Recap: Canes' Second-Period Slip Proves Costly On Long Island

ELMONT, N.Y. - Andrei Svechnikov scored twice but the Carolina Hurricanes came up short at UBS Arena, conceding four goals in the second period en route to a 4-3 loss to the New York Islanders on Saturday.

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Svechnikov's first goal - a power-play marker on a pass that deflected off an Isles' defender and into the net - gave Carolina a 1-0 lead through 20 minutes. After New York tied the game early in the second stanza, Svechnikov responded with another power-play goal 3:18 later as he whacked home a loose puck in the crease.

Just 43 seconds after Svechnikov's second strike, however, the Islanders scored their first of three consecutive goals in a span of 8:49 to take a 4-2 lead and control of the game.

A much better Carolina third period saw Jesperi Kotkaniemi bring his team back within a goal in the final minute of play, but that was as close as they could come to tying it up.

Pyotr Kochetkov made 21 saves on 25 shots for the Canes.

Stats & Standouts

• After finding top gear in Thursday's win over Colorado, a sudden downshift cost the Canes in the second period on Saturday. Managing a season-low-tying two shots on goal in a period for the second time this week, Carolina gifted the Islanders numerous odd-man rushes and opportunities off of turnovers in the middle frame, and the hosts made the most of them.
• To their credit, the Canes got back on the horse and outshot the Islanders by a whopping 19-2 margin in a dominant third period, but Ilya Sorokin kept the door mostly shut.
• Fresh off his first career four-point game on Thursday, that's now six points across back-to-back multi-point performances for Andrei Svechnikov. He's up to 24 points in 27 games, good for third on the team in scoring.
• Thanks to #37, Carolina's power play has now found twine in 11 of its last 15 contests and has converted five of its last nine chances.

They Said It...

Rod Brind'Amour dissecting the loss...

"The first period was average. We had to kill a couple of penalties and did a good job. Then in the second, we just didn't want to play the way we need to. Then you come out and play a great third period, but it doesn't matter, you've already given them too much of a lead. It was a tough one again."

Shayne Gostisbehere describing the affair...

"We had a pretty good first, we were playing the right way, making the right plays, and getting pucks on net. I don't know what really happened in the second period, we just complicated things and made it hard on ourselves. It's hard to chase games in this league. It's tough when you're trying to come from behind. It's little things that are creeping into our game the last five [games] here and obviously, we've got to get it figured out."

Rod Brind'Amour on what he believes the group's difficulties are at the moment...

"We're a little off. We forget how hard it is to play our game, (and) to win. You can't take that for granted. You can see it in our play - when we want to go, it's there. At times, we're just a little off. We've got to regain it. There's only one way to play. There's no easy way. We'll get there.

Shayne Gostisbehere on where the team goes from here...

"We've got to find it. We played pretty crappy for three in a row there, had a good one against Colorado, and again we're back in the crappy part. For us, we've got to find that consistency of what we were doing earlier in the season and we'll turn it around."

What's Next?

The Canes have a scheduled off day on Sunday and will practice Monday before taking on the Sharks in Raleigh on Tuesday.

Next Game: Tuesday, Dec. 10 vs. San Jose | 7:00 pm | Tickets | Parking | Upcoming Theme Nights