The Upshot: Islanders blow 3-0 lead; lose to Washington Capitals the 4-3 in OT
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Washington Capitals rallied from a 3-0 deficit and defeat the New York Islanders 4-3 in overtime at UBS Arena on Monday night. Defenseman Dmitry Orlov scored with 33 seconds left in O.T. to complete the comeback. T.J. Oshie’s third-period goal tied the game, and Tom Wilson scored his first goal of the season for the Capitals (23-18-4), who snapped a two-game losing streak.
Darcy Kuemper made 27 saves in the win. For the Islanders (23-18-4), losers of five of their last six (1-3-2), Sebastian Aho, Matt Martin, and Hudson Fasching, each scored, and Ilya Sorokin made 31 saves in defeat.
WHAT WENT RIGHT
For the second straight game, the Islanders got the start they wanted, and this time added to it in the second period when Hudson Fasching scored his first goal since Dec. 17 to extend the lead to 3-0. Fasching was the Islanders' best forward, creating quality chances throughout the night despite playing only a little over 12 minutes. As many of the Isles more proven goal scorers continue to struggle, getting secondary scoring as they did from Fasching, Aho, and Martin was key.
WHAT WENT WRONG
The game flipped on Alexander Ovechkin checked JG Pageau hard into the glass/boards. Pageau got up wobbly and left the game before later returning to the bench. After a review, no penalty was called on the hit and swung momentum toward Washington, who went on to score twice in the period.
STATS OF THE GAME
Per Eric Hornick on Twitter, this was the first time since Jan 2021 that the Islanders lost a game that they had a 3-goal lead. (Also to Washington). It's the third time in the last four January's that the Capitals have trailed by 3 and beat the Islanders.
SOCIAL MEDIA MOMENT OF THE GAME
Rooting for the home team in the road team's backyard, a good turnout for Islesmeetup Richmond, Virginia group for Monday night's game.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Islanders wrap up their season-long five-game home stand on Wednesday night when they host the Boston Bruins at UBS Arena. Face-off is set for 7:30 PM ET.