Islanders News: Fell into the trap of the trap game

Despite hurling 42 pucks at Mackenzie Blackwood, the New York Islanders were not at their best last night visiting the New Jersey Devils.

They were uncharacteristically loose, allowing the speedy and skilled Devils to escape on multiple odd-man rushes and breakaways. They made some poor decisions with the puck, which also contributed to all those chances against.

Hey, if one of their earlier chances goes in, maybe we’re talking about a different game. But that’s how hockey breaks.

The worst part is that there is no Islanders hockey all weekend. Then, we have a back-to-back followed by another three days off. This schedule is spazzatura.

Islanders News

About last night:

• The Islanders left Ilya Sorokin out to dry. [LHH]
• It almost reminded me of how the Isles play: The Devils may not have had the same defensive ability, but they struck on the counterattack as the Isles often do. [Rapid Recap | NHL]
• Frankly, the Devils left Blackwood out to dry, too. He just wasn’t fazed by it. [Newsday]
• Special teams bit the Islanders, who looked sloppiest on the power play. That and two more takeaways. [1 + 2 = 3 Takeaways]
• That was Kyle Palmieri’s first game back in New Jersey since joining the Islanders. Barry Trotz said he was the Isles’ best player last night. Poor guy is just snakebitten. [Newsday]
• The last time the Islanders threw 42 shots on goal and lost by four or more goals? More than 2,100 regular-season games ago. March 10, 1993. Andre Racicot made 41 saves in a 6-1 Montreal Canadiens win. [NYI Skinny]
• Hear from Trotz, who thought they played well in the first until conceding the shorthanded goal.

Moving on:

• Other teams have tried, but they cannot replicate the Islanders’ Identity Line. And despite Casey Cizikas being a free agent this summer, it was never in any danger of being broken up. [The Athletic]
• The New York Rangers are ahead of the Isles in the NHL site’s Super 16, truly the worst of all power rankings.
• Jon Ledecky is proud of the “incredible accomplishment” that is UBS Arena. [NYI Hockey Now]
• The building is on track to finish, but Ledecky says it’s round-the-clock until then. [Newsday]
• There will be a Chair of Honor at UBS that will remain open to honor POWs. [Islanders]

Elsewhere

Last night’s other NHL scores include the Washington Capitals shutting out the Detroit Red Wings in Zach Fucale’s NHL debut.

• The Edmonton Oilers and Boston Bruins honored the late Colby Cave, who played two seasons for each team. Cave passed away in April 2020, four days after surgery to treat brain swelling. [NHL]
• The Los Angeles Kings on the road shut out the Ottawa Senators ‘B’ Team. The Sens are dealing with a rash of COVID-19 protocol issues. [NHL]
• Eric Stephens, the Anaheim Ducks beat writer for The Athletic, writes a retrospective of former GM Bob Murray’s long and “ultimately stained” legacy.
• The Columbus Blue Jackets will retire Rick Nash’s no. 61 on March 5 against the Bruins. His will be the first number retired by the Jackets. [NHL]
• Alex Ovechkin is 36, but his goal-scoring ability shows no signs of slowing down—it might even be ramping up. [Sportsnet]
• A new development in goalie analytics: “freeze rate.” [The Athletic]