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Happy St. Patrick’s Day, Islanders Country 🍀
The only sure thing about luck is that it will change.
The Isles made that happen last night in the third period, and they hope luck will remain on their side for the final 16 games of the season. The Islanders were the hungrier and better team against the defending Stanley Cup champs, but down 2-0 in the third, it felt like yet another find-a-way-to-lose type of game until they found a way to score one goal, then another, and another in stunning fashion.
The floodgates opened all at once for the team and specific players. Marc Gatcomb scored his first goal in 12 games, followed by Maxim Tysplakov, who scored his first in 27. Noah Dobson then scored a brilliant goal for his seventh before Simon Holmstrom’s empty-netter ended a 12-game drought.
Patrick Roy has often used the word ‘resilient’ this season, and there hasn’t been a win that showcased that more than last night. The Islanders are far from a perfect team, but the effort has been there more nights than not, and this time, they were rewarded for the chances they were creating.
I wrote on Friday that this weekend was the beginning of the team’s last stand and that they needed to give the fanbase a reason to believe, even if only for a little longer. With three points against the Oilers and Panthers, they did precisely that and showed that they’re not dead yet and remain very much alive for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference despite their best efforts.
“This weekend we played two top teams in the league. Hard-fought Friday night, able to get one point and tonight in the first 40, we were playing good hockey and it wasn’t going our way, but like the resilience and character the group showed to stick with it, said Dobson. “That’s a huge one, something we can build off.”
They say you’d rather be lucky than good. The Islanders were a bit of both in the third period and will have to continue to be for last night to mean anything.
