3 Takeaways: Islanders Lose 4-1 to Lightning 

The New York Islanders fell 4-1 to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night, and are now 1-1-0 on the first two games of their three-game road trip.  

Kyle Palmieri scored the lone goal for the Islanders, but a three-point performance from Anthony Cirelli (2G, 1A), supported by goals from Darren Raddysh and Steven Stamkos, propelled the Lightning to their eighth win in their last nine games and extended their point streak to nine (8-0-1).

Semyon Varlamov had a strong performance with 36 saves - including a 19-save opening frame – in his third start in four games. Andrei Vasilevskiy continued his winning streak against the Isles with 27 saves in the win.

"He was outstanding in that first period," Head Coach Patrick Roy said of Varlamov. "He kept us in the game, we gave up a lot of chances. He didn’t face [many shots] in the second period and he gave us a chance to come back in the third."

The Islanders saw their record drop to 2-7-1 in their last 10 games and 1-1-0 on the road trip. They’ll go head-to-head with the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday to round out their road trip. Philly (82 points) fell out of third place in the Metropolitan Division – and into the second wild card – with 5-1 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks, while the Washington Capitals (82 points) picked up a point in a 3-2 SO loss to the Boston Bruins to move into third in the Metro. Though tied in points with the Flyers, the Caps have played two fewer games.

The Detroit Red Wings (80 points), who stand between the Isles and Caps, earned a point in a 3-2 SO loss to the Florida Panthers on Saturday afternoon.

VARLAMOV PITCHES STRONG PERFORMANCE BUT ISLES FALL SHORT:

Kyle Palmieri scored on the Islanders’ first shot on Saturday night, but the first period belonged to the Lightning, who outshot the Isles 21-6and out-attempted them 38-9 in the opening frame. The relentless pressure eventually resulted in two goals  in a 35-second span and the Bolts held the lead from there.

"We didn't have a good start, that's for sure," Roy said. "They jumped on us pretty fast and we didn't manage the puck as well in that first period, but I'm happy that we respond on the second and third."

Palmieri opened the scoring at 2:25 as the winger was tied up with Steven Stamkos in the right circle in the Lightning zone but was able to get a shot on net, which beat Vasilevskiy at 2:25 to open the scoring.  Palmieri  has been productive of late with nine goals in his last 14 games. Palmieri’s tally was also his 24^th goal of the season, which ranks third on the team.

Tampa turned the tide almost immediately, but Varlamov made a series of impressive saves to protect the 1-0 lead. He bailed out his after a turnover in the Islanders zone, as Anthony Duclair was left alone with open ice and beamed one at Varlamov who stood tall. Varlamov made 19 saves in the periodbut the Lightning took a 2-1 lead in the span of 35 seconds.

Adam Pelech took a penalty late in the first period and the Islanders were put on the kill against the Lightning’s league-best power play, which was converting at 28.9% heading into Saturday’s matchup.

Varlamov made some impressive saves on the penalty kill, but in the waning seconds of 5-on-4 action, the Lightning scored the equalizer. After Varlamov made a strong save on Nikita Kucherov, an unguarded Darren Raddyish blasted the rebound through Varlamov at 14:25 of the first period with under 10 seconds remaining in the penalty.

The Lightning kept pressing and found the back of the net 35 seconds after their first goal as Anthony Cirelli's wrister from the crease trickling in past Varlamov at 15:00. While the Isles were down 2-1 heading into the intermission, it easily could have been more if not for Varlamov, who also had little chance on a slick Stamkos tip to make it 3-1 at the start of the third.

VASILEVSKIY STONES ISLES:

The Islanders picked up their performance in the second and third periods, but sharp goaltending from Andrei Vasilevskiy (27 save) stifled the Islanders’ efforts to come back.

“Tip the cap to Vasilevskiy, thought he had a really strong game,” Anders Lee said. “We tested him. We put the puck on him and made some great plays in front of him. We had some really good looks, we just couldn't get anything by him."

The Islanders poured it on in the second period – outshooting the Lightning 15-8 in the frame – but were ultimately held scoreless in the frame. The Isles had 32 shot attempts in the second period, tripling their attempts in the first period.

Vasilevskiy made crucial saves in the one-goal game in the second period. He stoned chances from Casey Cizikas, Robert Bortuzzo, Brock Nelson and Pierre Engvall, while Mathew Barzal hit the post.

“We had a great second period, there's no question about it,” Roy said. “But we just didn't bare down on our chances.”

Down 3-1 in the third, Vasilevskiy denied any attempts to forge a comeback, including a huge save against Brock Nelson midway through the frame.

Vasilevskiy has had the Isles’ number in recent years, as Saturday marked his seventh straight win against the Islanders in regular season play. The Isles last regular season win against Vasilevskiy in Tampa came on Nov. 18, 2017.

LINEUP CHANGES:

Head Coach Patrick Roy was active in his line changes, both heading into Saturday’s tilt and tweaking three lines again midway through the contest.

Heading into the game, Roy moved Bo Horvat to the wing with JG Pageau and Pierre Engvall, while Casey Cizikas played wing on a line with Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri

"In the first period, nothing was going our way, so it was time for us to try different things," Roy said. "Just because you don't have a good first period, doesn't mean you have to lose the hockey game. That's the mentality that I was hoping for."

After a lackluster first period, Roy moved Cizikas to a line with Barzal and Fasching, putting Engvall to the left of Nelson and Palmieri and moving Lee to a line with Pageau and Horvat. Roy said these lineup changes resulted in his team putting more shots on net.

He also reworked the d-pairs, putting Ryan Pulock and Adam Pelech together, while Mike Reilly played with Robert Bortuzzo and Noah Dobson was paired with Alexnader Romanov.

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders wrap a three-game road trip on Monday night in Philadelphia. Puck drop is at 7 p.m.