Islanders lose in shootout to Wild after getting Pierre Engvall in trade
Islanders left wing Anders Lee, left, and Wild defenseman Jared Spurgeon battle for the puck during the second period of an NHL game Tuesday in St. Paul, Minn. Credit: AP/Abbie Parr
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The forward depth was bolstered earlier in the day as speedy and versatile Pierre Engvall was acquired from the Maple Leafs for a third-round pick in 2024. Then the Islanders played another structured, playoff-like game against the equally stingy Wild.
A lot to like. Just not the final result as the Islanders dropped a 2-1 shootout on Tuesday night at Xcel Energy Center. Still, they earned three of four points on their two-game road trip and maintained a tenuous hold on the Eastern Conference’s first wild-card spot.
“An important one point,” goalie Ilya Sorokin said after making 30 saves. “Now every game is like a playoff game.”
The Islanders (31-25-8), who beat the Jets, 4-0, on Sunday, are 8-3-3 since Jan. 27. But they are 0-5 in shootouts this season as Simon Holmstrom, Bo Horvat and Kyle Palmieri failed to beat Filip Gustavsson (39 saves). Frederic Gaudreau scored the lone shootout goal for the Wild (34-21-6), who are on a 6-0-1 spurt.
“Guys have got to find a way to score,” coach Lane Lambert said. “It’s them and the goalie. They’ve got to find a way to score. That’s all there is to it.”
But Lambert did not want to be negative about his team’s performance.
“We played good, really good,” Lambert said. “Lots of chances. Great structure. Good road game. Total compete. Really a fantastic game. It’s a shame we didn’t get two points. We deserved it.”
The Islanders, after playing too much in their defensive zone in the second period, outshot the Wild 14-6 in the third period and 5-2 in the five-minute three-on-three overtime. But they couldn’t solve Gustavsson, who stretched with his skate blade to deny Palmieri at the net at 1:00 of overtime.
So they now sit one point ahead of the Penguins, in the second wild-card spot and with four games in hand. The Sabres are four points back and have played five fewer games.
“You come on a road trip like this against two good teams, you’ll take three out of four any day,” said Josh Bailey, who scored his first goal in 24 games dating to Dec. 27 to give the Islanders a 1-0 lead at 14:15 of the first period as he knocked in the rebound of defenseman Scott Mayfield’s point shot.
“The second point was there for the taking, we just came up a little short,” Bailey said. “As a group, we’re playing a 200-foot game.”
The Islanders’ schedule eases after this road trip. They next play the Red Wings on Saturday afternoon at UBS Arena, and Engvall is expected to play. The Islanders play just seven games over the first 20 days of March.
“You don’t always get the result you want,” Matt Martin said. “If we play like that, we’re going to win more often than not. It felt like a playoff game in a lot of ways. It was a hard-fought game until the shootout. We’ll take the point and head home and get ready for Detroit.”
Ryan Reaves, the former Ranger, tied it at 1-1 at 18:00 for his first goal with the Wild as he swatted in a rebound of Jordan Greenway’s shot following defenseman Noah Dobson’s turnover. Gustavsson turned aside Horvat’s shot as he kept the puck on a two-on-one with Holmstrom on the previous rush to keep the Wild’s deficit at one.
Reaves also fought Ross Johnston — inserted into the lineup specifically to counter the Wild enforcer —– at 2:06 of the first period. Reaves claimed victory in the heavyweight bout by flexing his right biceps after he and Johnston were separated.
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.
