3 Takeaways: Islanders Lose 5-4 to Coyotes in Arizona

Friday's game did not have the normal venue or vibe of a New York Islanders - Arizona Coyotes game in the desert.
First the setting, as the Islanders visited Mullett Arena - the Coyotes temporary 4,600-seat home at Arizona State University - for the first time, which offered a lively backdrop in the intimate building. As for the game itself, the teams battled in what was a chippy and high-scoring game, with Arizona skating to a 5-4 win over the Islanders.

To put it in perspective, the nine combined goals were the most in an Isles-Yotes game since Oct. 24, 2017 and the most in the desert since Dec. 12, 2013. Arizona's five goals was more than they'd scored in their previous four games against the Islanders, combined (four total goals).
The result was the Islanders second loss to the Coyotes this season and third straight defeat overall (0-2-1).
"We've got to stop playing a good game, then playing a bad game, then playing a good game," Matt Martin said. "We're good hockey team, we believe we're a good hockey team, but we have to bring it every night. We can't go on a rollercoaster ride with the way we're going to play we're not going to have success that way."

ARIZONA PUSHES PACE:

The Islanders got off to the start they wanted, with Sebastian Aho scoring on the team's first shot of the game at 1:41 and Mathew Barzal following it up with a tip on a Robin Salo shot at 13:33.
They were seemingly in control, but Shayne Gostisbehere put Arizona on the board with 44 seconds left in the first period and that seemed to be the spark that ignited the desert dogs.
The Coyotes had a stretch where they recorded 14 consecutive shots on goal from 17:47 of the first period to 9:09 of the second period. That included a pair of goals 14 seconds apart from Clayton Keller, whose centering feed caromed off Scott Mayfield's skate and in, and Nick Bjugstad, who buried a one-timer shortly after. The Islanders did not record a shot until the 9:23 mark of the middle frame, but by that point, the Coyotes were dictating the pace and place of the game.
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"We weren't very sharp and didn't really have much possession or attack and our game sort of second," Brock Nelson said.
Dobson tied the score at 17:45 of the second period, but Travis Boyd put Arizona ahead 4-3 at the 2:08 mark of the third, jamming in a puck in front of Ilya Sorokin, who suffered his fifth-straight regulation defeat - a career long.
Keller scored his second goal of the game at 14:49 of the third period, with his one-timer catching an outstretched Alex Romanov between the legs before deflecting past Sorokin. That held up as the winner as Anthony Beauviller scored a late goal with 1:39 to play.
"I thought we started well, I thought we outplayed them and then I thought when they gained momentum, we had trouble getting it back," Head Coach Lane Lambert said. "I thought we got outworked for a portion of that game. It's unacceptable."

SPECIAL TEAMS COME UP EMPTY:

The Islanders power play went 0-for-5 on Friday night, the first time they'd gone without a goal when earning five or more opportunities.
It wasn't for lack of trying, as the Isles peppered Karel Vejmelka with 14 shots on the man advantage, but they could not break through.
"The power play wasn't very good," Nelson said. "We didn't really get much for having that opportunity, so it's bad on us."
On the flip side, the Islanders PK went 5-for-5, though Gostisbehere's goal came just seconds after Anthony Beauvillier's high-sticking minor had elapsed.

BEAUVILLIER AND PALMIERI RETURN:

Kyle Palmieri and Anthony Beauvillier returned to action on Friday night.
Palmieri had missed the previous 10 games with an upper-body injury while Beauvillier had missed the past two. Palmieri played alongside Zach Parise and JG Pageau, while Beauvillier was reunited with Brock Nelson and Josh Bailey. Hudson Fasching and Simon Holmstrom came out of the lineup to accommodate their returns, while Adam Pelech was placed on IR on Thursday, so that Palmieri could be activated.
Both players had some jump in their returns, but saw a slight decrease in their usage, with Beauvillier playing 14:07 with three shots and a goal, while Palmieri played 10:46 with two shots and three hits.
"They were fine," Lambert said. "There wasn't any real rust or anything like that."
Palmieri had a bit of a scare late in the game after taking a late and high hit from Nick Ritchie. Palmieri briefly left the game after being pulled by the concussion spotter, but finished the game.
"I finished the game," Palmieri said. "So not much to say about the hit."

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders are back at it tomorrow night as they take on the Vegas Golden Knights in the second half of a back-to-back. Puck drop is at 10 p.m.