3 Takeaways: Isles Blanked 4-0 by Sabres

The New York Islanders were shut out 4-0 by the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday night, as they were blanked for the second straight game and sixth time of the season.

Zach Benson had a pair of goals including an empty netter, while Victor Olofsson and Dylan Cozens also provided offense for the Sabres. Ilya Sorokin turned aside 33 of 36 in the loss, while Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 21 saves in the win.

"For some reason, we were flat tonight, we didn't play a good game,” Head Coach Patrick Roy said.  

The Islanders finished their four-game road trip on a sour note, but they’re coming home with a record of 2-2-0. Overall, the road trip saw highs and lows, as the Isles outscored San Jose and Anaheim 13-3 and extended their winning streak to six games before  being shut out in back-to-back games since.

“The first game coming back east is always a tough game,” Roy said. “That’s the beauty of this league, it makes you humble pretty fast. You’re flying high, winning six in a row, you think you’re under control. But after losing two in a row, we need to regroup.”

The Islanders were shut out  in consecutive games for the first time since Feb. 13-15, 2020 while the Islanders’ winless streak at KeyBank Center reached seven games with the 4-0 loss. They haven’t defeated Buffalo on the road since their 3-0 victory on Feb. 16, 2021 where Sorokin recorded his first career shutout.

ISLES STRUGGLE TO OVERCOME SLOW START:

The Islanders allowed the Sabres to control the pace from the drop of the puck and couldn’t manage to get to their game.

Finding themselves pinned in their own zone for extended periods of time in the first period, the Islanders couldn’t record a shot on goal until the 10:12 mark of the opening frame, getting outshot 6-0 at that point.

“They came out hard and took it to us right off the hop,” Bo Horvat said. “Sorokin is unbelievable, it could have been a lot worse.”

Sorokin bailed the Islanders out through the opening 20 minutes to keep it scoreless and held down the fort through multiple Buffalo frenzies. He also made a flashy save against Peyton Krebs, sliding to his left to rob him with a glove save on a two-on-one.

“Ilya is one of the best goalies in the league so we knew we could count on him,” Roy said. “We need to be better, especially on the road we have to be better than what we did tonight.”

The Sabres were able to break the ice early in the second period with momentum on their side. After Anders Lee took an interference penalty, the Sabres quickly entered the Islanders zone and JJ Peterka sent a pass that tricked through skaters. Victor Olofsson collected the pass and wristed a shot from the goal line and beat Sorokin glove-side.

Still with all the momentum on their side, the Sabres doubled their lead after Connor Clifton’s shot was denied by Sorokin, Dylan Cozens buried the juicy rebound at 8:15 of the second period.

Buffalo broke the game open with their third goal of the game with a Zach Benson blast from the point that beat Sorokin through traffic. Roy challenged Benson’s goal for goaltender interference but the call on the ice stood and the Islanders were handed their second penalty of the game.

Down 3-0 to start the third, the Isles could not forge the push they needed to get back in the game. There was some frustration and physicality late in the game, as Lee dropped the gloves with Clifton. Each received a five-minute major for fighting, but Lee was given an extra two minutes for roughing.

Sorokin was pulled with more than six minutes left in the game. Benson scored his second goal of the night with an empty netter at 15:06 to make it 4-0.

ISLES OFFENSE, POWER PLAY COME UP EMPTY:

After a stretch where the Isles displayed a high-octane offense over their six-game winning streak, they were stifled in back-to-back shutouts.  

The Isles were outshot 37-21 in the game, recording just 11 shots through the first two periods. That was indicative of offensive struggles, as Buffalo had more shots on goal (29) than the Isles had attempts (24) through 40 minutes. While Horvat had a pair of shots off the post, the Isles were only credited with two high-danger chances at five-on-five, per Natural Stat Trick.

The Isles power play failed to generate for the second consecutive night, going 0-for-4 against the Sabres after the power play went 0-for-5 on Monday night against the Los Angeles Kings. 

“I feel like we over-complicated things,” Roy said. “The message before the game was to make things simple and move the puck quick, but tonight our legs were not there and our execution was not there.”

STANDINGS IMPLICATONS:

While the Islanders missed an opportunity to gain ground on the teams they’re chasing in the standings, the results around the league provided some damage control.

The Detroit Red Wings fell 4-1 to the Arizona Coyotes, Detroit’s seventh-straight regulation loss, allowing the Islanders to keep their status with the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. The Flyers also dropped a 6-2 decision to the Maple Leafs, as the Islanders (72 points) remain four points behind the Flyers with two games in-hand.

The Islanders had the opportunity to take the first wild card spot with a win and a Tampa Bay Lightning loss, but the opposite came to fruition. Tampa Bay defeated the New York Rangers 6-3 to create a four-point cushion over the Islanders.

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders will return home on Saturday to take on the Ottawa Senators at 12:30 at UBS Arena.