When was the last time the NY Islanders came back from down 4-0 and won?

The New York Islanders were down 4-0 entering the third period on Saturday afternoon in Tampa.

It was over 70 degrees for the first time in months in the NYC metropolitan area, so if you decided to turn off the TV and head outside rather than watch the third period, your fandom will not be questioned. However, if you were still tracking the game on your phone, you watched the game go from 4-0 to 4-1, 4-2, and 4-3 with more than half a period left to play.

At that point, you may have rushed back inside to watch the remainder of the game thinking, 'Have the Islanders ever come back from down 4-0 in a game before?' The answer would be "Yes," with it happening on Mar. 22, 1994, against the Lightning at the Nassau Coliseum. However, in that game, the comeback started earlier than the third, with defenseman Tom Kurvers scoring a pair of power-play goals late in the second period as the Isles headed into the final 20 minutes trailing 4-2.

Derek King and Steve Thomas scored in the third period to tie the game before Vladimir Malakhov ending things when Pierre Turgeon hit him with a pass as he came streaking in on an odd-man rush at 3:59 of overtime, beating goaltender Darren Puppa for the win.

While that comeback was impressive and hasn't happened since in over 30 years, it fails compared to what the Islanders did on Mar. 14, 1987, at the Coliseum against the New Jersey Devils. That was the last time the Islanders trailed by four goals in the third period and won - and that comeback didn't start until the 8:21 mark of the third.

Bryan Trottier, Neal Coulter, and Mike Bossy all scored before Mikko Mäkelä tied the game with 11 seconds to play. Overall, New York outshot the Devils 20-2 over the final period. In overtime, Pat LaFontaine was the hero, scoring on a 2-on-1 a 1:01 of overtime to complete the wild comeback and 7-6 win, something that hasn't been replicated since.

So, while the comeback wasn't completed on Saturday afternoon in Tampa, ending in a 5-3 loss, knowing it has happened and maybe could happen again is why many of us found our way back to the TV on a beautiful afternoon. Maybe next time.