Takeaways: Backstrom-Less Capitals Out Of Sync, Blanked By Islanders In Deflating Loss

WASHINGTON — It was a strange atmosphere at Capital One Arena, as the Washington Capitals, despite controlling the ice for the majority of the night, were missing a step as Nicklas Backstrom's unexpected departure took a visible mental toll.

Ultimately, the Capitals were unable to overcome an early deficit, and a lack of execution and high-cost mistakes resulted in a 3-0 loss to the Islanders as their three-game winning streak came to a rough end.

Here are all the takeaways from the defeat:

For the majority of the night, the Capitals were in the offensive zone, piling on the shots and trying to solve Semyon Varlamov. Washington also got three power-play opportunities.

However, the team wasn't exactly on the same page over the course of the night, and there were several missed tape-to-tape passes, miscommunications and failed connections in the offensive zone.

Washington totalled 32 shots on goal, but ultimately missed 24 shots and also had 24 attempts blocked. Several chances also came from close in front.

There were also a couple of tough breaks and unfortunate bounces, and then, there was Semyon Varlamov, who shut the door on his former team.

In the third period, Washington's sustained pressure appeared to pay off, as T.J. Oshie crashed the crease and got the puck back to Hardy Häman Aktell, who ripped a point shot that went off Oshie and past Varlamov.

However, the Islanders challenged for goaltender interference and won, and the goal was waved off to save the shutout for Varlamov.

It would have been Oshie's first of the season, and Häman Aktell's second NHL point. That goal was also the fourth time in five games that D.C. has had a goal waved off after a challenge.

It was also a challenging game mentally for Washington, who was playing its first game since getting the news that Backstrom was stepping away from hockey with his hip not responding the way he'd hoped following resurfacing surgery in June 2022.

Hockey isn't just a physical game; it's a mental one, and Backstrom's absence and not having him in the mix and on the bench was a lot to process for the Capitals. And ultimately, that cost them.

There appeared to be some jam missing in an ultimately rough loss.

For the eighth time in nine games, Washington found itself giving up the first goal of the game, as Ryan Pulock scored just 22 seconds into regulation.

Then, later in the period, Hardy Häman Aktell was beat as Simon Holmstrom and Hudson Fasching went on a 2-on-1. John Carlson was able to get back to his man, but he couldn't intercept the pass to Holmstrom that made it a 2-0 game going into the second.

In the third, Brock Nelson, while going down after a hook from Tom Wilson, beat Darcy Kuemper five-hole to make it a 3-0 game. It was a rough night for the netminder, who had given up three goals on the game's first five shots.

Ultimately, the Capitals found the bounces weren't going their way, and any mishandling of the puck or miscue impacted them in the worst way: on the scoresheet.

Kuemper ended up with 13 saves on 16 shots.

- Alex Ovechkin, Dylan Strome and Trevor van Riemsdyk led the way with three shots each.

- Oshie wore a neck guard for the entirety of the game as he tried out Warroad's TILO neck and base layer. He's the first Capitals player to opt for a neck guard in-game following the death of Adam Johnson.

- With Backstrom leaving the team, Tom Wilson was wearing the "A" in his place. He and Oshie are alternating as the third alternate captain going forward.