Semyon Varlamov, and the goalie alone, kept the Islanders in it against the NHL-leading Avalanche through two periods, despite an onslaught of turnovers and onesided play.
Which is to say, the Islanders’ 5-4 loss on Monday night at UBS Arena as they continue a six-game homestand was not on their netminder as they gave up a season-high 49 shots.
The Avalanche finally capitalized on their tactical advantage to score four goals in four minutes, 21 seconds of the third period to take a 5-1 lead before the Islanders’ frantic push fell just short.
Brock Nelson, with the Islanders skating six-on-five, made it 5-4 with 26.2 seconds left.
The Islanders (21-24-8) still have not won consecutive games since a three-game winning streak from Jan. 17-21. Nor have they won consecutive games in regulation since Nov. 4-6. They remain 19 points out of the Eastern Conference’s final wild-card spot.
The Islanders also fell to 4-18-2 against teams in playoff positions, having been outscored 83-47.
Varlamov, the hard-luck loser for the sixth straight time dating to Jan. 22, finished with a season-high 44 saves.
Pavel Francouz stopped 32 shots for the Avalanche (41-11-5), who snapped a two-game losing streak as defenseman Cale Makar scored twice and Nathan MacKinnon had a goal and two assists with a game-high eight shots.
MacKinnon finally put the Avalanche ahead, 2-1, at 4:06 of the third period, five seconds after an Avalanche power play expired. J.T. Compher pushed it to 3-1 at 6:34, leaving Oliver Wahlstrom to smash his stick against the goal post. Makar then added his second goal at 7:41 and ex-Islanders defenseman Devon Toews, who received a first-period video tribute, made it 5-1 at 8:27.
Anders Lee, returning to the lineup after missing one game for personal reasons, cut it to 5-2 at 11:58 with his second power-play goal of the game and Casey Cizikas, pouncing on a loose puck near the crease, pulled the Islanders within 5-3 at 13:28.
The Islanders dropped a 5-3 decision in Colorado on March as the Avalanche scored three, third-period goals.
The Islanders entered Monday’s game coming off Saturday’s impressive team effort in a 2-1 win over the Blues, which snapped a two-game losing streak.
"They’re one of the benchmarks in the league," coach Barry Trotz said of the Avalanche. "We’ve played a lot of the top teams this last little bit and it just makes you better. But you’ve got to bring your A game to survive against these teams."
The Avalanche dominated five-on-five play in the second period as the Islanders struggled to navigate through the neutral zone with both forced and unforced turnovers. The Avalanche even outshot them, 4-1, on the Islanders’ lone second-period power play.
But Varlamov kept the game tied at 1 with his best save of the game, reaching back with his paddle to stop Makar at the post at 5:36. He also reached out with his glove to stop Makar’s wrist shot from the slot with 19.6 seconds to go.
The Islanders actually should have taken a one-goal lead into the second period but Josh Bailey pulled his backhander wide of the near post starting at an open net at 18:31.
Varlamov made 19 first-period saves as the teams traded power-play goals. That including stuffing Nazem Kadri getting to the crease at 10:02, then stopping Nathan MacKinnon’s long-range shot through traffic and Mikko Rantanen’s follow in tight at 12:52.
Lee, getting below the left circle to redirect defenseman Noah Dobson’s feed, gave the Islanders a 1-0 lead at 8:59 of the first period but Makar, extending his point streak to 12 games, lasered home a shot from the top of the left circle to tie it at 1 at 14:18.
