New York Islanders Put Forth An Awkward Effort In Game 4

The New York Islanders game 4 was a tight-checking, defensive affair between two teams that did not want to surrender a goal. It was a 1-0 loss to the St. Louis Blues in St. Louis. The game was an odd 0-0 tie when regulation time expired. In the game, the New York Islanders earned a so-called "Loser Point" which is unique to hockey and explained below. This was the second time in four games that the Islanders were shut out, a concerning sign.

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A 0-0 Tie

Islanders game 4 was a statical oddity. The New York Islanders and the St. Louis Blues had a 0-0 tie after regulation. The last time a regular season game ended in a 0-0 tie was October 19, 2013, between the New Jersey Devils and these same New York Islanders ironically. Some would say the game was boring, but the excitement of a potential first goal was palpable and the New York Islanders almost scored several times. Frankly, it was befuddling how the puck did not go into the net.

What is more troublesome was that the New York Islanders were shut out for the second time in four games, they were also shut out in Dallas. The lack of scoring for the Islanders is troubling. They better figure out how to put the puck in the back of the net. They have the talent to score goals and they must. The Islanders' big goal-scorers need to score goals.

Loser Points Explained

In the National Hockey League, a team can lose and still get a point. That team gets a point because they made it to overtime and then either lost in overtime or, if the score was tied after overtime, in a shootout. The overtime periods are five minutes long and are 3-on-3. The shootout is three shots long and if the teams are still tied they now take extra shootout shots and the game must now have a winner.

At any rate, if a team surrenders a goal in the overtime period or loses in the shootout, they lose the game but still get a point. This is the so-called "loser point" and the New York Islanders got sixteen of those loser points last year and already have two this year. These points are bad because the team that loses could have gotten two points if they had scored in overtime or scored more goals than the opposition in the shootout. This is what happened to the Islanders last night.

Second Shut Out In Four Games For New York Islanders

Not scoring goals is a big problem for a hockey club. This is what happened on Thursday night. The Islanders are susceptible to these problems as their lineup is somewhat top-heavy. There is a big gap between the top two lines and the bottom two lines. What is particularly worrisome about the New York Islanders is that they have a lot of older players.

Captain Anders Lee is a good example. Lee scored forty goals, a very good output, in 2017-18, but only scored 20 last season. Lee got old in a hurry and probably no longer deserves to wear the Captain's C. He needs to get off to a fast start. The scoring summary in Islanders game 4 was pretty easy, there was only one goal. Jake Neighbors scored the winning goal at 2:08 of overtime.

Conclusion

Last season, one of the biggest challenges for the Islanders was their inconsistency. Some nights, they struggled to perform, while on others, they looked like the best hockey team in the world. This pattern continued in game 4, where, after several lackluster performances, the Islanders played exceptionally well. It will be interesting to see which team shows up when they face Montreal on October 19 as this game will be a significant test.

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Article originally written by Kevin Sweeney