Game 4 Notebook: Islanders Fall 3-2 to Washington

The New York Islanders missed their opportunity to sweep their First Round series against the Washington Capitals, falling 3-2 in Game 4 on Tuesday night at Scotiabank Arena.

The Islanders got off to a 2-0 lead in the first period with goals from Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Mathew Barzal, but the Capitals kept their postseason run alive with two goals from Alexander Ovechkin, including the game-winner, and one from Evgeny Kuznetsov.
Semyon Varlamov made his eighth start between the pipes for the Islanders with 26 saves and suffered his second loss of the postseason. Braden Holtby made 24 saves in the win.
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"We talked about this being the toughest game to win and that was no different tonight," Anders Lee said. "We've just got to regroup and go back at it. It's a difficult thing to close out a team. We put ourselves in a phenomenal position with [winning] the first three games and now, we have to take advantage of it. All of these series are tough series. There's a lot of pride on both ends. You expect it to be tough."
It was a tale of two games that ultimately did not evolve in favor of the Islanders. The Capitals had everything to lose and anything to gain as they entered Game 4 fighting to keep their season alive. The Isles expected a desperate Caps team, but didn't see that desire until the second period.
The Isles dominated the first period, which was largely five-on-five play, with a similar effort that had helped assemble their three-game series lead. Through the first five minutes of play, the Islanders held a staggering 16-1 shot attempt advantage over the Capitals.
Through their command of play, the Islanders capitalized first with Pageau's fourth goal of the postseason 3:50 into the period. As Scott Mayfield lofted a point shot on net, Pageau jostled for position in front of the net and deflected Mayfield's shot out of the air and under Holtby's glove to give the Islanders a 1-0 lead.
The Isles buzz didn't cease. They cashed in on their second goal of the period off a quick transition play from the wheels of Barzal and Nick Leddy. From the Isles' defensive zone, Barzal jetted up the ice with Leddy stride-for-side. The swift pair exchanged a quick give-and-go which resulted in Barzal's directing his one timer past Holtby to double the Islanders' lead at 9:16.

Washington called a timeout after Barzal's goal to settle themselves. The first period was bookended with power play chances for the Islanders. As the Isles began the second period on their second man advantage of the outing, their sway of the game soon slipped.
"Their top players were their top players tonight," Head Coach Barry Trotz said. "We didn't have enough push back, but we got through that period. It was 2-0 and we got the timely saves by Varly. The second period, we got a power play to start, but then we took unnecessary penalties. That gave them some momentum. They got back on track and then, it was a one-shot game after that."
An onslaught of penalties exchanged between teams in the second period derailed any five-on-five rhythm and allowed the Caps to do their damage, scoring a pair of goals 1:54 apart.
While the Islanders survived an initial 5-on-3 disadvantage, they allowed the first of the Capitals two goals to come four-on-four. With Barzal was serving his penalty for holding on Lars Eller 1:29 into the period and T.J. Oshie was in the box for hooking on Pageau at 3:09, Kuznetsov turned the jets on as he entered the Isles zone. The Caps forward caught the Isles flat footed before he tucked the puck on the far side of Varlamov's net 3:35 into the period.

Barzal returned to the penalty box 3:46 into the second period for holding and the Caps evened the score 2-2 on the ensuing power play. As the Caps entered the zone, they caught the Isles penalty kill before it had fully set up and circulated the puck to Ovechkin's office at the right faceoff circle. The Caps captain blasted his routine one-timer and connected to twine.
The remainder of the period and what carried into the third, was a barrage in pressure from the Capitals' that left the Isles hemmed in their own zone and forced to take extended shifts.
In the third period, the Capitals assertively gained their first lead of the game and scored the eventual game winner. Ovechkin deposited his second goal of the game as the Caps counterattacked on an odd-man rush, where the winger snapped his sizzling shot past the far side of Varlamov.
With the lead, the Caps continued to apply the pressure and force the Isles in their own zone. It was a reversal for the Isles, who are used to forcing their opponent to make turnovers and disrupt the flow of the game.
"We didn't play our best game," Nick Leddy said. "We gave them life at certain times of the game and they took that momentum and ran. You've got to give them credit. At the end of the day, we know we have a lot better."

BARZAL SCORES SECOND GOAL IN AS MANY GAMES

Barzal, who scored the Islanders OT winner in Game 3's 2-1 victory on Sunday, scored his second goal of the series. The 23-year-old center has six points (3G, 3A) in his last four games.

PAGEAU'S FOURTH GOAL OF THE POSTSEASON

With his goal in Game 4, Pageau is now tied with Anthony Beauvillier for the Isles leaderboard in postseason goals. Through eight games, the center has six points. In his playoff career, Pageau has scored 16 goals and amassed 22 points over 43 playoff games.

SKEWED BATTLE OF SPECIAL TEAMS

The Islanders were awarded their first power play 50 seconds into the game, but would end the night going 0-for-5 on a series of missed opportunities. The Isles power play is now 1-for-19 throughout the entirety of the series.
"We put it in play a lot, we had a couple of looks, and we had the zone time, but we need production out of it," Trotz said. "Their penalty killers have held us pretty much completely off of the scoresheet for the most part. We've got to find a way to get it in the back of the net on the power play, but I thought our power play was better today than it was [in Game 3]."
The Caps' power play went 1-for-5, while their penalty kill was a perfect five-for-five and has now gone 26-for-30 in the entirety of the postseason.

CLUTTERBUCK MISSES THIRD PERIOD:

Cal Clutterbuck left the game after the second period and did not return for the third period after taking a low hit from Radko Gudas. The Isles winger logged 8:17, including 43 seconds shorthanded, threw one hit and was plus-one through the first two periods of play. There was no immediate update on the Clutterbuck's status.
"We'll have an update tomorrow," Trotz said.

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders lead the series 3-1 and will return for Game 5 on Thursday. The game time has not been announced yet.