The New York Islanders played about 46 really good minutes of hockey Saturday night.
The remaining 14? Woof.
And head coach Barry Trotz thinks one moment in particular ultimately sank his team.
At 4:02 in the third period, the Bruins got smacked with a too many men on the ice penalty, which Nick Ritchie served. After Boston killed the penalty, Ritchie nearly got a breakaway opportunity but, instead, got sucked into a puck battle in the corner of the offensive zone. After the Bruins won it, possession ultimately made it’s way to Charlie McAvoy, a Long Island native, whose drive from the point put the Bruins ahead 3-2.
Boston would go on to score two more goals to secure the 5-2 victory in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs second-round series.
It was that third goal, Trotz indicated Sunday, that felled the Islanders.
“The game really changed, I thought, when we had the power play and they scored right after the power play,” Trotz said over Zoom. “That, to me, they got a lot of energy in that building, they fed off that and then, obviously, the fourth goal was the nail in the coffin.”
Trotz, rightfully, had started his statement by emphasizing that his team played well in the first two periods, which they did.
New York’s next chance to deliver a 60-minute effort will be Monday in Game 2 of the series.
