"The shadows of doubt began to creep closer toward the fringes of the Islanders' ranks. The significant absences were becoming apparent. Top-six winger Kyle Palmieri, who scored 54 goals over the previous two seasons, has been done for the season since November. So has the invaluable defenseman, Alex Romanov. A team that had defied expectations all season was beginning to slow, with losses in five of their previous eight games, including a 5-0 drubbing at the hands of the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon"
"The offense was growing inconsistent, and a sagging defense that had allowed three or more goals in six of those games was dealt another blow with veteran blue-liner Ryan Pulock potentially facing a stint on injured reserve. The effort was also being called into question. Mathew Barzal, Anthony Duclair, and captain Anders Lee were benched for the entire third period on Saturday after the former two failed to back-check on a Sabres goal with 11.4 seconds left in the second period."
Significant injuries sidelined key Islanders including winger Kyle Palmieri (out since November) and defenseman Alex Romanov, with veteran Ryan Pulock potentially facing injured reserve. The team lost five of eight games, including a 5-0 loss to Buffalo, and allowed three or more goals in six outings. Mathew Barzal, Anthony Duclair and captain Anders Lee were benched for the third period after back-checking lapses, raising questions about effort. The Islanders dropped from second to third in the Metropolitan Division and held only a two-point lead over the fourth-place Flyers. The team traveled through a blizzard, canceled practice, and won 4-0 in Philadelphia, with Duclair adding two assists, Barzal scoring, and Jean-Gabriel Pageau scoring a short-handed first-period goal.
Read at www.amny.com
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