Flyers lose to Islanders, fail to clinch playoff berth

NEW YORK --The Philadelphia Flyers will have to wait for another chance to clinch a Stanley Cup Playoff berth after losing 5-4 to the New York Islanders at Barclays Center on Tuesday.

Nolan Patrick scored two goals in the third period for Philadelphia, which rallied from 4-1 in the third period but gave up the go-ahead goal 28 seconds after tying the game.
The Flyers (40-26-14), who hold the second wild card into the playoffs from the Eastern Conference by four points over the Florida Panthers, could have clinched a postseason berth with a win if the Panthers lost to the Nashville Predators in any fashion (Florida won 2-1). Philadelphia also could have clinched with one point and a Florida loss in regulation.
WATCH: [All Flyers vs. Islanders highlights]
"We played all year trying to be in the playoffs, and now we have a good chance of making it," Flyers captain Claude Giroux said. "But we've got to earn it first."
Mathew Barzal had two goals and an assist for the Islanders (33-37-10), to reach 82 points as a rookie.
Barzal put New York ahead 5-4 at 13:32 of the third period when Anthony Beauvillier sent him on a breakaway for Barzal's second goal of the game.
"I think in a month or so, when I'm looking back at the whole season, just look at the whole deal, first year in the NHL, I think it'll be pretty special," Barzal said. "Right now, I've got a lot on the table still. It's not really something you can dwell on during the season."
Patrick scored two power-play goals in 4:09 in the third period to make it 4-3. He scored his first goal at 4:07 when he dove to poke a rebound past goalie Thomas Greiss (27 saves), then scored again when he redirected Jakub Voracek's feed at 8:16.
Giroux tied it 4-4 at 13:04 with a one-timer from the right face-off circle for his 30th goal.

"You can't wait for a power play; you've got to earn them this time of year," Flyers coach Dave Hakstol said. "You can't wait for a power play to initiate the game, to engage in it."
The Islanders took a 2-1 lead when Beauvillier scored his 20th goal at 3:43 of the second period.

John Tavares made it 3-1 with his second goal of the game at 11:06 of the second period.
Barzal scored at 16:27 of the second when he deked around Wayne Simmonds and snapped a shot from the right circle to make it 4-1.
"We were flat," Patrick said. "We weren't playing our systems. We had no jump to start the game, so it's not really acceptable this time of year."
New York outshot Philadelphia 17-6 in the second period.

"I think the first two periods were a lot better hockey, the type of way we want to play," said Tavares, who gave the Islanders a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal at 7:15 of the first period for his 35th of the season. "It's something to build on for the last two (games)."
Simmonds tied it 1-1 at 19:07 of the first when he one-timed Patrick's feed on a 2-on-1.
Flyers goalie Petr Mrazek made 32 saves.

Goal of the game

Barzal's goal at 13:32 of the third period.

Save of the game

Greiss stopping Valtteri Filppula at 11:48 of the first period.

Highlight of the game

Barzal's goal at 16:27 of the second period.

They said it

"I don't think we played well tonight, and that's the bottom line. We've gone on a stretch here that's been a [heck] of a run in terms of getting points each night. We didn't do it tonight, so we've got to have a quick reset tomorrow and get back at it two nights from now." -- Flyers coach Dave Hakstol on their eight-game point streak ending
"It was probably two of our best periods of the year. We just didn't give them much and we played a real smart hockey game, and we got a little scrambly. They came out hard in the third. We had a couple of penalties, and they capitalized and started pushing it. You knew they need a win to get in, so you knew they were gonna make a big push. Fortunately, we weathered the storm. It was a little more active third than we would have liked, but the first two periods were really good." -- Islanders coach Doug Weight

Need to know

With his assist on Tavares' first goal, Barzal became the first NHL rookie with at least 80 points since Pittsburgh Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin (85, 2006-07) and the first Islanders rookie since Mike Bossy (91, 1977-78). … Beauvillier has scored in four straight games.

What's next

Flyers: Host the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; NBCSP, FS-CR, NHL.TV)
Islanders: Host the New York Rangers on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; MSG+ 2, MSG, NHL.TV)