3 Takeaways: Islanders Fall 6-5 in OT to Rangers in Stadium Series 

The New York Islanders picked up a point, but let one slip away against their archrivals, as they fell 6-5 to New York Rangers in overtime at the 2024 Stadium Series at MetLife Stadium.

Brock Nelson, Bo Horvat, Mathew Barzal, Anders Lee and Alexander Romanov scored for the Islanders, while Erik Gustafsson, Vincent Trocheck (2G), Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad scored for the Rangers in regulation. Artemi Panarin’s goal 10 seconds into overtime ultimately spoiled the Stadium Series - and a solid effort - for the Islanders on Sunday.

The Islanders allowed three power-play goals in the loss, including two power-play goals that the Rangers needed to tie the game in the final 4:08 of the third period.

“I feel good about our game,” Head Coach Patrick Roy said. “Those penalties at the end hurt us, but we did a lot of good things. When you look at the five on five, that’s the hockey we want to play. We played with a good pace, and we had our chances.” 

With the loss, the Isles (58 points), sit four points back of the Detroit Red Wings (62 points) for the second Wild Card.

PENALTY KILL PENALIZES ISLES

The Islanders were in the driver’s seat for the majority of the game, but the penalty kill continued to be an Achillies heel. The shorthanded unit gave up three power-play goals to spoil an otherwise strong performance at even strength.

Alexander Romanov’s goal early in the third period had the Islanders up 5-3, but the Rangers chipped away at the deficit and used the power play to tie the score late.

Vincent Trocheck – who had a power-play goal in the second period – got into a tussle with Romanov to make it four-on-four, which quickly turned into a four-on-three power play for the Rangers after a Mathew Barzal penalty.

In a four-on-three situation, the Rangers pulled the goalie to allow five skaters swarm the Islanders zone. Chris Kreider converted on the power play to pull within one.

That gave the Rangers some momentum and after a Scott Mayfield tripping call sent the Isles to their fifth penalty kill, the Rangers pulled the goalie again to create a six-on-four advantage. The Rangers cashed in on a Mika Zibanejad power play goal to tie the game with 1:29, erasing the 5-3 lead the Islanders created.

“They had a push, and they had some momentum,” Brock Nelson. “I thought we did a good job turning it back in our favor to get back up two. And then after a couple of penalties and then they get one, they’re feeling it. It’s the name of the game.”

Sunday marked the fifth time the Isles had allowed three-or-more power-play goals in a game.

The extra frame was short-lived Noah Dobson turned the puck over in the Islanders zone that lead to Panarin’s game-winner. The goal was briefly reviewed as the net came off its moorings, but after review it was upheld.

The play served as a learning lesson for the young defenseman, who otherwise had an outstanding performance in his first career outdoor game. With three assists, Dobson became the third player and first defenseman to record three assists in an outdoor game. He also reached 51 assists on the season, becoming the second defenseman in franchise history to hit the 50-assist mark through 54 games, joining Denis Potvin.

ISLANDERS PLAY SOLID GAME AT FIVE-ON-FIVE: 

Though the night turned sour for the Islanders, there was a lot to like about their performance as they were stacked up against the top team in the Metropolitan Division. 

Physicality played a role in the rivalry matchup off the bat. After nearly 14 months without playing each other, there was bound to be some pent-up emotion between the two teams. It didn’t take long for the Islanders and Rangers to get physical. 

In the faceoff after Erik Gustafsson goal on the first Rangers shot of the game, Matt Martin dropped the gloves with Matt Rempe, who was taking his first shift of his NHL debut. Each received a five-minute major for fighting. 

Not only did the fight rile up the crowd, but it ignited the Islanders’ offense. 

Nelson ripped a shot in the slot to tie the game at one apiece and the Islanders were able to amplify the momentum from there. Bo Horvat and Mathew Barzal scored 16 seconds apart to take a commanding 3-1 lead. 

Skating four-on-four, Horvat ripped one from the right circle at to capture the first lead for the Islanders. Following up 16 seconds later was Mathew Barzal, who broke into the Rangers zone and chipped in the third goal for the Islanders. The pair of goals  16 seconds apart accounted for the fastest two goals by one team outdoors, per NHL PR.

The Islanders had a strong outing at the faceoff dot, going 45-for-66 in the dot and sustained significant offensive zone time. Puck management was an issue that Roy harped on through four straight days of practice leading up to the Stadium Series and he cited improvement in that area.

“We had some success, I thought that today we managed the puck so well for the entire game,” Roy said. “But in overtime, the [Rangers] made us pay.”

NELSON SCORES IN SECOND OUTDOOR GAME:

Brock Nelson seems to have a knack for scoring opening goals for the Islanders in outdoor games. 

Nelson created open ice in the slot, received a pass from Scott Mayfield and wristed a shot through Shesterkin at 4:20 to tie the score. He scored against the Rangers in his first outdoor appearance in the 2014 Stadium Series at Yankee Stadium. 

The tally marked Nelson’s team-leading 23rd goal of the season. He also leads the team in career goals against the Rangers (16) and ended the night adding two points to his 30 points against the Blueshirts.

NEXT GAME:

The Isles head out on a two-game road trip, starting Tuesday night in Pittsburgh.