Top Shelf: Islanders Daily 12/13/13

Jennifer Stewart-USA TODAY Sports

The Islanders ended their five game road trip on a sour note, as they lost by a score of 6-3 in Phoenix against the Phoenix Coyotes.

The Islanders played a decent first period, as the offensive made contributions and Kevin Poulin made a few terrific saves in front of a struggling defense, keeping the Coyotes t just one goal during the second period.

The Islanders defense, which has already been struggling, really fell apart during the second period. The Coyotes scored three times in the first seven minutes of the period, and never looked back from there.

The Islanders did respond however, scoring two quick goals from John Tavares and Kyle Okposo to make the score 4-3. Despite the solid response, it  just wasn’t enough, as Phoenix tacked on two unanswered goals after that to win the game by a score of 6-3.

Other notes from the game, Islanders center Casey Cizikas left the game after he received a stick to the jaw early in the game, and didn’t return. While no official update has been made, it’s reasonable to think Cizikas may very well have broken his jaw, and we can only hope that he hasn’t sustained a concussion.

So with arguably the Islanders’ toughest five game span mercifully completed, fans can look forward to a Saturday Night game against the Montreal Canadiens at Nassau Coliseum. Both the Islanders and the Canadiens have been struggling recently, so it may finally be time for the Islanders to start something positive.

-PM (@pjmcentee)

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Around the NHL

• Philadelphia Flyers 2, Montreal Canadiens 1
• Columbus Blue Jackets 4, New York Rangers 2
• Nashville Predators 3, Dallas Stars 1
• St. Louis Blues 6, Toronto Maple Leafs 1
• Colorado Avalanche 4, Winnipeg Jets 3 (SO)
• Calgary Flames 2, Carolina Hurricanes 1 (OT)
• Ottawa Senators 2, Buffalo Sabres 1
• Tampa Bay Lightning 2, Detroit Red Wings 1 (SO)
• Phoenix Coyotes 6, New York Islanders 3
• Boston Bruins 4, Edmonton Oilers 2
• San Jose Sharks 3, Minnesota Wild 1

Across the Sound 

The Sound Tigers dropped their first game without Ryan Strome by a score of 3-0. The Sound Tigers have gotten off to a solid start in December, currently sitting at 4-1-0 through five games.