Canadiens 7, Islanders 3: Quel désastre!

MONTREAL, CANADA - MARCH 21: A scuffle breaks out between the Montréal Canadiens and the New York Islanders during the third period at the Bell Centre on March 21, 2026 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Montréal Canadiens defeated the New York Islanders 7-3. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) | Getty Images After the crushing loss to the Ottawa Senators where they got dominated after an early goal in the third period, the New York Islanders followed that up with a crushing loss to the Montreal Canadiens where they got dominated after an early goal in the third period.

For a team that’s thrived all year on a narrative of gritty comebacks and everyone stepping up, that clearly isn’t the case when the pressure is at its highest. And maybe we’re talking about a different game entirely if Mat Barzal and Matthew Schaefer don’t both hit iron in the second period, the one period the Islanders dominated but ended up down 3-2. But the what ifs don’t matter, because in the biggest games of the season so far, the Islanders couldn’t find ways to win, while all the teams around them are picking up points and jumping ahead of them for a playoff spot they’ve held since the beginning of December.

Anders Lee had 1 point this entire road trip (an admittedly good power play assist tonight), which is not exactly “setting the tone” like he said after the first period of the Ottawa game where he fought Senators captain Brady Tkachuk (who notably did a lot more to set the tone, like, you know, scoring the game winning goal! ) JG Pageau, who signed a three year contract with the team just about two weeks ago, has put up a whopping 2 points in the 7 games since. Bo Horvat hasn’t scored since the game against St.

Louis on March 10th. It’s just not enough from veteran leadership, and it’s not helped by the completely optional defense this team plays, relying solely on whether an 18 year old playing in his first NHL season can magically take over a game. It’s an indictment of Patrick Roy and management that this hasn’t been addressed all season.