Game 4 Preview: Islanders at Panthers

NEW YORK ISLANDERS AT FLORIDA PANTHERS
GM 4 | AUG. 7 | 12 PM | SCOTIABANK ARENA
ISLES LEAD BEST-OF-FIVE SERIES 2-1
WATCH: MSG+ | MSG GO | NBCSN | SN | TVAS | NHL.TV
LISTEN: 88.7FM | 98.7FM | 103.9FM | SIRIUSXM CH. 91
The New York Islanders will have another chance to close out the Florida Panthers when the teams meet in Game 4 of their best-of-five Stanley Cup Qualifier on Friday (12 p.m., MSG+, NBCSN, 88.7FM).

ISLES-PANTHERS GAME 4
ISLES-PANTHERS ARTICLES
Game 3 Recap
The Skinny: FLA 3, NYI 2
Isles-Panthers Playoff Hub
ISLES-PANTHERS VIDEO
Gm 3 Recap: FLA 3, NYI 2
Trotz Availability: 8/6
Nelson & Leddy Availability: 8/6
ISLES PLAYOFF PROMOS
Play Fan Faceoff
Playoff Auction
Playoff Getup Challenge
Playoff Beard Challenge
The Islanders hoped to sweep the Panthers in Game 3, but Florida forced Game 4 with a 3-2 victory on Wednesday afternoon. Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Brock Nelson scored for the Isles while Semyon Varlamov made 19 saves. Erik Haula and Mike Hoffman scored power-play goals for the Panthers, while Brian Boyle netted the game winner in the third period. Sergei Bobrovsky, stopped 20 shots.
Coming into a do-or-die Game 3, the Panthers made a few lineup changes. Forwards Frank Vatrano and Colton Sceviour and defenseman Mike Matheson were scratched while Lucas Wallmark, Dryden Hunt and Riley Stillman joined the lineup.
While the Isles had held the edge in special teams in Games 1 and 2, the Panthers dominated special teams in Game 3 as they went 2-for-5 on the power play and were a perfect 3-for-3 on the PK.
The Isles still have a 2-1 series lead, but have a tough task at hand as they'll look to shatter any possible momentum the Panthers generated from their Game 3 win and close out the series in Game 4.
"You can't look to play around this game, you have to play through this game,"Head Coach Barry Trotz said. "You know that you're going to get the best of Florida. Therefore, to beat a good Florida team you need your best. You have to accept it. When you look for the easy game on a close out, you're not going to get it. If you do, it's rare and seldom. You have to accept that it's going to be an extremely hard game. Close out games are the toughest. Once you accept it you can play through it. If you're unwilling to accept it then, you won't have a chance to win."

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GETTING BACK TO ISLANDER HOCKEY:

The Isles are most successful when they play the entirety of the game committed to their detailed defensive structure with designated roles. Executing that disciplined style is easier said than done against a high-flying offense like Florida, but in Games 1 and 2 the Isles had success by being on the right side of the puck and keeping the Panthers' potent weapons to the outside.
In Game 3, the Isles did themselves no favors as they took more penalties than they had in Games 1 and 2 combined. Three of their penalties were self-inflicted; two delay of game penalties and one call for too many men on the ice.
While it was evident that the Panthers won the special teams battle in Game 3, Trotz was content with his team's five-on-five play and only wished they had played with, 'A little more finish,' as he felt the Isles had blatantly out-chanced the Panthers.
"We knew this was going to be a tough series," Trotz said. "We felt there were a lot of positives in our game, especially our five-on-five play. We felt we lost the game in a short period of time and we lost it in special teams. They made some adjustments in terms of what they've done, just as we've made a couple of adjustments as we've gone through every game. They won the special teams. The first two games we tied or won the special teams situations and came out on the positive side. Yesterday, they got two or three goals on the power play. That's an area where we've got to lock that down a little better. Our five-on-five play, I'm pretty happy with to this point."

BEAUVILLIER, TOEWS AND PULOCK HEATING UP:

During the series, Anthony Beauvillier and Devon Toews have each strung together a three-game point streak - each with three points during that span. Ryan Pulock has also compiled three points in three games.
Beauvillier has been a catalyst for the Isles offense. The 23-year-old winger has one goal and two assists in three games.
"Anthony is all over his game even more so than in the regular season and the last couple of years," Brock Nelson said of his linemate. "He's developed pretty quickly. You're seeing how he can affect a game with his speed; shift-in, shift-out, he's always on it. He works extremely hard. He plays a quick game. He's able to make quick plays with the puck with lots of skill. He's been a catalyst and a guy you can feed off for energy."
In Game 1, Beauvillier scored on the power-play as he blasted a one-timer from the right faceoff circle. In Game 2, his initial shot on the power play deflected off of Jordan Eberle for an insurance goal. In the most recent game of the series, Beauvillier utilized his speed to chase down a puck and send a drop pass for Pageau who was crashing the net for the Isles' first goal in their loss.
Toews has added one assist in every game, while Pulock posted a two-point showing (1G, 1A) in Game 2 and dished out one apple in Game 3.

POTENTIAL LINEUP CHANGES:

While Trotz praised the Isles for their five-on-five play throughout the chess-match series, he said he's considering the potential of altering their lineup for Game 4. Whether that adjustment is reconstructing the makeup of the lines and the defensive pairs or bringing in an entirely new player into the lineup, he did not specify.
"We're looking at some changes in some of the things we're doing in our game," Trotz said. "But there's a high probability that there will be one change, maybe two."