Islanders’ playoff hopes officially dead with crucial offseason decisions ahead

PHILADELPHIA — The Islanders didn’t person to hold connected nan Canadiens.

They sewage nan suspense retired of nan measurement early connected Saturday, losing to nan Flyers 4-3 connected Bobby Brink’s shootout victor to constitute successful ink what’s been clear for a mates weeks now, that nan Islanders won’t beryllium going to nan playoffs. 

Having mislaid 8 of their past 10 coming into Saturday, nan play flying disconnected nan rails after a arguable goaltender interference call reversed Kyle Palmieri’s evident game-winner against nan Blue Jackets backmost connected March 24, nan mobility of whether nan Islanders would beryllium eliminated connected Saturday aliases Sunday, via a nonaccomplishment aliases a Canadiens victory, was simply academic.

If you’ve spent immoderate clip watching nan Islanders complete nan past week, they’ve checked each container of a squad playing retired nan string. Defense has go optional, physicality moreover much so, nan games taking connected a decidedly preseason feel. 

For 2 periods and alteration connected Saturday, it looked for illustration nan Islanders would astatine slightest get nan consolation prize of forcing nan Canadiens to destruct them later successful nan day.

Instead, aft nan Islanders took a 2-1 lead into nan 3rd period, nan Flyers started to return advantage of a defense that had looked leaky each afternoon, pinch Owen Tippett scything done nan Islanders connected nan unreserved and feeding Jakob Pelletier to necktie nan crippled astatine nan 4:29 people earlier assisting Tyson Foerster conscionable complete six minutes later to springiness nan Flyers a 3-2 lead.

Bo Horvat tied nan crippled pinch a infinitesimal near successful regulation, his changeable astatine six-on-five bouncing disconnected a Flyer and in, but 1 constituent wasn’t capable for nan Islanders. 

The Islanders sewage thing other from there, going scoreless successful overtime and nan shootout alike, pinch Samuel Ersson stopping Kyle Palmieri’s effort to seal it.

To make matters worse, Pierre Engvall suffered what appeared to beryllium a non-contact wounded to his near knee successful nan last minutes of regulation., skating disconnected pinch nan trainer without immoderate weight connected his near side.

Now nan questions can, officially, move inward up of what is group to beryllium a pivotal summertime for nan organization. No. 1 connected nan docket is nan copy futures of wide head Lou Lamoriello and coach Patrick Roy, which will request to beryllium addressed erstwhile nan play wraps connected Thursday.

And aft questions surrounded Lamoriello for overmuch of nan year, nan late-season implosion shifted nan spotlight complete to Roy, whose squad came up short successful his first afloat twelvemonth down nan bench.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST NHL STANDINGS AND ISLANDERS STATS

Just arsenic pressing arsenic nan club’s faulty grounds were immoderate of Roy’s actions complete nan past mates weeks, namely ripping into Anthony Duclair truthful harshly aft a nonaccomplishment to Tampa that Duclair took a time off of absence and Roy’s bizarre determination to bring Tristan Lennox into Friday’s nonaccomplishment to nan Rangers and past return him retired aft seeing conscionable 2 shots, embarrassing nan youngster successful his NHL debut.

Those aren’t nan only times Roy has raised eyebrows this play — his early-season burying of Samuel Bolduc and yearlong curen of Pierre Engvall travel to mind, pinch Engvall being nan clearest illustration of a rift betwixt Roy and Lamoriello that’s been rumored for months.

At nan opening of nan year, it was thought that aft getting nan Lane Lambert prosecute wrong, Lamoriello mightiness not beryllium capable to alteration coaches again truthful soon, if that was thing he moreover wanted to do. If it’s 1 aliases nan other, though, Roy has fixed nan wide head plentifulness of grounds to build a lawsuit to ownership.

That, of course, goes nan different way, too. The commencement of Lamoriello’s tenure marked nan franchise’s astir successful years since nan Dynasty and if not for a fewer what-ifs, it’s easy to image nan 2020 aliases 2021 runs to nan NHL’s last 4 having ended successful championships.

It looks clear now, though, that nan group Lamoriello stuck down for years aft that has gone stale. Trading Brock Nelson astatine nan waste and acquisition deadline started nan process of remaking it, but it’s reasonable for ownership to inquire whether Lamoriello is nan personification to spot that process out.

In a summertime of immense decisions, these are nan 2 biggest facing nan organization