Winning the final match of their four-game road trip last night in Vegas would have been nice for the New York Islanders, but the Vegas Golden Knights are Champions because they don't play nice.
Winning the final match of their four-game road trip last night in Vegas would have been nice for the New York Islanders, but the Vegas Golden Knights are Champions because they don't play nice.
Winning the final match of their four-game road trip last night in Vegas would have been nice for the New York Islanders, but the Vegas Golden Knights are Champions because they don't play nice.
For a while at T-Mobile Arena, it appeared that the Islanders would take the armor away from the Cup-holders. Our guys outshot and outhit the home team, but scoring was another -- sad -- story.
"We had plenty of scoring chances," said coach Lane Lambert. "We just weren't able to put the puck in. All in all, we did a lot of good things."
Just not enough.
The goals by Mat Barzal -- tying the game in the first period -- and Matt Martin, who made it a 4-2 score early in the third, made it interesting for Lane Lambert's skaters.
But "interesting" is good in novels but couldn't help the Islanders, who, in the end, were done in by Vegas' center Nicolas Roy.
His goal at 4:20 of the final frame made it a 5-2 game too late for a comeback for our heroes, who return with a 1-2-1 record for the road trip.
The two upcoming home games won't be a breeze either at UBS Arena.
Vancouver's revamped and very hot Canucks pay a visit on Tuesday, followed by the Maple Leafs on Thursday, and you all know how we feel about them.
The loss to the Cup-holders last night once again proves that the Isles cannot consistently rely on first-rate goaltending to pull them through. The defense must be tighter. If that doesn't happen, the scoring machine must keep pace with the foe's.
Rarely does Ilya Sorokin get out-goaled, but last night, Logan Thompson came up bigger with 28 saves out of the 30 chances.
"A couple of mistakes cost us," added Lambert, "and the game turned fast."
Exhibit A was available last night.
Down 3-1 entering the third period, the Isles gave up a ppg to Jack Eichel just 21 seconds in, and Vegas was ahead 4-1. Granted, the fourth-liners made it a 4-2 game at 2:42, but Matt Martin's tally was all that was left in New York's goal machine.
Okay, so here's the deal. The Lambertmen are two games away from the season's halfway point. The second half -- known to some savants as "The Real Season" -- is when the Nassaumen will be tested and tested hard in what's become an intense Met Division playoff race.
You don't need a Ph.D. in Analytics to know the score.
At 18-11-10, the Isles are in fourth place, tied, pointwise, with Philly, a surprise contender under John Tortorella.
Neither the Flyers, Habs, Devils, Sabres, Penguins, Canes, nor Caps are going to go away. And, you know, the rest of the story is going to be melodrama all the way.
Mistakes will be as pivotal as anything. Barzal allowed that last night.
"After we got to 4-2, I had a tough turnover," Mat revealed, "and that cost us."
Then, a pause: "We're looking forward to coming home."
The Maven adds: "And knocking off the Canucks!"
Tuesday, 7:30 p.m.