
No, there's no excuse for the New York Islanders allowing six unanswered goals after leading 3-0 against the Florida Panthers on Saturday night.
But, we want to dive into one of the goals, with Panthers superstar Matthew Tkachuk breaking a hockey code in route to his first goal of the game, which cut his team's deficit to 3-2 at 6:38 of the second period.
While the Panthers cycled the Islanders' zone, Tkachuk, not once but twice, made contact with Varlamov, the second time cross-checking the veteran netminder before burying the loose puck.
The first knock and follow-through led to Varlamov losing his stick, which played a part in the eventual tally:
The referees didn't see it, and the goal, which ended in a mini scrum, counted.
This is what Tikachuk does. He's a pest and got away with one, two, and maybe three on this goal.