New York Islanders' Hapless Powerplay Seals 3-2 Loss to Ducks (Highlights)
ANAHEIM, CA - OCTOBER 11: John Gibson #36 and Cam Fowler #4 of the Anaheim Ducks defend against Anders Lee #27 of the New York Islanders during the second period of a game at Honda Center on October 11, 2017 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

Despite out-shooting the Ducks 41-30, the New York Islanders’ powerplay damns them in a frustrating loss to Anaheim.

  • New York Islanders (1-2-1, 3 pts) 2
  • Anaheim Ducks (2-1-1, 5 pts) 3
  • NHL Final, Box Score
  • Honda Center, Anaheim, CA

0/5, 0/14.

That’s the number of powerplays the Islanders had in Wednesday night’s contest, and how many powerplays they haven’t converted on this season.

Coming out of the first period, it seemed the New York Islanders had this one in the bag. They were outplaying the Ducks by a wide margin, going up 21-6 in shots but leaving the period tied 1-1.

Anaheim struck early on, less than a minute into the game, and the ominous feeling was hard to shake from there. The Islanders peppered goalie John Gibson — who entered the night with a .909 save percentage — but he stood to the test turning aside all but two of the Islanders’ 41 chances.

Truthfully, the most frustrating aspect of tonight’s game wasn’t that the Islanders played poorly. They played pretty well, it was a tangible missing element that should be drilled into this team by now, especially on that first line.

Take a look again at the first goal. What was different about that shot?

Traffic in front of Gibson.

Anders Lee’s job on that top line and on the powerplay should be primarily to use his frame to screen the netminder, but the Islanders struggled to sustain pressure and get traffic in front.

Brock Nelson‘s second goal of the game was a slick wrist-shot that beat Gibson’s glove, and that would cap it off for the Islanders scoring.

With the results the Islanders’ powerplay has produced — which is nothing — you’d have to imagine that Ryan Pulock slots in Saturday night against San Jose. Some players are making it hard to remove them from the lineup, but there are some notable suspects that haven’t been playing to capacity.

I’m talking about you, Calvin de Haan.

de Haan can be much better than he has been playing, and sitting for a few games while Pulock fires bombs from the point can help him clear his mind.

The Islanders faceoff against the San Jose Sharks on Saturday night at the SAP Center. Coverage begins at 10 p.m. on MSG+.

Grew up a diehard Islanders and Mets fan based out of Northern New Jersey. Concluding my Broadcast Communications degree at William Paterson University. WP Sportsdesk member, Stan Fischler correspondent, music buff and total Star Wars freak. Follow my social media handles to learn more. Matt Di Giacomo is a Staff Writer for the Islanders on Elite Sports NY. He encourages team discussion. Tweet him @mdigiacESNY and check out his reviews on YouTube.