Connect with us

New York Islanders

Rapid Reaction: Islanders Burned By Red-Hot Flames, Lose 5-2

Published

2 years ago

on

New York Islanders

The New York Islanders fell 5-2 to the Calgary Flames in the second of a back-to-back on Saturday night. The Islanders move to 17-19-6 on the season, 8-9-3 on the road.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Adam Ruzicka got the Calgary Flames on the board first halfway through the first period as he was left unguarded in the low slot and tapped in a pass from Rasmus Andersson. Andersson and Noah Hanafin were credited with the assists on Ruzicka’s third of the season.

The Islanders tied the contest at 1-1 on the power play as New York Islanders defenseman Noah Dobson watched his wrist shot deflect and get past Calgary Flames netminder Jacob Markstrom with just over two minutes to play in the first period. Mathew Barzal and Jean-Gabriel Pageau were credited with the assists on Dobson’s seventh of the season.

Just 61 seconds later, Brandon Tanev scored to help the Flames retake the lead. His wrist shot from the high slot deflected off of Zach Parise’s stick and over the blocker of netminder Ilya Sorokin with under two minutes to play in the first period. Johnny Gaudreau and Oliver Kylington were credited with the assists on Tanev’s fourth of the season.

The Flames made it a 3-1 game with under five minutes to play in the third. Ruzicka found Andrew Mangiapane all alone in the slot for the tap-in. Mangiapane’s 24th of the season was assisted by Ruzicka and Nikita Zadorov.

A quick answer by Jean-Gabriel Pageau made it a 3-2 game with under four minutes to play in the second period. Zach Parise found Pageau in the low slot as he beat Markstrom for his sixth of the season. Parise and Wahlstrom were credited with the assists.

Erik Gudbranson snuck one off Sorokin’s glove and in with 12 minutes to play in the third period to give the Flames a 4-2 lead. Sorokin dove back to stop the puck from crossing over the goal line, but after a quick review it was deemed a good goal. Milan Lucic and Trevor Lewis were credited with the assists on Gudbranson’s second of the season.

Elias Lindholm made it a 5-2 game as Mathew Tkachuk found him all alone in the slot for an easy tally with under five minutes to play in the third period. Tkachuk and Gaudreau were credited with the assists on Lindholm’s 18th of the season.

Defensive Zone Breakdowns

The New York Islanders were not at their best in their own zone in this contest. The Islanders were caught puck watching on the Flames first goal of the contest as there were three Islanders in front of Ilya Sorokin but no one picked up Austin Ruzicka.

The second goal the New York Islanders allowed came due to a deflection by Zach Parise on a Chris Tanev shot. A tough break for the Islanders, but one that was self-inflicted. The Flames do not get the chance if it was not for a turnover by Oliver Wahlstrom in the neutral zone.

The third, like the first, saw the Islanders play rather soft in front of their own net as no one picked up Andrew Mangiapane in the slot who was able to tap a puck past Sorokin and give the Flames a 3-1 lead.

While it was a breakdown in the defensive zone yet again, it was an errant pass in the offensive zone and an unfortunate step by Anders Lee that allowed for the ensuing Flames rush.

The fifth goal of the contest was yet another breakdown, as two Islanders chased Mathew Tkachuk behind the Islanders net and Elias Lindholm was left all alone for an easy goal.

Pageau Snaps 14-Game Goal Drought

After the New York Islanders saw the scoreboard change to 3-1 Calgary, it was a quick answer by the Islanders third line as Jean-Gabriel Pageau finished off a strong backhand feed by Zach Parise. That goal seemed to give the Islanders a big boost.

It had been 14 games since Pageau lit the lamp as his last goal came against the Vegas Golden Knights back on Dec. 19.

The Islanders third line has produced a ton of chances as of late and Pageau is one of those guys the Islanders need to see get going in the second half.

Pageau finished the contest with one shot, two hits, a block and won 68% of his face-offs in 16:38 TOI.

Islanders Offense Limited

All night long the New York Islanders struggled to generate offensive chances. After a 10-shots first period, the Islanders went 12:40 without a shot on goal, registering their first shot of the second period with 7:20 to go in the period. The Islanders ended the second frame with just five shots on goal.

Through the first seven minutes of the third period, the Islanders only had one shot on goal.

The Islanders ended the contest with 21 shots on goal. Only three of their 21 shots on goal were considered high-danger.

Quotes From Mathew Barzal, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Adam Pelech, Noah Dobson, and Barry Trotz

“I think we try to play the same way all game and sometimes may not happen but I think whatever the score is we’re trying to play our game. I don’t think we change too much up whether we’re down or up.” — Mathew Barzal on trailing

“It has happened to us all year, it’s nothing different. Obviously, it’s unfortunate to have that news right before a puck drop. I mean, he was feeling fine. That’s a good thing.” —Jean-Gabriel Pageau on Semyon Varlamov

“It’s tough to be in sync. So it’s tough to get a good forecheck going right if you’re not breaking the puck out well, and coming through the neutral zone with speed and I think that was one of the big issues.” —Adam Pelech

I think we go in each night trying to win. I think the last two games we definitely did some good stuff. And I think tonight just a couple of breakdowns that cost us but I think we can’t dwell on it. I think we just try to learn from our mistakes. Take the good things we did and go get one in Buffalo.” —Noah Dobson

We didn’t generate a lot, they didn’t generate a lot. Biggest disappointment was the third. They just had better legs, they were winning more battles. They were getting more pucks and obviously they got the fourth goal there and that was one that we needed to you know not have go against us to give us a chance.” —Barry Trotz

GAME NOTES:

New York Islanders head coach Barry Trotz rolled the same lines he had rolled for the last two contests.

Kyle Palmieri was a healthy scratch for the second straight game. Sebastian Aho served as the seventh defenseman for Thursday’s contest.

Semyon Varlamov led the New York Islanders out for warmups, but Ilya Sorokin got the start. During the first period, the New York Islanders announced that Varlamov was in COVID-19 protocol.

WHAT’S NEXT: The New York Islanders will face the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday at 7 PM ET

Related Topics:

GET NYIHN IN YOUR INBOX!

Enter your email address to get all of our articles delivered directly to your inbox.

NYI Team & Cap Info