Game Recap: Rangers 5, Islanders 0

All good things must come to an end.
That includes the Islanders franchise-best eight-game winning streak over the Rangers, which came to a halt after an 5-0 loss at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night. The loss was also the Islanders first against a Metropolitan Division opponent this season.
Alexandar Georgiev made 29 saves for his first-career shutout, while Filip Chytil, Cody McLeod, Neal Pinok, Kevin Hayes and Chris Kreider scored for the Rangers. Robin Lehner made 22 saves in the loss, the Islanders first to the Rangers since Oct. 13, 2016.
"It was a tough game. They got out early and we were chasing all night," Mathew Barzal said. "It's never easy, but we need to have a better start. We had chances, we had a lot of grade-A chances, but their goalie made some big saves... The next time we get these guys we have to come out a little harder."

SLOW START SINKS ISLES:

The Islanders found themselves in a 3-0 hole by the eight-minute mark of the first period on Wednesday. The barrage started early, as Filip Chytil's icebreaker came 29 seconds into the game, as the rookie's centering pass bouncing back onto his stick to make it 1-0. From there things snowballed, as Cody McLeod deflected an Anthony DeAngelo shot past Robin Lehner at 3:30 to make it 2-0 while Neal Pionk buried a power-play goal from the point to make it 3-0.
The three-goal flurry was reminiscent on Sunday's 6-2 loss to Dallas, where the Isles surrendered three goals in a five-minute span in the second period. The Isles also allowed two goals in the opening 5:35 against the Rangers last Thursday.
"Our starts the past few games have been awful," captain Anders Lee said. "We have to figure out a way in the next day and a half here to get ready to go against Jersey. The first 20 minutes have to be good. Tonight, down 3-0 in basically the first 10 minutes of the game, you really put yourself against the wall."

Video: NYR 5 vs NYI 0: Barry Trotz

While the Islanders were able to dig out of a 2-0 hole in their 7-5 win last Thursday, they couldn't muster a second comeback on Wednesday. Nick Leddy's shot off the crossbar with 8.5 seconds to play in the first was about as close as the Isles would come to getting on the board in the first period. Jordan Eberle had perhaps the Isles second best chance of the game in the second period, throwing a rebound wide with Georgiev down and out.
"The execution and the details early weren't good. We dug ourselves a hole," Head Coach Barry Trotz said. "We stabilized in the second. We had some really good looks in the second, but missed the net a few times in the slot and couldn't get it back on the rails close enough."
Kevin Hayes put the game out of reach when he made it 4-0 at 17:17 of the second period, while Chris Kreider made it 5-0 in the third period. Ross Johnston exacted a little in-game revenge, besting McLeod in a second period fight.

CLUTTERBUCK MISSES GAME:

Cal Clutterbuck missed Wednesday's game with an illness, leaving an already shorthanded Islanders squad down another regular. With Matt Martin, Casey Cizikas and Clutterbuck all out, the Islanders iced a fourth line of Ross Johnston, Stephen Gionta and Michael Dal Colle.

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders take on the New Jersey Devils on Black Friday at Prudential Center. Puck drop is at 4 p.m.