Both the Islanders and Rangers hadn’t tasted victory in more than a week, but the Isles proved to be the hungrier of the two.
The Rangers got caught up in a quintessential Islanders game, where every play features a battle along the boards, every player has to grind and the score never exceeds more than three total goals. Naturally, it played into the Isles’ favor, and the Rangers lost, 3-0, for their fourth straight defeat Wednesday night at UBS Arena.
It marked the first time the Blueshirts dropped four in a row since they lost five straight at the end of the truncated 2020-21 season. It was also the first time they had been shut out this season.
“We’re going through a little bit of a stretch here, a little adversity,” captain Jacob Trouba said after the loss, which dropped the Rangers to 3-3-2. “We’re going to face it and work through it.”
The Rangers have put up 87 shots over their last two games, including 41 compared to the Islanders’ 29 on Wednesday, but they have only two goals to show for it. There’s certainly been a shortage of puck luck in the Blueshirts’ corner, in addition to a few stellar performances from opposing goalies.
Isles netminder Ilya Sorokin dropped the curtain on a Rangers team that racked up 16 high-danger chances to post his first shutout of the season.
The Rangers’ offense just hasn’t had the same rhythm with which it started the season. Not only have they not had the puck in the offensive zone during five-on-five play as much as they need to, but they look discombobulated at times, especially when compared to how diligent they were through the first few games of the season.
“An ugly goal would be good, yeah?” Rangers coach Gerard Gallant said. “We had a lot of chances. The guys were in the blue paint. Their goalie played outstanding.”
Part of it could stem from the recent lack of success on the power play, which operates as the heartbeat of their offense. The Rangers haven’t been able to gain much momentum from simply having the man-advantage.
After going 0-for-3 on the power play Wednesday, the Rangers are 1-for-15 in their last four games.
The Islanders, on the other hand, deserve plenty of the credit for stifling the Rangers’ top talent. They have been perfect on the penalty kill this season, going 25-for-25. In showing just how little space they’re willing to give when they’re on their game, the Isles contested every shot and clogged every lane that the Rangers’ usually dominant first power-play unit often exploits.
“Obviously, you want to score more goals and we’re fighting to score goals right now,” Trouba said. “Keep grinding through.”
Kyle Palmieri scored twice for the Islanders, opening the scoring in the second period and capping it late in the third. The two goals sandwiched Josh Bailey’s first goal of the season just over 5 ½ minutes into the final frame.
Overall, it was a spirited matchup between two clubs looking to snap losing streaks. One was always going to succeed and one was always going to skid further. The Rangers just came out on the wrong end of the two outcomes.