New York Islanders Shutout By The Vancouver Canucks, 4-0

It was most definitely a night to forget on Long Island as the Islanders came out flat and remained that way the entire game.

If the most pessimistic New York Islanders fan wasn’t out in full force prior to Sunday night, they will be now.

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Due to a lackluster effort against the Vancouver Canucks, the Islanders were held scoreless the entire night.

With the Rangers currently beating the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-1 in the second period at Madison Square Garden, if all things remain the same the Isles Metropolitan lead will be cut to only two points. The Rangers will also still have a ridiculous three games in hand.

3 Stars

1. Eddie Lack, Goalie – Vancouver, 27 saves
2. Radim Vrbata, Forward – Vancouver, 1 Goal, 1 Assists
3. Bo Horvat, Forward – Vancouver, 1 Goal

More bad news comes in the form of Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins smoking the Florida Panthers 5-1 tonight, meaning Pittsburgh is now only three points behind the Islanders.

Again, cue the pessimistic cries for help.

There was one man that stole the show tonight at the Nassau Coliseum and he didn’t even start the game.

Feb 22, 2015; Uniondale, NY, USA; New York Islanders center John Tavares (91) and Vancouver Canucks center Henrik Sedin (33) fight for the puck as New York Islanders center Anders Lee (27) knocks down Vancouver Canucks defenseman Dan Hamhuis (2) during the second period at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Eddie Lack came in during the first period to relieve an injured Ryan Miller and was completely brilliant. Miller appeared to injure his right leg when his own defenseman came crashing into the crease.

What Lack did next exemplified the feeling for which many goalies feel only a few times in their entire life: He was simply in the zone.

Lack stopped all 27 Islanders shots on the night which visibly frustrated New York time and again. Miller stopped 10 shots prior to the injury.

Although the Isles ripped off 37 shots on goal in the game, they couldn’t play their familiar game which usually see’s a ton of second chance opportunities, especially on rebounds. Lack either gobbled the puck up or the Islanders got a little too cute with the puck.

A key point in the game happened early in the second period when the Isles had two straight power plays against a cold Lack who was fresh on the ice. Although two or three scoring chances were registered, Lack stood stall and Radim Vrbata quickly responded on the other end against Jaroslav Halak to make the game 2-0. Both Sedin twins assisted on the power play goal.

It continued the NHL trend of teams struggling on the back end of back to back games.

The Isles will next take on the Phoenix Coyotes on Tuesday night at Nassau Coliseum.

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• Islanders Zach Parise Was Quiet in Return to Minnesota