2016 Playoffs, Panthers Game 4: Advantage Surrendered

Our New York Islanders game 4 match up against the Florida Panthers has all the makings of a statement game.  The possibilities for the modern day Isles are clear. Will it be a 3-1 or a 2-2 series going into game 5?

The Islanders needed a quick start and to score first to set the pace, but instead, they were lethargic in the first period slow. 

As bad as it was, the game remained tied due to a ‘Brock-Nelson-swat’ and a few ‘Thomas-Greiss-saves’ on turnovers, away from an even worse, scoreless 1st period. 

The second period was much of the same with some weird plays.  We even saw a coach’s challenge from Florida’s Gerrard Gallant, costing them a timeout on a goal already called “no goal” by the officials.  And that was after an almost 10 minute review process.

Florida came back buzzing and eventually made the Islanders pay with a PPG near the end of the period.  With an assist on the Purcell goal, Jaromir Jagr became the 5th player in NHL history to post 200 career PTS in the NHL playoffs.  But John Tavares answered for New York and scored a 5 on 3 PPG by roofing it, short side with 15 seconds remaining in the second to make it a 1-1 game, recapturing momentum for the home team to start the third.

The Islanders struggled to fore-check, gather dump-ins and they iced the puck way too much.  They were out of sync and couldn’t seem to generate much in the way of offensive pressure.  Neither team seemed able to score until Petrovic’s 1^st ever playoff goal, giving the Panthers a 2-1 lead at the 9:25 mark of the period.  Even a late PP chance in the third couldn’t help New York find the spark they had lost.  With the goalie eventually pulled, the Isles took a timeout with 57.1 seconds remaining in regulation to try and find some magic, but couldn’t find a way to convert and lost the game by a 2-1 final.

This was a frustrating and uncomfortable game at times and the officiating was notably poor, ignoring some blatant penalties and calling a few suspect ones.  But the Islanders were simply flat and inconsistent with their pressure against Florida, especially in their offensive zone.  But there a few positive things to note.  John Tavares continues to elevate his game.  As an elite player in the NHL, he has managed to lead his team at an even higher level and continues to score huge, momentum-changing goals on the playoff stage. Then we have Ryan Pulock. He has been growing quickly in responsibility for the Isles.  He’s now on the 1^st PP unit and contributing, even if it’s to force Florida to account for him on their PK.  Hopefully he wasn't hurt too badly in tonight’s game.  He will be reevaluated tomorrow.  And lastly, Thomas Greiss (27 of 29 with a .931Sv%) kept his team in it and made some monstrous saves throughout the contest.  Although a loss, it was probably his best game in a very respectable playoff performance thus far.  He is my Grail Knight of the game.

The Islanders have been resilient in this series and have put together some fantastic, gutsy performances, but they cannot come out flat in a game of this magnitude.  The team needs to get a lead instead of always having to play from behind.  The effort needs to be better and they need to play with a more consistent effort.  This is especially true when they are on the cusp of reaching that next level as a team.

The Islanders failed to win back-to-back playoff games for the 12th consecutive time and the series is now tied 2-2.  Game 5 will take place at 8pm in Sunrise on Friday, 4/22.

It’s now a 3 game series to reach the 2^nd round.  Challenge accepted.