Eyes On Isles
Fansided

New York Islanders: Four Games That Sunk The Season

By Jacob Seus

Mar 22, 2017; New York, NY, USA; New York Islanders left wing Andrew Ladd (16) leads his team after scoring a goal during the third period against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 22, 2017; New York, NY, USA; New York Islanders left wing Andrew Ladd (16) leads his team after scoring a goal during the third period against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nov 25, 2016; San Jose, CA, USA; San Jose Sharks defenseman Brenden Dillon (4) and New York Islanders right wing Cal Clutterbuck (15) race towards the puck in the third period of the game at SAP Center at San Jose. The San Jose Sharks defeated the New York Islanders with a score of 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 25, 2016; San Jose, CA, USA; San Jose Sharks defenseman Brenden Dillon (4) and New York Islanders right wing Cal Clutterbuck (15) race towards the puck in the third period of the game at SAP Center at San Jose. The San Jose Sharks defeated the New York Islanders with a score of 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports /

San Jose Sharks 3-2 New York Islanders, October 25th 2017

This game was a black Friday matinee right in the middle of the Isles early season struggles. I remember sitting at home watching with a stomach full of turkey. Thomas Greiss was in net for the Isles as they took on the defending Western Conference Champs at the end of their west coast road trip.

Anders Lee got the Isles on the board just four minutes into the game. It was only his fourth goal of the year. It’s hard to remember, but Lee had such a slow start. He would finish the season with a team leading 34 goals. That would be the only tally in the first and the Isles led 1-0 at the break.

New York Islanders

The second was all San Jose. During this early season stretch of games, the Islanders would have single periods that took them out of games, and this felt like the one. Goals by Joe Pavelski and Brent Burns put the Sharks on top and the Islanders looked out of place against a superior team.

Down 2-1, the third didn’t show much promise. They lacked a sense of urgency and not many thought they would tie the game. With 58 seconds left in the game, Jack Capuano pulled Greiss. Tavares made an all-star feed from behind the net finding a wide-open Nick Leddy in front of the net. Leddy would score his fourth of the year to tie the game at two.

I couldn’t believe it. The Islanders were going to steal a point against one of the leagues best. Anything positive they did in overtime was going to be a bonus…well that’s if the game got to overtime.

With 23 seconds to go, Patrick Marleau threw a shot from the point that beat Greiss to give the Sharks the lead right back. What a deflating moment for such a struggling team.

The Isles would lose the game 3-2 in regulation. If they just could have held on for another 23 seconds, maybe that overtime point would have been enough to get them into the playoffs.

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