New York Islanders Weekly Recap: Week 23

The New York Islanders got a win and a loss in their two games played on the road this week. They beat the Panthers before suffering a loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Islanders have a 31-27-15 record with 77 total points. They’re still several points out of any possible playoff position. 

Hard Fought Win Over the Panthers

In their first of two games in Florida, the Islanders defeated the Panthers by a 3-2 final score. The Islanders thought they had taken a 1-0 lead in the first with a Ryan Pulock goal from the point. However, it was overturned after the Panthers challenged for goaltender interference. This almost immediately led to a Panthers goal, scored by Vladimir Tarasenko from the right circle. Later in the period, Pulock scored a goal that counted this time after an effective setup from J.G. Pageau. In the second, the Panthers took back the lead when Sam Reinhart got a pass through Noah Dobson and onto the stick of Aleksander Barkov, who beat Semyon Varlamov. 

This would be the last Panther to score on Varlamov, as the Islanders began to take control over this game. Mat Barzal tied the game two minutes after Barkov’s goal with a deflection past Anthony Stolarz. Pageau later scored what would be the game-winning goal after getting to a loose puck and launching it into the open net. There were some nervous moments in the third period with a one-goal lead, but the Islanders held it together. They were aided by a four-minute power play late in the period that limited the Panthers’ scoring chances. Varlamov was also efficient in keeping the Panthers at bay with their net empty and helping lead the Islanders to an important win. 

Team Unravels After Taking an Early Lead Against the Lightning

The second game of the Islanders’ Florida road trip did not go as well, with the team suffering a 4-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. They got off to a great start as Kyle Palmieri continued his red-hot month of March by scoring the game’s opening goal. Despite gaining the early advantage, the trajectory of this game changed when the Lightning got their first power play chance. The Islanders had a difficult time slowing them down and eventually relinquished the game-tying goal to Darren Raddysh. Just 35 seconds after that, Anthony Cirelli got a prime look in the low slot to score the go-ahead goal.

After getting handily outplayed in the first, the Islanders settled things down in the second behind another solid performance from Varlamov in net. The big problem was Andrei Vasilevskiy, who also had a great showing behind the crease. After a scoreless second, Steven Stamkos scored a deflection goal in the opening minute of the third to put the Lightning up by two. It came down to desperation time for the Islanders, who pulled the goalie in the final minutes of the game. But the attempt was highly unsuccessful, with the team barely able to set up their offensive attack. Cirelli scored the empty netter for his second goal of the game that sent the Islanders home with a loss. 

3 Stars of the Week

1. J.G. Pageau (GWG vs. Panthers, assist)

2. Ryan Pulock (Goal, assist)

3. Semyon Varlamov (Win vs. Panthers, 2.50 GAA, .926 save percentage)

Featured image courtesy of NHL.com

Check out our NHL page for more updates

You can like The Game Haus on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for more sports and esports articles from great TGH writers like Justin!