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    Stefen Rosner
    Stefen Rosner
    Jan 17, 2024, 02:04

    No one was happy with the New York Islanders performance after their 5-0 shutout loss to the Minnesota Wild on Monday.

    After the game, Lee was furious with his team's performance.

    With the Islanders down 1-0 early, Lee got the Islanders even at 15:53 of the first. 

    In the dying second of their first power play of the game, the Islanders cycled the puck around the perimeter. Sebastian Aho sent the puck back to the high slot for Mike Reilly as the penalty clock hit zero. Reilly let a shot fly for Lee to tip it past Connor Hellebuyck in front, tying the game at one.

    It was his 12th goal of the season but also his 15th career red light against Winnipeg in his 19th game against them. 

    During the first intermission, Lee was asked about his words Monday night and what he saw from his team early against Winnipeg. 

    "We're playing faster, and we're playing simple," Lee said. "Honestly, it's the little things right now that gotta get us back to our basics, hunt pucks, get them back to our defense. They were bringing it. I thought we did a really good job of that, and puck management was pretty decent.

    "It's a good road period. Obviously, we don't want to give up the first one, but to come back and tie it up, get us out of the first 20 solid 20. and now we can build our game from here and do our best to take this game over."

    Lee’s success against the Jets dates as far back as his first NHL game on Apr. 3, 2013, where he scored his first career goal against Winnipeg at Nassau Coliseum. Matt Martin handed the puck off by the penalty boxes to Lee, who skated it into the Jets’ zone. The future-Islanders’ captain let a shot go from the wing that snuck past Ondrej Pavelec, giving Lee his first career goal. 

    While he tallied two goals and an assist in his first two meetings, his unprecedented hot streak began in late 2014. Lee went on a 13-game point streak against Winnipeg starting on New Year’s Eve 2014, tallying another goal and helper. Across the point streak, Lee totaled 17 points, 12 goals, and five assists in that span, and nine straight games with a goal from 2016 to 2019.

    His success includes two game-winning goals, both coming in the 2021-22 season. Lee tallied the only goal the Islanders’ needed on the road on Nov. 6, 2021, in a 2-0 win and added the difference-maker on Mar. 11, 2022, in a 5-2 win.

    Overall, Lee has been kept off the scoresheet three times against Winnipeg, including back-to-back games last season. With his contributions in the first, Lee returned to his scoring ways against the Jets.