Takeaways: Islanders Fall 5-2 to Jets 

The New York Islanders fell 5-2 to the Winnipeg Jets on Monday afternoon in their third consecutive loss of the season.

Emil Heineman scored his first goal as an Islander and JG Pageau scored in his 800^th career game, but the Jets were in the driver’s seat throughout the contest with offense from Morgan Barron, Nino Niederreiter (PPG), Logan Stanley and Tanner Pearson.

Ilya Sorokin allowed four goals on 25 shots in his third straight start, while Eric Comrie turned aside 33 saves on 35 shots. The Islanders are 0-3-0 to start the season for the first time since 2006-07.

“It’s frustrating for sure, our game works like that sometimes,” Captain Anders Lee said. “There’s no doubt about it, we want to get a win here. No one’s happy right now. You almost have to get kicked one more time before you break through.”

TAKEAWAYS

- Despite a strong start where the Islanders came out of the gate up on shots 6-1, they found themselves trailing early, with the Jets building a 2-0 lead by the 11:48 mark of the opening frame. Barron opened the scoring off the rush at 7:35 into the contest, while Niederreiter found the back of the net as a Jets power play expired. It marked the third straight game the Islanders had allowed the first goal.

- Pageau’s goal - where he turned Tony DeAngelo’s shot from the point into a no-look tip-in to cut the deficit to 2-1 - was as close as they’d come to tying the game. The Jets bit back 14 seconds later with Stanley’s goal and started to pull away. Pearson made it 4-1, tapping in a feed from Niederreiter, who was unable to get a shot off on his breakaway, but still managed to put a pass behind Sorokin from behind the goal line to make it 4-1.

- Heineman showed off his flashy shot for his first goal as an Islander, ripping a one-timer from the right circle to make it 4-2 before the end of the second period. Heineman had a team-high four hits in the game, along with six shot attempts.

- Special teams shaped Monday’s contest with a total of eight penalties taken across both sides. The Islanders had plenty of opportunities on the power play but could not convert, going 0-for-5 on the night, while the penalty kill went 2-for-3.

“It was a special teams night a little bit,” Lee said. “But when you get that many power play opportunities, you have to find a way to get one. We had some good possession, moving it around, couple of nice plays, just didn’t get it in.”

- Sorokin didn’t have his best outing, allowing four goals on 25 shots, including an uncharacteristic five-hole goal on Stanley. He made some acrobatic saves – including one on Gustav Nyquist in the opening frame and a flashy stop on Mark Scheifele’s shorthanded chance but allowed four goals for three consecutive games. Roy said postgame that despite Sorokin not having his best start to the season, he has a lot of trust in him.

- Schaefer continued to log heavy minutes – recording a team-leading 26:35 TOI and establishing a career high in the process - in his third NHL game. He also notched an assist on Heineman’s goal and has a three-game point streak (1G, 2A).

“What I love about his game? He’s got no hesitation,” Roy said of Schaefer. “He could make a mistake and he keeps playing… he’s been fun to watch.”

NEXT GAME

The Islanders’ three-game homestand concludes with a contest against the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday. Puck drop is set for 7:30 p.m.