Recap: Islanders Fall To Flames 4-2

The New York Islanders played with fire and got burned on Wednesday night, falling 4-2 to the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome.
Casey Cizikas and Anders Lee scored for the Islanders, but it was not enough on a night where the team's usually-stingy defense had trouble containing the Flames' high-powered attack. They rallied out of an 2-0 hole to tie the score 2-2 in the third period, but the decisive blow when the Flames scored two goals 29 seconds apart to break the deadlock, snapping the Isles two-game winning streak in the process.
"Tonight's a perfect example of what happens when we don't play the style that we're known to play we're an ugly team out there," Cizikas said.
BOXSCORE | TROTZ POSTGAME

ISLES FALL BEHIND EARLY, CHASE FLAMES:

Barry Trotz was worried about two things head into Wednesday's clash between the Metropolitan and Pacific Division leaders - the Isles three-day layoff between games, as well as the Flames +39 goal differential in the third period.
Both seemed to hurt the Islanders on Wednesday, as the Flames blitzed the Isles in the first period, outshooting them 12-3 en route to taking a 2-0 lead. Mikael Backlund finished a Flames odd-man rush at 5:00 to open the scoring, while former Islander Traivs Hamonic beat Thomas Greiss through a screen at 15:59. It could have been worse, as Matthew Tkachuk rung a shot off the post in the opening minutes.
"We had too many passengers. We weren't physically or emotionally engaged, at least in the first half of the game," Trotz said, adding that he'd grade his team with an 'F' for the night. "We didn't have enough guys focused in on the task at hand and we can't win without a majority of our guys going. We had too many guys not going, but that's on me, that's on our staff, that's on everybody."
Trotz assessment was echoed in the room, but despite the sluggish start, the Isles - who had won a franchise-record five straight games when trailing 2-0 - managed to hang around as they scratched their way back into a 2-2 tie.
They got on the board in the form of Cizikas' 16th goal of the season, as Cizikas' centering feed caromed off Mike Smith's skate and in at 10:09 of the second period. The goal extended Cizikas' growing career-high and was his fourth in his last four games.
Lee tied the score 2-2 at 1:18 of the third period, finishing a setup from Jordan Eberle and Brock Nelson for his team-leading 20th goal of the season. The goal was the Islanders second on eight shots, allowing them to hang out despite the lopsided nature of the game.

The tie did not last, as the Flames broke open the deadlock with a pair of goals 29 seconds apart five minutes later. Austin Czarnik's rebound deflected off Leo Komarov and in at 6:10 of the third, while Johnny Gaudreau wired his 30th of the season past Greiss for a power-play goal at 6:38. That proved decisive, as the Isles made a late push, but could not mount a second comeback.
"We came back and tied it up, but for them to get that third, a bit of a fortunate bounce for them, but it goes in and they doubled-down on it pretty quickly," Lee said. "It was too much for us to come back."
The two teams meet again on Tuesday at NYCB Live.

GREISS' STREAK ENDS:

Thomas Greiss suffered his first regulation defeat since Jan. 8, also the last time he'd allowed more than one goal. Greiss had previously stopped 185-of-188 shots on a 5-0-1 streak.

LEE NETS 20TH:

Anders Lee's goal was his team-leading 20th of the season, marking the third straight season the captain had eclipsed the 20-goal mark. Lee has scored at least 20 goals in four of his five full NHL seasons.

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders complete an Alberta back-to-back on Thursday night when they take on the Edmonton Oilers. Puck drop is t 9 p.m. eastern.