Islanders prevail over the Flyers, 4-1, extending skid to eight games

ELMONT, N.Y. — While the Flyers inched closer to full health with the return of defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen to the lineup against the New York Islanders on Monday, they didn’t inch any closer to finding a way to put together a complete 60 minutes.

The Metropolitan Division’s eighth-place Islanders controlled the pace of the game for most of its duration, especially in the third period, in their 4-1 victory over the Flyers. Despite having four power-play opportunities, the Flyers couldn’t capitalize on any of them and found themselves handing the momentum to the Islanders during their own man advantages.

“Some of those, we weren’t even able to get in the zone,” defenseman Ivan Provorov said. “I know there’s been a lot of changes on the power play, but that shouldn’t be an excuse. At least, out of the four, we should be able to create momentum on at least half of the opportunities.”

The Flyers were nearly as productive on the penalty kill as they were on the power play. In the second period, center Scott Laughton and winger Cam Atkinson put a couple of shorthanded shots on goalie Ilya Sorokin, but neither found the back of the net.

With their loss to the Islanders, the Flyers have dropped the last eight straight and are still searching for their first win of 2022.

“At this point, you just have to commit to doing everything right,” winger Travis Konecny said. “And no matter what the outcome of the game is, just do everything in your control that you can do to be on the right side of the puck to make the next play. And that’s the only way that you’re going to get out of these slides.”

After the Flyers failed to register a shot on goal against the New York Rangers until the 11-minute mark of the first period, they had a stronger start against the Islanders. Winger Oskar Lindblom notched the game’s first shot on goal just 15 seconds into the first period, sparking a bit of momentum for the visiting team. Then, less than 30 seconds into the first period, winger Joel Farabee drew a holding penalty against Scott Mayfield, sending the Flyers to their first power play of the night.

Despite the man advantage, the Flyers and their 25th-ranked power play struggled to generate a sustained offensive attack for two minutes, as sloppy play led to several self-clears. Captain Claude Giroux registered the lone shot on goal. Following the Flyers’ power play, the Islanders surged offensively, peppering goalie Martin Jones with a few shots. The Flyers went on the power play for a second time in the first period, and once again they struggled with clean passes and entries. The Islanders generated a two-on-one rush between forwards Zach Parise and Jean-Gabriel Pageau, but Jones denied Parise’s shot. After a strong opening minute, the Flyers fizzled quickly, reflecting their inability to sustain momentum and dictate play as of late.

After hanging in throughout a shaky first period, the Flyers’ inability to build momentum on the power play bled into the second period. Just as the Flyers’ third man advantage (a Josh Bailey high-sticking minor) of the night expired, the Islanders pounced. Provorov struggled to corral a puck in the neutral zone and Bailey took control of it. He dropped the puck off for Brock Nelson as he entered the zone, and Nelson held on to the puck, waiting for Ristolainen to move out of his shooting lane. Nelson’s wrist shot beat Jones over his left shoulder and put the Islanders up, 1-0.

“It was a puck in the air, so I was trying to kick it back, but it kind of hit my foot and died right there,” Provorov said of his play in the neutral zone. “So their guy picked it up, walked it to the goal, and he dropped it. That play happens so many times during the game. As a D, that’s what you have to do, let him kick it out. And hopefully be able to block it. But their guy just made a nice shot.”

For six of their last seven games, the Flyers have allowed the first goal of the night. Playing from behind hasn’t proved to be a successful tactic for the Flyers this season — going into Monday’s game, the Flyers were 2-15-2 whenthey gave up the first goal. The Islanders’ momentum only grew after their first tally, as center Casey Cizikas tipped a Robin Salo point shot past Jones to put them up 2-0 less than three minutes later.

For nearly two months, winger Travis Konecny had been on the hunt for his 100th NHL goal. He had been stuck on 99 dating back to Nov. 18 with his goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning. His inability to score hasn’t been due to a lack of effort — dating back to Nov. 18, Konecny ranked second on the team in shots on goal (55) behind Atkinson (75).

Finally, Konecny shook off his scoring slump on a fluky goal in the second period. Konecny carried the puck into the offensive zone down the right wing with speed, and attempted a pass to Laughton on the left side. However, Konecny’s pass went high and deflected off defenseman Noah Dobson. Sorokin tried to swat the puck with his right arm, but it snuck past him, pulling the Flyers within one. Alas, scoring one goal wasn’t enough for the Flyers to overcome the Islanders.

“Laughts was wide there, and I was trying to get it over him,” Konecny said. “I mean, lucky bounce to be honest. Kind of bittersweet. But I’ll take it.”

» READ MORE: As skid extends to seven games, Flyers struggling to play complete games

The Flyers return to the Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday for the second night of a home-and-home against the Islanders at 7 p.m. (ESPN+).