3 takeaways from Knights’ loss: 4-game win streak ends in shootout

The Golden Knights tapped into the late-game magic for the second straight game.

They just couldn’t find the one goal to put them over the top.

The Knights rallied to earn a point with a goal in the final minute, but had their four-game winning streak end in a 5-4 shootout against the New York Islanders on Tuesday at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York.

“I liked a lot of our game,” coach Bruce Cassidy said.

Right wing Pavel Dorofeyev snapped a 10-game goal drought when a rebound landed on his stick in front of the crease with 12.1 seconds remaining to tie the score 4-4.

It was the second time in 48 hours the Knights needed a last-minute goal to force extra time. Center Tomas Hertl scored the equalizer with 52 seconds left Sunday against the New York Rangers.

But unlike Sunday, the Knights couldn’t get that winning goal.

Five of New York goaltender Ilya Sorokin’s 33 saves came in overtime. None of the Knights’ four shootout attempts was on target.

Islanders left wing Emil Heineman scored the only goal of the shootout in the fourth round.

“Battling back in the third again, getting that late six-on-five goal there, that was huge for us just to pull away with that point,” defenseman Noah Hanifin said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t get it done in overtime, but some positives to take away from the game.”

Hanifin ended an 11-game drought with his goal, and left wing Mitch Marner scored and had an assist. Goaltender Carter Hart finished with 23 saves.

The Knights (14-6-9) have earned a point in all three of Hart’s starts (2-0-1) and extended their point streak to five games.

“It’s nice to have a point out of this game, that’s for sure,” left wing Ivan Barbashev said. “There’s a lot of good stuff we did today.”

Islanders center Bo Horvat scored twice, including the go-ahead power-play goal with 9:45 remaining to give New York a 4-3 lead.

The Knights led 2-0 in the first period before the Islanders scored three consecutive to take a 3-2 lead into the third.

Here are three takeaways from the loss:

1. Second-period woes again

The middle period used to be a strong point for the Knights when they would get off to slow starts in the first.

Starts haven’t been an issue for them the past few games. The second has been the issue lately, with the Knights allowing seven goals in the past five second periods.

It’s the third time in five games the Knights have allowed two in the period.

They controlled play in the first with a two-goal lead off goals from Hanifin and Marner. Horvat’s first goal came with 27 seconds left to cut it to 2-1.

New York answered with two goals off broken defensive coverage. Center Marc Gatcomb scored on a deflection in front of Hart at 3:56, and left wing Simon Holmstrom scored at 13:30 to give the Islanders the lead.

2. Stars shine

The Knights’ top players came to play with Marner, captain Mark Stone and center Jack Eichel each finishing with two points.

Marner found the back of the net for just the sixth time this season, but scored for the second time in five games to give him seven points in his past seven games.

Stone extended his personal point streak to 13 games with two assists, giving him a point in every game he has played this season.

Eichel, with two assists, recorded his third multipoint game of the five-game trip.

3. Dorofeyev ends slide

The timing couldn’t have been better for Dorofeyev to get on the board.

He blocked a shot with his foot on his first shift. He was called for the hooking penalty at 8:44 of the third that led to Horvat’s second goal.

But the goal, his first since Nov. 16, was a weight off his shoulders. Dorofeyev parked himself near the blue paint off Marner’s shot and cashed in on the six-on-five to force overtime.

“He’s been grinding,” Cassidy said. “I liked the way he scored.”

Dorofeyev hasn’t scored a five-on-five goal since Oct. 28 against Carolina.

Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.