made many timely saves. It’s to a point where Islanders coach Jack Capuano keeps giving the opposing goalie credit after each game (or maybe it’s because they’re both products of the University of Maine). Bishop is 7-2 with a 2.12 goals-against average and a .931 save percent in nine playoff games this postseason. At the other end, the Islanders Thomas Greiss has been solid too. He’s 5-5 with a 2.32 goals-against average and a .928 save percentage.

Johnny on the spot: In the first round, Tavares was the Islanders’ best player and he led them to victory over the Florida Panthers. In Game 1 of this series, he scored a goal and added an assist en route to victory. Since that first game, the Lightning have kept Tavares off the scoresheet. He’s also a minus-3. It would be a surprise if Capuano loads up his top line and reunites Frans Nielsen with Tavares and Kyle Okposo. "It’s crossed my mind," Capuano said. "But we’ve played so solid the last six periods ... . I don’t know if we’re going to load up one line again but it has crossed my mind, but at the same time I thought we’ve defended well." If the Islanders can force a Game 6 back in Brooklyn, Tavares needs to produce on Sunday.
