It is not so much the loss unto itself that is discouraging for the Islanders, but the manner in which it occurred.
Because just when you thought the Islanders were turning the ship around, with points in six straight and wins in three of four and a two-goal lead entering the third period against the Devils, they slipped straight back into the third-period habits that dogged them for the first two weeks of November.
That is to say, the sort of habits that allow an opposing team to take a 4-2 deficit and turn it into a 5-4 win over the span of 20 minutes, leaving the Islanders on a flight to Raleigh with a whole lot to think about.
Things started to go wrong barely five minutes into the third as Mike Reilly lost the puck in the Islanders’ zone, leading to Jack Hughes tying the game on the other end of the ice.
It looked like the Islanders would get a reprieve from New Jersey’s pressure when Jesper Bratt went off for interference at 9:43.
But Mathew Barzal and Simon Holmstrom took penalties of their own to turn a five-on-four into a four-on-three the other way — and from there, Nico Hischier quickly poked in a rebound to tie the game at the 11:10 mark.
Then, in the game’s final minute, just as it was looking like the Islanders would at least get a point, Alexander Holtz poked in a rebound to set the Prudential Center alight, giving New Jersey a decisive lead with 21.5 seconds to go in the game.