Red Wings 5, Islanders 4: Last-minute double-deflection ends Isles point streak

The New York Islanders’ seven-game points streak came to an end in Detroit thanks to a double-deflection with 28 seconds remaining in regulation, handing the Red Wings a 5-4 win.

After the Isles tied it at 4-4 with 2:26 left on a fluke bounce for Jason Chimera in his 1,000th game. But an offensive faceoff win for the Wings freed Danny Dekeyser for a point shot, which deflected off Nick Leddy to head wide...until it deflected off Thomas Hickey to head into the net behind Thomas Greiss.

Josh Bailey opened scoring just 3:43 into the game as the Islanders controlled play. Luke Glendening tied it midway through the first, but Andrew Ladd got the lead right back when he pounced on a shot from above the faceoff circle.

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The Islanders outplayed the Red Wings for much of the game, though an extended shift of being dominated late in the second led to an icing and a goal. And after John Tavares tied it briefly after nifty power play work, a brutal turnover let the Wings retake the lead with their second goal in 3:10.

So the Isles entered the second intermission down 4-3 despite outshooting the Red Wings 27-18. But it wasn’t until late in the third period that they notched the equalizer.

Jason Chimera — whose resurgence this season has coincided with that of fellow summer signing Andrew Ladd and the team overall since Doug Weight’s promotion — was the credit and beneficiary of the fluke tying goal with 2:26 left.

It looked like the Isles’ roll would continue until the double-shot heard ‘round the rink. Dekeyser’s shot went in with just 28 seconds left on the clock.

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Instead, now they head back home with their first regulation loss of the Doug Weight era, and they’ll need to get back at it tomorrow night against Metropolitan Division mates Carolina Hurricanes, who are tied with the Isles at 53 points.

Frans Goes Down

Ex-Islanders Frans Nielsen was both a victim of a shaky goalie interference penalty — he’d basically been knocked into Greiss by Dennis Seidenberg — as well as an upper body injury that knocked him from the game. He did not return after the second period.