Instant Islanders: Takeaways From 5-2 Loss To Flames

Elmont, NY–  The New York Islanders fell to the Calgary Flames by a final score of 5-2 on Saturday afternoon.

Brock Nelson scored his team-leading 22nd goal of the season, while Jean-Gabriel Pageau picked up his seventh of the year.

MacKenzie Weegar scored three times for Calgary, who was also aided by a power play goal from Jonathan Huberdeau and an empty-netter from Blake Coleman.

In the 600th appearance of his career, Semyon Varlamov made 19 saves on 22 shots in net for New York.

Jacob Markstrom held the Islanders in check, stopping 35 of the 37 shots that came his way.

But that’s just the box score. Here are the key takeaways from the day that was at UBS Arena.

Stuck In Slow Motion:

It seems the Islanders used up all of their offense in their 6-2 win over the Lightning on Thursday, when it felt like every player in the lineup was firing on all cylinders. Fast forward two days later, and they were stuck in slow motion against the Flames.

From their feet to their decision-making, all aspects of the Islanders’ performance on Saturday lagged as if they were playing with bad Wi-Fi.

Nelson’s goal at the 4:00 minute mark of the third period gave the afternoon crowd a decent jolt, but it didn’t do the same for the Islanders themselves.

Few, if any, of their shots truly challenged Markstrom. The only other shots that made their way into the back of Calgary’s net were inconsequential. Pageau’s seventh of the season made it a 4-2 game while the Islanders were playing with an extra attacker. Kyle Palmieri would’ve had a goal in the first if the Islanders hadn’t been egregiously offside.

Weegar Wreaks Havoc:

MacKenzie Weegar collected his first career hat trick against the Islanders.

He opened the scoring as he went coast to coast and entered the attacking zone without resistance from the Islanders to fire a wobbly wrist shot past Varlamov at 3:47 of the first.

Weegar caught the Islanders puck-watching late in the second period as he stood uncovered with ample space to fire a one-timer that made it a 3-0 game.

His empty-netter with seconds to go in the third capped off the three-goal performance and sealed the victory for Calgary.

With 15 this season, Weegar has the most goals of any defenseman in the NHL.

Romanov Day-To-Day:

Prior to the game, Islanders head coach Patrick Roy disclosed that defenseman Alexander Romanov would be out of the lineup with a lower-body injury and is considered day-to-day.

Sebastian Aho skated in his place next to Noah Dobson and registered 18:45 of ice time.

Up Next:

With a record of 22-18-12, the Islanders will next be in action on Tuesday night when they welcome the Seattle Kraken to UBS Arena.

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