Good Morning, Islanders Country.
Last night’s game lived up to expectations.
It did so in the sense that not much was expected from a struggling Isles team playing on the road against the Boston Bruins and their league-best record.
After Lane Lambert went back to basics at practice on Wednesday, they played well the first two periods and even teased you a bit when Simon Holmstrom’s short-handed goal tied the game early in the second period.
But the Bruins did what the Bruins do, and the Islanders did what they have been doing. Boston scored 43 seconds later to regain their lead and didn’t allow the Isles to get any traction in yet another lackluster third-period effort that left Lambert talking to himself on the bench.
The circumstances were different, but the third-period results were the same. Are we allowed to officially call it a trend now?
“We are, right now, having trouble for whatever reason sustaining a 60-minute game, and we have to find a way to do that,” - Lane Lambert
The Islanders talked about the positives after the game, and there were certainly some, but as much as the group wants to stay optimistic and stick together, the longer the outcomes remain the same, the shorter the fans’ patience will be with the team and a head coach that has yet to win them over.
Coming up, Simon Holmstrom scores another shorty, and Brock Nelson has a power play first this season. Plus, Lane Lambert doesn’t want to talk about Pierre Engvall, the woeful third-period plus numbers, and Ilya Sorokin’s worst stretch.
Let’s dive in.
🏒 IN SHORT: Charlie Coyle scored his first career hat trick, including two goals in the third period, as the Boston Bruins won for the 11th time in 13 games in a 5-2 win over the New York Islanders on Thursday night in TD Garden. David Pastrnak and Trent Frederic also scored for Boston (11-1-1). Brock Nelson had a power-play goal for the Islanders, and Simon Holmstrom scored short-handed to tie the game at 2-2 early in the third period. Vezina Trophy winner Linus Ullmark made 27 saves in the win, and Vezina runner-up Ilya Sorokin had 30 stops in the loss, the third straight for the Isles.
KEY MOMENT(s):
🔷 For the second time this season, Simon Holmstrom scored a short-handed goal as he and JG Pageau executed a 2-on-1 just 10 seconds into a Boston power play. The goal tied the game at 2-2 early in the third period.
🔻 The game didn’t stay tied for long. David Pastrnak wheeled and fired a shot from the left circle through a screened Ilya Sorokin to regain the lead for Boston.
🔻 Anders Lee turned the puck over at the half wall leading to a 3-on-1 for the Bruins with Samuel Bolduc the only player back. Coyle redirected a crossing pass from James van Riemsdyk into the net to make it a 4-2 game.
3 REACTIONS
❶ NOT UP TO THE TASK: “Right now, we’ve got to find a way to dig ourselves back in and dig ourselves out a little bit,” said Lane Lambert. “Too many times at these costly moments, we’re not up to the task.”
❷ STICK TOGETHER: “Obviously, we didn’t get the result that we wanted, but when you’re in a stretch, you try to take the positive, or take the negative and use it constructively,” JG Pageau said. “The main thing is just to stick together, that’s how we’re going to get back on a winning streak and I’m sure we’re going to do it.”
❸ FELT BETTER: “Obviously, it’s not easy coming back and playing after almost a week of being off, but I felt better as the game went on,” Bo Horvat said. “I definitely think I have more to give.”
GAME IMPACT SCORE
⏭ NEXT UP: The Islanders return home for a game before their upcoming road trip as they welcome Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals at UBS Arena. The puck drops at 7:30 PM EST.
📊 STANDINGS:
📰 NEWS: After taking a maintenance day on Wednesday, defenseman Adam Pelech took the ice for the optional morning skate but was then kept out of the lineup against the Bruins. Pelech is considered day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Meanwhile, center Bo Horvat, who also took the optional skate, was inserted back into the lineup after missing Tuesday’s game versus Minnesota.
Breaking up their best line?
◾️ Forward Pierre Engvall was surprisingly a healthy scratch on Thursday after making this turnover leading to a goal against the Minnesota Wild. Engvall hasn’t scored this season but has six assists and has been playing on the team’s most productive line. “Pierre and I had a conversation. We’ll leave it at that,” Lambert said after the game refusing to offer a rationale for the move.
Power Play Goal breaks Bruins’ streak
◾️ Brock Nelson tied the game at 1-1 with a power-play goal at the 17:23 mark of the first period. It was the team’s first road power-play goal of the season and the first time the Bruins allowed a PPG at home after killing the first 24 opportunities.
Woe is Three
◾️ How bad have things been over the last five games? MSG shared this graphic during the post-game to tell us. The Isles have been outscored 10-3 in the final 20 minutes and, when you count OT, have been outscored 19-9 after two periods.
📚 SOUND SMART: Per Eric Hornick in The Skinny, Ilya Sorokin has faced at least 34 shots in six straight starts; only one Isles goalie, Jaroslav Halak, in 2017-18 has faced at least 34 shots in more consecutive starts (10). Sorokin has allowed four goals in three consecutive games (0-1-2) for the first time in his career.
🎥 ISLES REWIND: On November 10, 1984, a pair of youngsters paired up for the game-winning goal. Pat Flatley scored at 11:15 of the third period to break a 4-4 tie and lift the Islanders to a 5-4 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Flatley and Pat LaFontaine broke into the Pittsburgh zone on a 2-on-1 rush, and the future Isles captain beat Penguin goaltender Michel Dion to his short side from the right faceoff circle for his third goal of the season.
🎧 Nassaumen Hockey Podcast: It's Not A Trend (It's Who They Are) “Is this who the New York Islanders are? Despite head coach, Lane Lambert, not believing the Islanders play as of late is a trend, they've shown this is the team they've become. Starting games strong, and letting teams back in it.
🔗 The Bridgeport Report: Nov. 8 by Alan Fuehring, NewYorkIslanders.com “The Bridgeport Islanders gained two points in two games this past weekend, including a remarkable third-period comeback against the Springfield Thunderbirds on Sunday afternoon. Samuel Asselin scored twice, and Robin Salo had two points (one goal, one assist), while Jakub Skarek and Ken Appleby once again shared time in the crease.”
🔗 With lengthy goal drought behind him, Islanders’ Oliver Wahlstrom still finding balance in new game by Joe Pantorno, AMNY “Goals, like playing time, have come at a premium for Wahlstrom, who was shelved from any hockey activity for nearly 10 months after suffering a season-ending Achilles injury in December — his last goal before Tuesday night coming on Dec. 9 in New Jersey against the Devils.”
And we leave you with this ….ESPN analyst AJ Mleczko swung by the booth to pay a visit and heckle Shannon Hogan and Thomas Hickey for a bit.
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