Gibson Denies Palmieri of Hat Trick, ‘Are You #@?! Kidding Me John?’

The New York Islanders may have had a successful homestand, and Kyle Palmieri may have finished off that homestand with a two-goal performance against his former team in the Anaheim Ducks for his third goal in his last six games.

But Anaheim Ducks netminder John Gibson robbed Palmieri of his third goal of the contest Sunday, and it led to a hilarious interaction between the former teammates.

If you have kids in the room, cover their ears or send them to their room for a few minutes.

It was highway robbery to the max by Gibson, as that might be the “Save of the Year,” for sure a candidate.

The Islanders, with that tally, would have had a three-goal cushion early in the third. Their two-goal lead was trimmed to one late in the third after the Ducks pulled Gibson for the extra attacker. But the Islanders held on.

After the game, Palmieri took us through his quick interaction with Gibson.

“Ah, yeah, I mean, he was laughing at me and (I) laughed at myself,” Palmieri said. “But as long…as at least didn’t come back to bite us.”

It was not the first time Palmieri had been denied of goals during this homestand.

In the 2-1 slim victory over the St. Louis Blues on Sat, March. 5, Kyle Palmieri had two goals disallowed. The St. Louis Blues game was the only game Palmieri failed to record a point in on the homestand.

After Palmieri let a wrist shot go from the high slot in the final minutes of the first period, the puck beat Blues netminder Jordan Binnington and in. But after a coaches challenge by St. Louis bench boss Craig Berube for goaltender interference, the call on the ice was reversed as Kieffer Bellows had made contact with the stick of Binnington, which hindered his ability to make the save.

That was the first one.

Later in the third period, while the Islanders were on a power play, Kyle Palmieri deflected a Ryan Pulock point shot over the right shoulder of Binnington and in. The call on the ice was a goal, but the review led to another reversal, this one a high-sticking call as Palmieri’s stick was maybe an inch, maybe, above the crossbar when it made contact with the puck.

Since returning from the paternity list on Feb. 13, Kyle Palmieri has eight goals in his last 14 games, after just three goals in his first 30 games of the season. He’s truly been a “second-half” player and seems not to be only back to full health but has regained some confidence that he had lost following his early-season struggles.