Monday’s game at Wells Fargo Center featured two teams on the outside looking in on the playoff picture. For the New York Islanders, a recent big-name acquisition could set the stage for a playoff push. For the Flyers, there will need to be some serious movement in the standings.
The Islanders got the better of the Flyers in this game, using a strong first period to set the foundation and showcasing a clinical closeout effort in the third period of a 2-1 Flyers loss.
The Islanders dominated the opening period, leading in shots, 15-7. They had an early chance swept out of the crease from right along the goal line, and another chance hit the post.
Finally, at 17:07, the Islanders finally cashed in on the power play. Kyle Palmieri took a feed from Josh Bailey and sped up the left wing, firing a shot that beat Carter Hart to make it 1-0.
Early in the second, the Flyers had the early pushed and narrowed the gap in shots, holding the Islanders without a shot for the first seven minutes of the period. But at 8:18, the Islanders got positioning and used it to their advantage.
Mathew Barzal scored on a tip-in, burying the feed of Noah Dobson to make it 2-0 with his 13th goal of the season.
Just 2:21 later, the Flyers got on the board thanks to the fourth line. A point shot by Tony DeAngelo was deflected in by Nicolas Deslauriers for his third goal of the season, making it a 2-1 game.
Through two periods, shots were 23-18 Islanders.
In the third, shots were limited. The Flyers had just eight shots to the Islanders seven, but many of those were non-threatening. The only power-play chance of the period also went to the Flyers and went by the wayside.
Semyon Varlamov finished with 25 saves on 26 shots in the win. Hart made 28 saves on 30 shots in the loss.
The Flyers get back on the ice on Thursday night to take on the Edmonton Oilers at 7 p.m.
Box Score
| 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
| Islanders | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Flyers | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Scoring Summary
1st Period
- NYI Kyle Palmieri (7) PP (Josh Bailey, Sebastian Aho) 17:07
2nd Period
- NYI Mathew Barzal (13) (Noah Dobson, Brock Nelson) 8:18
- PHI Nicolas Deslauriers (3) (Tony DeAngelo, Nick Seeler) 10:39
3rd Period
- No Scoring
Game Statistics
| Islanders | Flyers | |
| Shots | 30 | 26 |
| Power Play | 1/3 | 0/2 |
| Hits | 27 | 32 |
| Faceoff % | 54.8% | 45.2% |
| Giveaways | 6 | 11 |
| Takeaways | 4 | 6 |
| Blocked Shots | 19 | 17 |
| Penalty Minutes | 4 | 6 |
