DENVER — The Islanders got some late magic to win three overtime games in a row.
They couldn’t get a fourth.
Their late luck ran out Sunday, and so did a burgeoning four-game win streak as the Islanders fell short in a 4-1 loss to the Avalanche, their first defeat of this seven-game road trip that still has stops left in Dallas and Detroit.
The Islanders did not play that much worse of a game than they had in Utah or Las Vegas, both overtime wins. And they got the goaltending they needed from Ilya Sorokin.
They were, however, not quite as dangerous off the rush and — outside of the fourth line — not quite as dangerous on the cycle. Mat Barzal’s six-game point streak ended, and this was one of those nights when No. 13 held onto the puck and overskated to his own detriment. Matthew Schaefer, coming off a run of otherworldly games, was merely good.
Still, the Isles looked ready to push in the third period, going into the final 20 minutes trailing 2-1.
They had their chances, getting two power plays in the period’s first 10 minutes. The first, which carried over from the end of the second, came and went. The second was negated when Anders Lee drew an additional roughing call after his fight with Josh Manson.
They got their third of the period, and fourth of the night, with 3:20 to go in the form of a gift from Martin Necas, who put the puck over the glass.
But Scott Wedgewood, stout all night in Colorado’s net, stopped their best chance on Kyle Palmieri’s one-timer from the slot, then got over to deny Bo Horvat on another grade-A look to kill off the penalty. The Avs sealed it shortly thereafter with Martin Necas’ empty-net goal.
They had plenty of looks in between, too, but there was never enough traffic in front of Wedgewood, and the Avalanche goalie was on his game, stifling the Islanders for 57:55 after an early goal.
The Islanders got on the board just 2:05 into the night, when Tony DeAngelo’s shot above the right circle ricocheted off Emil Heineman’s skate and in. Heineman’s ninth goal of the season — one short of his season-long total in Montreal last year — was subject to a quick review for a kicking motion but confirmed.
Colorado took the initiative early in the second, when Ross Colton converted Cale Makar’s feed off the rush to tie the game, and the Avs kept coming from there. Victor Olofsson’s tip from Sam Malinski made it a 2-1 game just 1:19 later.
Max Shabanov proved additive to the fourth line in his return from the upper-body injury suffered a month ago in Ottawa. The newly constituted trio of Shabanov, Cal Ritchie and Casey Cizikas was up the ice often, controlling play, and proved a headache to defend — which is as much as the Islanders can ask from a fourth line that hasn’t delivered much of anything for most of the season.
The defensive zone structure, against an Avalanche team that can get any team in the league moving side to side with ease, largely held strong. Indeed, this was one of the better games from the two defensemen who have struggled most for the Islanders, Tony DeAngelo and Alexander Romanov, the latter of whom had Scott Mayfield back for a partner after No. 24 missed the past two games on paternity leave.
The Islanders hung with this Avs team that still has lost just one game in regulation all season, but they could not deliver the knockout blow.
As losses go, it could have been worse. But there is no sliding scale in the NHL.
