Islanders Sing Same Sad Song In Fifth Straight Loss

 The DJ at UBS Arena tried all he could on Tuesday night.

He played your prototypical stadium rock anthems as well as sing-along favorites such as Bob Marley’s “Three Little Birds” and ABBA’s “Dancing Queen.”

However, the more appropriate soundtrack would’ve been Simon & Garfunkel’s “The Sound of Silence,” as the New York Islanders fell 4-1 to the Carolina Hurricanes for their fifth loss in a row.

Hurricanes forward Seth Jarvis has been known to be a pest on the ice from time to time and was a thorn in the Islanders’ side early on, as he single-handedly gave Carolina a 2-0 lead in the first period.

Locked up in battle with Jean-Gabriel Pageau in front of the Islanders’ net, Jarvis gained control of the puck and immediately tucked it through the legs of a crouching Ilya Sorokin. But even after Jarvis struck again off the rush for his 25th goal of the year, it still felt as if the Islanders had a fighter’s chance.

That was until Martin Necas punched a shot past Sorokin on the power play with 1.1 seconds remaining in the first period.

Despite a less-than-sellout crowd, the boos that serenaded the Islanders as they headed to their dressing room were deafening.

But as the teams returned for the second period, the acoustics had changed. Instead of bellowing their displeasure, the crowd could barely muster anything more than an apathetic murmur as the Islanders spent the majority of the middle frame chasing the Hurricanes and their own tails in the defensive end.

With a little less than seven minutes elapsed in the second period, Carolina held a 24-9 advantage in shots on goal. The Islanders did close that gap as they began to show signs of life in the period’s latter stages, helping Sorokin hold the score in place at 3-0.

Kyle Palmieri got the Islanders on the board at 4:30 of the third period, cleaning up a loose puck for his 22nd goal of the season with assists from Brock Nelson and Bo Horvat.

Still, that was the lone goal the Islanders had against Hurricanes goalie Pyotr Kochetkov, who stopped 30 of 31 shots that came his way.

Sorokin made 31 saves on 34 shots in goal for the Islanders and was spared from having to stop Jake Guentzel’s shot, which hit the empty net to lock in the final score.

With their record falling to 29-24-15, the Islanders sit remain three points back of the final wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference. That position is the property of the Detroit Red Wings, who the Islanders will face on Thursday.

Maybe by then, the Islanders will change their tune.