Jackets Steal 4-3 Shootout Win over Islanders

ELMONT, N.Y. —  The New York Islanders (32-28-10) started hot but slowly collapsed and lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets (32-29-9) 4-3 in a shootout on Monday night inside UBS Arena. This wasn’t like most, though. Kyle Palmieri thought he won the game with 9.6 seconds left.

In fact, he really did. That’s what Head Coach Patrick Roy said postgame. He blasted the league and its officiating for disallowing what should’ve been a game-winning goal for the Islanders.

It’s the third-straight blown third-period lead for the Islanders on home ice. They’ve picked up just 4/6 points where they needed all 6. They remain chasing the Montreal Canadiens by one point.

Both the Islanders and Jackets knew it was a big game. Playoff odds for both squads would swing largely based on how the game went. The Islanders surged to a 2-0 lead after the first period thanks to goals from Pierre Engvall and Palmieri.

The Jackets stormed back in the second period, scoring twice to tie the game at two. The first came off the stick of Adam Fantilli before Boone Jenner struck shorthanded to tie things up. Fortunately for the Islanders, Anders Lee scored with just 47 seconds left in the second period to put the Islanders back on top.

The Jackets surged hard in the third period and ultimately equalized after relentless pressure for much of the period. Kirill Marchenko scored the tying goal with a thundering one-timer through traffic. Despite gobs and gobs of pressure, Columbus could not pull ahead, leading to what should’ve been a winning goal for Palmieri.

Merzlikins then threw a punch and kept himself out of position as Palmieri tipped one in. That should’ve been the winning goal with 9.6 left. Instead, the goal was waved off, eventually leading to the shootout.

Ilya Sorokin made 27 saves in defeat. Merzlikins, after recovering from Palmieri’s devastating blow, turned aside 30 in the comeback win.

First Period:

The Islanders came out flying on Monday night. For a team that is vehemently against the idea that they let other games bleed in, they came out like a team pissed off after blowing Saturday’s game against Calgary.

Off the hop, the Islanders’ fourth line picked up where they left off. Maxim Tsyplakov forechecked like a madman and won the puck. He centered to a wide-open Ryan Pulock, but Merzlikins came up with the save.

From there, the surge continued. Engvall and Anthony DeAngelo had rush opportunities turned aside. Columbus’ first real chance came off a neutral zone steal by Adam Fantilli. He stole it and walked in for a pair of opportunities, but Sorokin kept them both out.

From that moment on, Columbus would not register another shot in the period until the final 10 seconds. The Islanders kept pushing and it led to the opening goal. DeAngelo bumped a puck up to Adam Boqvist. Boqvist, playing wing for the first time in his NHL career, head-manned it to Engvall for a two-on-one rush. Engvall cut into the slot as Boqvist crashed the net. The combination of the two opened up Merzlikins’ glove side, which Engvall exploited for a 1-0 lead.

For Boqvist to step in and make that play deserves some kudos. He hadn’t played since March 11 in Los Angeles when he left injured, and he lost his spot in the lineup to the returning Mike Reilly. He recorded the primary assist on the goal.

The Islanders kept the pressure going. Tsyplakov made a great move with a toe drag into the slot and ripped it but Merzlikins stopped it. Marc Gatcomb spun the rebound to the vacant cage, but Zach Werenski’s skate blocked it from going in.

Moments later, it became 2-0 anyway. Pulock fired a perfect cross-ice pass to Horvat. Horvat, on the outside hashes, stepped into the corner, drawing two defenders to step toward him. As they did, Palmieri found the soft spot in the slot, and Horvat hit him in stride. Palmieri fired home also going glove side. 2-0, New York and it held for the rest of the period.

Second Period:

The Islanders initially picked up right where they left off in the first. They came out hard, all until Damon Severson tripped Bo Horvat into the wall. Horvat crashed hard and was very slow to get up just 1:33 into the period.

New York received a power play, but the man advantage, which Head Coach Patrick Roy publicly called out this morning, continued its futility. Columbus surged on the kill and seized all the momentum. Less than two minutes after it expired, Fantilli made it a one-goal game.

Fantilli sent a scorcher off the roster into the top corner, but Sorokin might want it back. Noah Dobson also played it very passively.

From there, the teams played a very tactical period. No serious chances, but the Islanders played extremely sloppy. Turnovers all over the ice cost them countless chances. Whenever Columbus had looks to shoot, the Islanders blocked or redirected all of them. Columbus had 21 attempts on goal in the period, but only five made it on goal. The Islanders blocked eight shots alone in the second period.

Late in the period, Justin Danforth took the dreaded puck-over-glass delay of game penalty. Looking to grow a 2-1 lead, the Islanders instead coughed up the tying goal. Sean Monahan sprung Jenner for a shorthanded rush. Dobson, playing passively again, had Jenner’s shot hit his leg and beat Sorokin’s blocker side.

With the building deflated after a third-straight home game with a blown lead, the Islanders did what they do best. They overcame the adversity, and Lee’s leg redirected a Mike Reilly point shot moments after that same power play expired, with just 47 seconds left in the period.

Columbus challenged for goaltender interference, but it wasn’t close. They lost the challenge and the Islanders had a power play split into 47 second and 1:13 segments between the second and third.

Third Period:

You could feel the intensity from the drop of the puck in the third period. Columbus killed off the Islanders’ power play and then went to work.

They even drew a phantom penalty on Adam Pelech for interference when Zach Werenski dropped his stick and the official thought Pelech had caused it. Kent Johnson had the best look with the extra, firing a one-timer that Sorokin had to save with his helmet.

As the third carried along, the teams traded chances left and right with rush opportunities galore. Lee’s bid for a second goal leaked through Merzlikins and dribbled along the blue paint but slipped wide. Columbus came right back down and peppered their own looks. They had seven shots on goal in the first 10 minutes of the period, more than they managed in either of the first two full periods.

After that Lee chance, the Islanders were hemmed in. Columbus would not relent and ultimately Marchenko’s blast through a crowd tied things up. He took the quick slapper and Sorokin had no chance of seeing it through a total maze of bodies.

The goal marked a third-straight game where the Islanders would blow a third-period lead one home ice. At this time of year, the Islanders have to figure out how to hang onto these pivotal leads in big moments.

With 9.6 left, the Palmieri incident occurred. The fans erupted, jeering the call. Postgame, the players could not believe the decision. After overtime and going 0/3 in a shootout, the Islanders fell to Columbus.

The loss drops them to below a 25% chance to make the playoffs.