The Islanders couldn’t come up with a third successive magical final period in a row.
Instead, their game Saturday against the Capitals functioned as a trip back down to Earth after they had swept through three opponents in the wild-card race, and the Islanders lost 5-1 at UBS Arena to give Washington’s playoff chances a gasp of air.
The Capitals looked like the more energized team and had the easier time getting north as the Islanders, one man healthier with the return of Cal Clutterbuck, couldn’t seem to find the right line combinations. Then, with 7:42 to go, Nic Dowd put a bow on the Capitals’ victory with a wrister past Semyon Varlamov. Fifty-nine seconds later, Rasmus Sandin’s wrister floated in to pour salt on the wound.
But it was not even 90 seconds later that Dylan Strome drew the Capitals level with a wrist shot that beat Varlamov nearside.T.J. Oshie gave Washington the lead with just 47 seconds left in the first period, tapping a pass from Sandin into an unguarded net following a defensive breakdown. Given the chemistry between Casey Cizikas and Hudson Fasching, that was a foreseeable issue, but still one the Islanders may need time to work through.
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