The New York Islanders never trailed Tuesday night against the Washington Capitals, but they lost 5-4 anyway after Matt Hendricks netted a backhand against Evgeni Nabokov in the fourth round of the shootout.
The Islanders were up 4-1 late in the second period before Alex Ovechkin kicked off a really for the Capitals. The Washington captain scored twice on tip-ins. The first came with under one minute to go in the period. The second tied the game at four goals apiece just inside the 10-minute mark of the third period to eventually send the game to overtime.
The Islanders led 2-0 after the first period. The first goal was shot by Matt Moulson and deflected off of John Tavares into the end boards behind the Caps' net. Mike Neuvirth stood up and turned around to follow the flight of the puck. He mishandled it as it hit him in the stomach and rolled into the net for what was technically Moulson's 30th goal of the year.
Tavares also reached the 30-goal mark Tuesday, scoring twice in the second period, once off another deflection (this time off the skate of John Carlson). Neuvirth and Nabokov had 30 and 28 saves, respectively. Tavares and Ovechkin were the only players to score during the shootout until Hendricks knocked in the winner over.
The loss was the Isles' fourth straight, though they will still be credited with a point for sending the game to a shootout after overtime. They will host the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday before kicking off a five-game road stand starting in Montreal on Saturday.
For more on Islanders hockey, check out the SB Nation blog Lighthouse Hockey.