24 hours after the 4-2 win in game two, the New York Islanders missed an early entry into the first play-off round. In the third qualifying game against the Florida Panthers, the team of Tom Kühnhackl and Thomas Greiss lost 3-2.
Rescued themselves from the end for the time being: The Florida Panthers after the victory in game three.
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After a goalless first third, Erik Haula gave the Panthers the lead (25th). Jean-Gabriel Pageau equalized in the middle third (37th). At the beginning of the final section, a double strike by Mike Hoffman only 41 seconds after the restart and Brian Boyle (43rd) put the Panthers on course for victory. Brock Nelson’s subsequent goal 87 seconds before the final siren was too little for the Islanders.
“It feels a bit like a missed opportunity. But they have a good team with a good coach and also star power. We have strayed a little from our path, but we know we have to come back there,” said the Islanders coach Barry Despite after the game in which he had preferred Semyon Varlamov to Thomas Greiss for the third time in a row. Tom Kühnhackl, on the other hand, was back in the squad, but with 7:56 minutes he received the least ice time of all Islanders players.
On Friday from 6 p.m., the Islanders now have another chance in game four to advance to the conference quarter-finals.
Kuemper leads Arizona to the series tour
A little surprisingly before the end, the Nashville Predators face the Arizona Coyotes. 24 hours after the Predators’ 4-2 success in game two, coach Rick Tocchet’s team was more effective than anything else in game three with a 4-1 win and is now in the “Best-of-Five” series 2: 1. The success came relatively late due to three goals in the last twelve minutes of regular time – and was not least thanks to goalkeeper Darcy Kuemper, who saved 36 of Nashville’s 37 shots. Coyotes top striker Taylor Hall scored one goal and one assist.
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