Isles’ Late Charge Falls Flat, Kings Win 3-1

ELMONT, NY — The New York Islanders (11-12-7) saw their season-long two-game win streak snapped at the hands of the Los Angeles Kings (17-8-3) on Tuesday night in UBS Arena. Kevin Fiala’s second-period snipe lifted the Kings to a 2-0 lead at the time and held up as the game-winning goal.

Fiala himself had a very strong game. He registered four shots on goal and nine total attempts, seemingly all high-quality. Fiala generated chances all night, buying himself time and utilizing his speed to freeze defenders. Adrian Kempe registered two points, including a goal in the first period. Mikey Anderson scored the empty netter with 14 seconds left. Darcy Kuemper turned aside 19/20 Islanders’ shots.

As for the Islanders, Anders Lee scored the lone goal of the contest. The goal came about after Kyle Palmieri sent a shot toward the net. Lee caught it and ripped a shot through Kuemper’s five-hole with a smooth turn-around shot. Ilya Sorokin sparkled all night, denying multiple glorious opportunities for the Kings, but took the loss despite making 27 saves in the loss.

With his goal, Anders Lee moved into eighth all-time in goals scored in Islanders’ franchise history.

The Kings have had the Islanders’ number in recent years. Following tonight’s 3-1 deficit, the Islanders have lost six of the last seven games against the Kings. The Kings won their sixth straight game, snapping the Islanders’ second two-game win streak of the season.

The First Period Debacle:

The first period was one of the blue and orange’s worst of the season. Fumbling pucks, failed breakouts, no offense. You name it. After two games of solid neutral-zone work, the Islanders did not generate anything for the first 20 minutes.

Despite a plethora of chances, the Kings only found one goal in the frame, thanks to a great play behind the net by the ageless wonder, Anze Kopitar. After buzzing to start the game, Kopitar found the puck behind the net. He dusted it off, faked a wraparound, and slid a pass to a wide-open Kempe, who one-timed it past Sorokin.

Ryan Pulock and Alexander Romanov blew the coverage, with neither quite sure who had whom in front of the net. The goal was emblematic of the period as a whole. The Kings’ forecheck gave the Islanders fits. That ensured the Kings won the possession battle in the first, which heavily benefited the Kings.

Kopitar spoke on this postgame, saying, “Personally, I’m not built for chasing pucks around all over the ice. So I’d like to win them just to start with possession. It’s always a possession game nowadays. So if you can start with the puck, it’s a pretty big advantage.”

Rest of Game:

The rest of the game split pretty evenly, with both teams generating opportunities at either end. Kuemper and Sorokin both made strong saves when asked.

Fiala’s goal came after he undressed Oliver Wahlstrom just inside the blue line. Fiala had all the time he wanted there and eventually rifled home a shot past a completely screened Sorokin, who never stood a chance.

After the goal, Wahlstrom blocked a heavy shot and hobbled off the ice but got demoted to the fourth line.

Lee’s goal came just before the midway point of the second period, kickstarting a comeback attempt that would just fall short.

The Islanders had multiple great chances in the third period, but none went in. They even struck iron twice. The first of which came off Noah Dobson’s stick. His shot had Kuemper beat clean, but instead, it clanged off the iron, bounced off Kuemper’s leg, but stayed out. With that, Dobson saw his four-game point streak snapped.

A few minutes later, off a great pass that sent him in alone, Bo Horvat ripped a shot that hit the post flush. Close, but no cigar.

Eventually, Mikey Anderson scored his empty-netter, flinging it all the way from his own zone and in.

Ineffective Power Play (Again):

Despite the run of play against them, the Islanders garnered two power plays in the first period to try to shake things up and steal a goal. Instead, they were ultimately ineffective in a game that was essentially decided postgame. It doesn’t help matters that when Vladislav Gavrikov gave the Islanders a power play for a delay-of-game, the power play failed again.

Speaking on this with NYI Hockey Now, Dennis Cholowski summed up the power plays like this: “Every PK is different. Some teams pressure hard and some don’t. Today, they came at us hard. When they do that, you have to move the puck quick and get the puck to the net. And, I thought we had a few good looks just by kind of keeping it simple.”

He’s not wrong. Particularly in the second power play in the first period. Cholowski, Simon Holmstrom, and Ryan Pulock whizzed the puck around the offensive zone. Maxim Tsyplakov and Pageau had chances down low, but they just didn’t go in.

On the positive side, the penalty kill went 1/1 in a big moment. Romanov took a high-sticking minor penalty with just over two minutes left in the second period. The Islanders found a way to kill it off, and gave themselves a chance.

Closing Thoughts:

The Islanders just didn’t do enough to win tonight. A total no-show in the first period, including a sleepy start to the second, handicapped them the rest of the way.

Isaiah George obviously had a tough night. He had about four hair-raising turnovers, but somehow, none went past Sorokin. Head Coach Patrick Roy benched him midway through the second for the rest of the game, and postgame, he called George terrific but said this has to be a learning experience.

Wahlstrom had an up-and-down night, with the lowlight obviously being the Fiala goal. I still think his positioning continues to improve, and his decision-making with the puck has gotten better.

The Kings are obviously a good team, but the Islanders had an opportunity to at least steal a point, if not win outright. Instead, they dropped to 5-7-2 on home ice.

The Chicago Blackhawks come to town on Thursday, and then there will be a game on Sunday in Chicago. It’s a real opportunity for the Islanders to win two straight games against a bottom-feeder team. Let’s see if the Islanders take advantage.