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 1st 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 1st 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 2nd round. Challenge accepted.
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