There are nights during an 82-game season where every lingering issue around a team crashes down on it all at once, creating a veritable tsunami of a loss.
Friday was one of those nights for the Islanders, or at least they ought to hope, because if it gets any worse than this, it would be an even bigger problem than they already seem to have.
The last-in-the-NHL Canucks, less than a week removed from trading their best player, dominated the Islanders for the better part of 60 minutes to score a 4-1 victory at UBS Arena with Kiefer Sherwood recording a hat trick.
Or, more accurately, the Islanders allowed themselves to be played off the ice. Because, while Vancouver deserves plenty of credit for taking advantage of the opportunities put in front of them, the Islanders should be clear-eyed in assessing the level to which this wretched performance was self-inflicted.
There was a 59-second five-on-three in which the Islanders got off just one shot on goal.
There was Adam Boqvist’s brutal turnover behind the net and Ilya Sorokin’s failure to get set for David Kampf’s weak shot. There was Matthew Schaefer getting his stick lifted by a flying Sherwood for another goal.
There was Marc Gatcomb committing a silly tripping penalty and Sherwood getting left alone in the slot for a one-timer.
That was just in the first period, after which the Canucks led 3-0.
Every deficiency the Islanders have been trying to overcome since Bo Horvat went down with injury overcame them, and so did a fair few that go beyond the problems created by No. 14’s absence.
It has little to do with Horvat’s injury, for example, that for two straight games now, the Islanders’ group of defensemen can’t seem to make a good first pass.
Or that a team that has gotten through the neutral zone so cleanly all year suddenly looks completely disconnected on its breakouts, unable to sustain possession or pressure of any kind.
Even down by three goals with 40 minutes to go, the Islanders couldn’t come up with a meaningful push on Friday. You would be hard-pressed to name a single facet of their game that looked good in this one.
Singling out any player would almost defeat the point, though it would be shocking if Boqvist stays in the lineup on Saturday, given Roy’s hesitation to play him on the left side in the first place.
The only player the Islanders dressed who did not have a bad night was David Rittich, and that is because the backup goaltender didn’t play.
By the time Anders Lee scored to end Thatcher Demko’s shutout with 5:05 to go, it was way too little and way too late.
Sherwood, whose services the Islanders could use right about now, completed his hat trick with an empty-netter.
Of course, there is a worst night of the season for all 32 NHL teams, and the Islanders may well have just had theirs. They are still sitting with a 19-13-3 record, above the playoff cutline, far outstripping preseason expectations and with all their wildest dreams intact.
One game, or even one week, doesn’t change that.
Still, it would be naive not to realize that the Islanders are suddenly in the middle of a rocky patch. They’re 1-2-0 since losing Horvat and, truth be told, have not played well in any of the three games.
There have been positive indications as to Horvat’s timeline — he skated on his own Friday morning and the Islanders kept the door open for him to travel to Buffalo for Saturday’s game.
Even if Horvat is back and ready to go against the Sabres, though, the Islanders are staring down more adversity than they’ve faced all season. Their response to it will be instructive.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
