Where has the backbone of the New York Islanders gone?
EAST MEADOW, NY -- Where has the backbone of the New York Islanders gone?
After a strong start against the Carolina Hurricanes, with three chances to take a 1-0 lead, Ilya Sorokin allowed a Seth Jarvis goal that he'd want back at 12:48 of the first period.
It was a deflating goal, for sure, but it was just one goal against, with plenty of time to find the equalizer and potentially take a lead.
But instead, the Islanders did what they've done far too often this season: Allow a second goal shortly after.
Looking deflated, the Islanders got caught puck-watching at the top of the crease, leaving Jarvis all alone for a return feed from Jake Guentzel. An easy finish gave the Hurricanes a 2-0 lead in just a 2:05-minute span.
Not only was that the 17th time in 68 games the Islanders have allowed two or more goals in less than a six-minute span, but it was the 11th time in 23 games under Patrick Roy that they've done this:
DAL: 2 goals in 3:38, 3-2 OTW
VEG: 2 goals in 1:49, 3-2 L
MTL: 3 goals in 5:13, 4-3 L
NYR: 2 goals in 2:39, 3 goals in 4:18, 6-5 OTL
PIT: 2 goals in 56 seconds, 5-4 OTW
STL: 3 goals in 32 seconds, 4-0 L
TBL: 2 goals in 1:22, 4-2 L
DET: 2 goals in 5:14* (end of first, early in the second), 5-3 W
BUF: 3 goals in 5:13, 3-0 L
OTT: 2 goals in 5:39, 4-3 OTL
CAR: 2 goals in 2:05, 4-1 L
They own a record of 3-6-2 in those 11 games.
The Islanders did allow a third goal in the opening frame against Carolina, courtesy of a Martin Necas snipe blocker side with 1.1 seconds to play.
"It's something we've struggled with all year," Islanders forward Matt Martin said following Tuesday's loss. Just because they got one doesn't mean they got to get three, so that's disappointing again. Obviously, we've run out of words to say, and we just got to start finding ways to win, dig a little deeper here, and just scratch some wins together."
The lack of confidence and mental fortitude would make a tad more sense if this was a young team like the Chicago Blackhawks, who are learning what it takes to win at the NHL level.
This group isn't full of rookies. This group is full of NHL veterans who, at one point in time, showed an unwavering sense of confidence regardless of the numbers on the scoreboard.
"We had a couple of good chances early on, and when they scored the one and the second one, it hurt us a bit," Roy said. "The confidence is not where it should be at this moment."
Sure, many may say that their six-game winning streak was a mirage, given that they beat up on the San Jose Sharks and the Anaheim Ducks.
But it's a streak that saw them beat the elite Dallas Stars in Dallas and beat the Detroit Red Wings, who were surging at the time, before destroying the Boston Bruins on home ice.
They have also beaten the Toronto Maple Leafs and dismantled the Tampa Bay Lightning under Roy.
Even during the Hockey Hall of Famer's first week on the job, when the club owned a 1-2-1 record, the belief and resiliency were there.
And now, that belief and resiliency is gone, just like that.
The players in the room say they believe, and it's hard to say that players stop believing, but on-ice actions aren't up to par with where they should be with the season on the line.
After Kyle Palmieri scored to make it a 3-1 game in the third, there was little to no emotion:
Mathew Barzal, who has struggled to produce over the last handful of games, is clearly a frustrated fellow:
Somehow, someway, the Islanders are very much alive in the playoff race, but unless they get an electric shock to the heart, their season will end on April 17, leaving more questions than answers heading into what could be a summer filled with major changes.