The New York Islanders closed their brief three-game road trip with an overtime loss last night, falling 1-0 to the St. Louis Blues
The Islanders used the same lineup for the fourth game in a row, with Ilya Sorokin back in net as well.
First Period
We saw a fairly slow opening frame, though Sorokin did need to be good right from the first shot, which came on a good chance for Pavel Buchnevich. Then around the 10-minute mark, Brock Nelson had maybe the Islanders’ best opportunity of the frame, cutting through traffic to get to the front of the net for a chance.
It seemed like both teams were coming through the neutral zone with some speed, but nothing was really amounting to much. The Blues did have some pressure late, but the period ended with the shots at just 7-6 New York, in what was a fairly uneventful opening to the game.
Second Period
Bo Horvat had two excellent chances at the start of the second period, first hitting a post, then missing a wide open net off a pass from Mathew Barzal. Jordan Kyrou then had a good chance of his own shortly after, and Sorokin had to make a nice glove save.
New York had two different power play chances that followed, but couldn’t generate any real high-danger chances. Brayden Schenn then had a golden chance for the Blues with about eight minutes left after Alexander Romanov threw the puck right to him, deking Sorokin but putting a shot off the post.
Barzal then took a late penalty, but while St. Louis had some momentum late, the period ended with the game still scoreless.
Third Period
New York had a great opportunity under two minutes into the third period, where the second line had a puck go right through the crease that neither Kyle Palmieri or Maxim Tsyplakov could get a stick on. Then just afterwards, the Blues had a great chance the other way, with Sorokin having to make a paddle save, and sweep a puck off the goal line himself.
We saw some 4-on-4 from there, and then the period quieted down a little bit in terms of key chances. The Islanders did have a great chance with about two minutes to go on an odd-man rush, but neither Anthony Duclair or Mathew Barzal could shovel in a rebound in front after Noah Dobson's shot was stopped. So without a single goal through regulation, the game continued to overtime.
Overtime
In the extra frame, Robert Thomas had the first chance, before Ryan Pulock’s shot was stopped from a good location at the other end. Brock Nelson and Jean-Gabriel Pageau both had chances from there, but a little later, St. Louis went back the other way with an odd-man rush where the Islanders were caught up ice, and Philip Broberg put a pass to the front of the net for Jake Neighbours to tip in, winning it for St. Louis.
Takeaways
Overall, it was a really even game between the two teams. If one bounce goes slightly differently, the Islanders could’ve easily seen a different result.
The Islanders’ top-nine all looked pretty good, and defensively, New York did a good job not letting the Blues build sustained pressure. Ilya Sorokin was also great once again, now holding a .953 save percentage across his first two games.
Of course, you’d love to see the Islanders be able to bury one of their chances, and two shutout losses in four games isn’t a great look. But ultimately, I think it would be more concern if 1) they weren’t generating the chances to being with (which they are), and 2) if they hadn’t scored 10 goals across the other two games.
But they also failed to edge out a win in overtime for the second time as well. This may be a bit more worth following, given last year, they had a bit of the same issue and finished the season with the most overtime/shootout losses of any team in the NHL. Sometimes, they’ll just need to be able to find ways to get the extra point, and they have yet to win a close game.
Still, the Islanders came away with a 1-1-1 record from a Western Conference road trip. They’ve been competitive in every game, and still look like a team that can do more damage than last season, even if the results aren’t quite showing it yet.
The Islanders return to action tomorrow, when they host the Montreal Canadiens.
OTHER ARTICLES FROM OCTOBER
- Can the Islanders take a step forward this season?
- Islanders announce roster, Pierre Engvall clears waivers
- Islanders lose back-and-forth season opener, fall 5-4 to Utah in overtime
- Islanders begin road trip with shutout loss to Stars
- Islanders score six goals, take down Avalanche for first win of season
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