The good news, sort of, for the Islanders is that they have not blown a third-period lead recently.
But with all the talk around that, their game in the first period has suddenly become a problem spot.
Tuesday night’s 4-0 loss to the Hurricanes marked the eighth straight game in which the Islanders allowed the opening goal, and it’s become almost customary for the Isles to slowly wade their way into games while allowing opponents the upper hand.
“No,” coach Patrick Roy said, asked if he had an explanation. “But at the same time, I know we want to score that first goal, but plenty of times when we gave up that first goal, we were back in the game. We were tied or ahead going into the third period. It’d be nice to have the first goal, I agree with you.”
The Islanders have allowed the first goal an NHL-leading 21 times overall.
While that is not necessarily as game-breaking a problem as their minus-22 goal differential in the third period and overtime, the two combined don’t create a pretty picture.
It is pretty tough to put together wins when the second period represents the only point in the game when the Islanders are consistently playing well — and indeed, the Islanders have just 12 victories in their first 33 games after getting their doors blown off by the Hurricanes on Tuesday night.
“We just need to pop the first one, I think it’s as simple as that,” captain Anders Lee said after Sunday’s loss to the Blackhawks in which the Islanders went down 1-0 in the first, tied the game, then quickly gave up another goal before the end of the period. “The other team’s gotten the first one of late. It feels like we’re on our heels. We just gotta go out there and go after that first one right away.”
As to what exactly is causing the lack of energy, the Islanders don’t appear to have an explanation.
Roy said Sunday he felt like his team was ready at the start of the game, and two days later, hand waved the slow starts by saying the Islanders are frequently in the game during the third period.
It’s true that these things are sometimes random, but with the Islanders, the general theme of failing to put together a complete game has been a constant all season and, for that matter, was all of last season as well — whether the problem spot is the first or third period.
The standings are still providing the Islanders an opportunity, as they were just three points out of the last playoff spot on Wednesday despite a terrible record, but that is going to be fleeting if they don’t start winning games.
As poor as the rest of the Eastern Conference is, relying on everybody else to keep losing is not a viable strategy.
The Islanders, who have not been above NHL .500 in nearly two months, can at least get back to that watermark by Christmas if they beat the Maple Leafs and Sabres in their two remaining games before the holiday break.
That, combined with the potential return of Anthony Duclair, would at least give them something to build on going into 2025.
The closeness of the standings at the bottom of the East, though, is a curse as well as a blessing.
If the Islanders keep losing, there’s every chance they could find themselves at or near the basement of the standings during the festive period, with just five points currently between themselves and last-place Buffalo.
“We have to be better. We have to win games,” Brock Nelson said Tuesday. “We’re fortunate to still be in the mix. We all aren’t happy with where we’re at. We know we can be better and want to be better. A lot [better]. I think urgency’s a big part of it.”
