Islanders News: What else should we expect?

2 weeks ago  /  Lighthouse Hockey  /  Read Time: 59 seconds

There was no way he wasn’t scoring last night. | Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images


Of course they were going to lose 2-1 in overtime and allow Patrik Laine to score. This is not a recording: The New York Islanders failed to score more than one goal and lost in overtime. This time, it was on the road against the Eastern Conference-worst Montreal Canadiens.
The Habs saw Patrik Laine make his Montreal debut following his trade and a preseason injury. Since it was against the Islanders, naturally he scored. I’m only surprised that the Isles didn’t give up Lane Hutson’s first NHL goal in either of their two meetings with Montreal; it was Nick Suzuki who scored the winner.
Also, the Islanders are horrendous in overtime. For a team that gets there so often, you’d think they’d have figured out how to at least be .500 in OT; they’re 3-7 past regulation right now, and two points is the difference between being tied for a playoff spot or being four teams behind a playoff spot. But frankly, they should be better than .500 in OT now. An unlucky bounce opened the door for the game-winner, but you won’t win many games scoring just once.
All this is becoming too familiar, almost like an identity of sorts. At least they got a point, I guess.


#Isles 5-5-5 road record pretty much sums up this season so far— Arthur Staple (@StapeAthletic) December 4, 2024




Islanders News
About last night:

This sure does happen a lot. [LHH]
Bo Horvat, who is already frustrated because he has not scored a goal in almost a calendar month, turned the puck over in OT leading to a break the other way, and then a rebound off an Ilya Sorokin save kicked off his skate and came right to Suzuki, adding to his frustrations. [Newsday]
To avoid losing on bad breaks, you must score goals. [NY Post]
The team has won consecutive games only once this season. Once! And it was only a two-game winning streak. [THN] Since the Hurricanes are one of the next two opponents, I’d be shocked if that dubious stat changed by the end of the week.
But hey, it’s a 1-0-2 point streak. Hooray. [Islanders]
J-G Pageau and Casey Cizikas were both game-time decisions but played; Pierre Engvall remained a healthy scratch. [Islanders]
With Simon Holmstrom coming off back-to-back two-goal games, the Islanders left Holmstrom on the top line and put Pageau on the third line. [NY Post]
Laine “own[ed] the night.” [Sportsnet]

Onward:

Noah Dobson didn’t play the final six-plus minutes in Saturday’s win over Buffalo, and his late-game struggles may be a contributing factor. [NY Post]
The 4 Nations Face-Off rosters will be announced at 6:30 p.m. tonight. The rumor is that Brock Nelson did, indeed, make Team USA, the only Islander selected for the tournament. [TSN]
Lou Lamoriello remembered the late Lou Carnesecca from his days as Providence College AD, facing off against Carnesecca’s St. John’s basketball team. [Newsday]
It’s the holiday season, which means the wives and girlfriends went toy shopping for the players to give to kids in hospitals. [Islanders]

Elsewhere
Last night’s NHL scores include the Sabres blowing a 4-0 first-period lead and losing 5-4 in regulation on home ice to the Avalanche—the biggest of oofs. At least the Islanders aren’t the Sabres today, although that’s damning with faint praise.

It was an emotional night in Calgary as the Flames hosted the Blue Jackets for the first time since Johnny Gaudreau’s death. The Flames put on a beautiful pregame ceremony and earned a win; the late Gaudreau was named the game’s first star. [Sportsnet]
Filip Hronek had surgery for a lower-body injury and will miss the next eight weeks for the Canucks. [TSN]
The league says the anticipation for the 4 Nations rosters to be announced is exciting. [NHL]
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