3 Takeaways: Islanders Shut Out By Blues 4-0

The New York Islanders were blanked 4-0 by the St. Louis Blues on Thursday night, getting shut out for the fourth time of the season. 

Pavel Buchnevich’s hat-trick led the way for St. Louis, while Brandon Saad recorded the game-winner with the game’s opening goal. Jordan Binnington turned aside all 38 shots faced, while Semyon Varlamov made 21 saves in the loss. The pivotal stretch came in the second period, where the Isles allowed three goals in 32 seconds.  

“It’s about winning hockey games,” said Head Coach Patrick Roy. “Do I feel good that our team kept fighting out there? Yes I do. But we have to stop shooting ourselves in the foot night after night. We played well enough to win tonight, there is no doubt in my mind. But we’re making critical mistakes at the wrong times.”

To compound the loss, the Isles (60 points, 56 games played) lost ground in the standings, as they were leapfrogged by the Washington Capitals (60 points, 55 games played). The Pittsburgh Penguins (58 points, 54 games played) and Detroit Red Wings (66 points, 56 games played) also won on Thursday in their respective games.

ISLES ALLOW THREE QUICK GOALS, UNABLE TO RECOVER

The Islanders unraveled quickly in St. Louis, giving up three goals in the span of 32 seconds. 

Both teams played an evenly matched first period where each team went 2-for-2 on the penalty kill. But the Blues’ power play – which is converting at a seventh-best 27.1% in the NHL since Drew Bannister took over as interim head coach – got to work on their third opportunity in the second period with a Kyle Palmieri high-sticking penalty. 

Oskar Sundqvist snuck a pass over to Brandon Saad, who took advantage of open ice and a wide-open net, beating Varlamov stick side at 4:38 of the second period. 

The Blues struck again seven seconds later, as Pavel Buchnevich capitalized on a similar opportunity off the rush to quickly double the lead at 4:45. After the pair of goals, Head Coach Patrick Roy called a timeout in an attempt toget his team to regroup. It didn’t work, as Buchnevich scored his second of the night, one-timed a shot from the right circle at 5:10 to take a commanding 3-0 lead for the Blues.

“We give up a power-play goal, that’s a moment where that next shift is so crucial, but we got scored on again,” Ryan Pulock said. “Coach calls a time out to try to regroup but we let it happen again, it’s unacceptable.”

The sequence marked the fastest three goals scored in Blues history. 

“We need to find ways to stop the bleeding, and for some reason there was nothing we could do,” Roy said. 

Though the Islanders registered 20 shots on goal in the second period alone, they were not able to capitalize on their chances. In the third period with both teams skating four aside, Roy pulled Varlamov to create a five-on-four advantage, but the effort backfired as Buchnevich sent the puck to the empty net to complete a hat trick just after the Islanders hit the post on a preceding play.

The Islanders have no choice but to turn the page after the loss, but Roy emphasized the importance of a strong response on Saturday’s tilt against the Lightning, similar to how the Islanders took two points over the Pittsburgh Penguins after Tuesday following a disappointing loss to the New York Rangers on Sunday.

“Like we did against the Rangers, we need to be even-keel,” Roy said. “We need to be ready for our next game, the urgency to win is there.”

ISLES BLANKED BY BINNINGTON:

The Islanders had quality chances sprinkled throughout the game, but Jordan Binnington posted a strong performance with 38 saves for the shutout. 

“We tried to battle back but their goalie was really good,” Roy said. “It’s hard to play catch-up hockey in situations like this. When you’re facing a goalie like [Binnington] we could have made his job a little tougher with guys in front and making sure he can’t see those shots.” 

Binnington stopped two prime chances by Kyle Palmieri in the first period – including one where the puck danced along the goal line but did not cross – but the Islanders came up empty. Binnington made a flashy glove save on Mathew Barzal in the third period to preserve the shutout. 

“On a night like this where Binnington is playing good hockey, we’re getting our chances,” Anders Lee said. “We couldn’t get one by him, he played a solid game.” 

LINEUP CHANGES:

Kyle MacLean played for the first time since Feb. 5, recording one hit in 8:57 TOI and went 4-for-5 in the dot. He drove to the net in the third period and drew a slashing penalty. 

The 24-year-old center was recalled on Wednesday after Casey Cizikas suffered an injury on Tuesday against the Pittsburgh Penguins. 

Roy made some mid-game lineup adjustments in hopes to spark for his team, swapping Mathew Barzal and Oliver Wahlstrom after the Islanders were down 3-0, but the Islanders weren’t able to start a comeback.

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders return home to take on the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m.