How many players can the New York Islanders lose and still keep winning? They hope they didn’t find out the hard way on Sunday night.
The Islanders, already dealing with injuries, will play their final home game before the 4 Nations Face-Off break on Tuesday when they host the Vegas Golden Knights in Elmont, N.Y.
Both teams had a day off on Monday after losses on Sunday. The Islanders’ seven-game winning streak came to an end with a 6-3 defeat to the Florida Panthers, while the Golden Knights’ struggles continued with a 4-2 loss to the New York Rangers.
The loss to Florida ended New York’s longest winning streak in nearly four years, which had put them back in the Eastern Conference wild-card race. The Islanders are now four points behind the Detroit Red Wings and Columbus Blue Jackets, who are tied for the two wild-card spots. Just two weeks ago, on January 17, they were eight points out of a wild-card position.
But the Islanders will finish their final three games before the midseason break without several key players. On Monday, they announced that first-line center Mathew Barzal will be out indefinitely with a lower-body injury after blocking a shot in Saturday’s 3-2 overtime win over the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Defenseman Scott Mayfield, who also suffered a lower-body injury on Saturday, is listed as day-to-day.
Barzal and Mayfield are the latest injuries for the Islanders, who have already lost defensemen Noah Dobson (lower body) and Ryan Pulock (upper body), as well as backup goalie Marcus Hogberg (upper body). All four are expected to be out until after the 4 Nations Face-Off.
In addition, defenseman Mike Reilly (heart procedure) and backup goalie Semyon Varlamov (lower body) are also unavailable. With both goalies out, Jakub Skarek made his NHL debut on Sunday, recording 27 saves but allowing five goals.
“Injuries are unfortunately part of the game,” said Islanders coach Patrick Roy.
Roy referenced the Colorado Avalanche’s 2001 Stanley Cup run, where they played the final 13 games without Hall of Fame defenseman Peter Forsberg.
“It was a moment for other guys to take the lead and it’s the same right now,” Roy said.
Marc Gatcomb, Kyle MacLean, and Jean-Gabriel Pageau each scored for the Islanders on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the Golden Knights are struggling to find consistency as they try to break a nearly month-long slump that began with a 4-0 loss to the Islanders on January 9. Vegas lost their third straight game on Sunday (0-1-2) and has gone 3-7-3 in their last 13 games.
Vegas will enter Tuesday’s game tied with the Edmonton Oilers atop the Pacific Division with 68 points, though the Oilers have a game in hand. The Golden Knights were six points ahead of the Oilers entering play on January 9.
Vegas has been struggling to score lately, having scored three or fewer goals in nine of their last 13 games after doing so 17 times in their first 40 contests.
Jack Eichel scored twice on Sunday to give the Golden Knights a pair of one-goal leads before the Rangers scored three times in the third period.
“Some guys have been offensively in a slumber for us for a while and they need to get going,” said Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy. “Every night it’s got to be different people. (The Rangers’) top guys were all over the scoresheet in the third period and that’s going to happen – that’s what they are paid to do and our guys will certainly do that.”
