The Islanders won two of their three games in California this week. After a loss to the Kings, the Islanders beat the Ducks and the Sharks to take four points. The four points won puts the Islanders at 80 total points on the season. They’re currently in the first wild card spot, leading the Penguins by two points and the Panthers by three points with the Penguins and Panthers both having two games in hand over the Islanders. 

Penalties Lead to Islanders Loss to Kings

The first stop on the Islanders’ west coast trip was to Los Angeles to play the Kings. The Islanders would score the first and only goal of the first period in this one. Pierre Engvall found some space and scored on Joonas Korpisalo with a good wrist shot. This would mark goals in consecutive games for Engvall.

Taking a 1-0 lead into the second period, the Isles collapsed. Blake Lizotte caught a piece of a shot from Sean Walker to tie things up within the first two minutes. Then Matt Martin took an undisciplined penalty by throwing the loose helmet of a Kings player to put the team on a penalty kill. Zach Parise took a bad kneeing penalty not too long after to put the Kings on an extended five on three. 

Drew Doughty ripped in a slap shot on the five on three while Alex Iafallo saw a shot go in off of his shoulder in the remaining power play time. Already with a 3-1 lead, Trevor Moore piled on when he scored off a defensive zone turnover. J.G. Pageau got the Islanders back into it when he scored a deflection goal in his first game back from an extended absence. Despite playing a solid third period, the Islanders couldn’t overcome that second period onslaught. Even a six on four chance with the net empty produced nothing for the team. Quinton Byfield scored an empty netter en route to a 5-2 Kings victory over the Islanders. 

Islanders Rebound in a Big Way Against the Ducks

In the second night of a back to back, the Islanders traveled to Anaheim to play the Ducks. After the ugly game against the Kings they needed a good win to get back on track. But they did not get the start they were looking for, as it took just 25 seconds for Max Jones to score and put the Ducks up early. However, it would be the Isles who struck next, with Kyle Palmieri scoring a wrist shot from the circle to tie. Despite that, they still left the first period trailing, courtesy of a Kevin Shattenkirk goal set up by some nifty puck moves from Trevor Zegras.

This time it would be the Islanders who took command once the second got underway. Hudson Fasching continued his red hot streak and scored at the 9:46 mark to tie it again. Brock Nelson gave the Islanders their first lead of the game at the end of the period, blasting a slap shot by John Gibson. Engvall kept the scoring run going in the third, extending his scoring streak to three straight games. Nelson and Parise also provided goals to give the Isles a total of five unanswered goals dating back to the first period. Shattenkirk broke the streak by scoring his second of the game, this time on the power play. This goal would prove inconsequential as the Islanders went on to win with a 6-3 final score. 

West Coast Swing Ends with Win Over the Sharks

In the last game of the road trip, the Islanders met the Sharks in San Jose. The Islanders’ play early on was less than ideal. They were given two power play chances early on and barely generated anything on either attempt. Kevin Lebanc proceeded to fire one right by Sorokin after the conclusion of the second power play opportunity. In an ironic twist of fate, the Isles’ fortunes changed in the middle of their first penalty kill of the game. Pageau got a one on one chance against Kaapo Kahkonen and beat him with a backhand for the shorthanded goal. 

In the second period, the Islanders took the lead when Palmieri deflected a shot through Kahkonen’s five hole. Ryan Pulock added some extra insurance, unleashing a rocket of a slap shot for a power play goal at the 5:24 mark. The cherry on top was Parise tipping a shot from Alex Romanov to go up by three. The Islanders would win at a 4-1 final score over the Sharks. 

Takeaway

Again the Islanders succeeded in taking two out of three of their games and maintaining their postseason spot. The Kings loss was infuriating as it felt like a winnable game without the poor second period penalties. But thanks to some favorable results around the league, the four points they did get temporarily puts them back in the first wild card spot. Even though they’re in good standing as of this writing there’s still a lot of work to be done. There are still three teams on the outside looking in that can quickly steal the Islanders spot if they slip up. 

The Islanders have taken care of business thus far, going 6-3-1 over their last ten games. However the schedule gets a little more difficult over the coming weeks so they really need to play their most disciplined hockey. Bo Horvat breaking his 11 game scoreless drought would also be greatly helpful as they enter this crucial stretch of the season. 

3 Stars of the Week

1. Kyle Palmieri (2 goals, 3 assists)

2. J.G. Pageau (Goal, go-ahead SHG vs. Sharks, 2 assists in return from injury)

3. Pierre Engvall (2 goals, 2 assists)

Credits

Featured image courtesy of Twitter/@NYIslanders

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