Islanders lose to Penguins again but keep it close this time

PITTSBURGH — This one was competitive and suspenseful until the empty-net clincher. But it was still a loss to the Penguins, a team the Islanders very much wanted to beat.

“We liked our chances to win, even down two goals,” said defenseman Samuel Bolduc, who halved the deficit in the third period. “Compared to last time that we played them, it was a lot closer game.”

Goalie Alex Nedeljkovic was the difference as the surging Penguins won, 3-1, on Sunday night at PPG Paints Arena with the Islanders opening a four-game road trip.

The Penguins handed them their worst loss of the season, 7-0, at UBS Arena on Wednesday, including a humiliating six-goal second period.

“Overall, I thought we played a good game,” said Casey Cizikas, who was denied on three Grade-A chances, including a first-period breakaway. “It was a tight game the entire time. Their goalie made a lot of big saves.”

The Islanders (17-10-9) rebounded from Wednesday’s beatdown with an energetic 60-minute effort in Friday’s 5-1 win over the visiting Capitals, leading them to believe they could deliver a little payback to the Penguins. Instead, they ended their season-high stretch of five straight games against Metropolitan Division opponents with a 2-2-1 mark.

The loss spoiled the return of defenseman Scott Mayfield after an eight-game absence because of an upper-body injury.

“I thought we did some good things but we just couldn’t find a way tonight,” Mayfield said. “That first power play, I think three or four of those saves we could have had.”

Ilya Sorokin, making his fourth straight start, stopped 35 shots.

Nedeljkovic made 37 saves for the Penguins (18-13-4), who are on a 5-0-1 run and were coming off a 4-2 win over the visiting Blues on Saturday night.

That included 14 saves in the first period, turning aside Cizikas’ breakaway at 1:54 and Cizikas’ one-timer from low in the left circle at 6:04.

Nedeljkovic also had a sequence on the Islanders’ lone first-period power play in which he stretched his right pad to deny Kyle Palmieri from in tight, then sprawled and reached up from his backside to deny Brock Nelson from the right circle at 12:59 before his mask flew off.

The Islanders were 0-for-2 on the power play and have gone five games without a man-advantage goal.

“I wouldn’t use the word frustrating,” coach Lane Lambert said. “It’s disappointing. We played well enough to win the hockey game. I thought both goalies played well. We had some real good looks and didn’t get it by him, or couldn’t get it by him. That was the difference in the game. It was a game with chances both ways and we had plenty of opportunities.”

The Penguins came up ice on a two-on-one rush immediately after Nedeljkovic stopped Cizikas’ first-period breakaway and Jansen Harkins fed Lars Eller at the right post for a 1-0 lead at 2:18. Eller also had an empty-netter with 42.1 seconds remaining in regulation to clinch the win.

In the third period, Nedeljkovic stopped Cizikas at the crease with his left pad at 3:23, then denied Mathew Barzal’s backhander and Anders Lee’s follow at the crease at 4:11.

Bolduc’s first goal of the season, from the left circle, ended Nedeljkovic’s shutout bid and brought the Islanders within 2-1 at 13:51 of the third period.

“It always feels good to score a goal,” Bolduc said. “At the end of the day, you always want the end result to be in your favor.”

Noel Acciari, posting up Mayfield at the crease, deflected Drew O’Connor’s feed from the right through Sorokin’s pads to make it 2-0 at 2:20 of the second period.

By Andrew Gross

andrew.gross@newsday.comAGrossNewsday

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.