After playing a dominant game in Game 1 Saturday night in their East Division second-round playoff series, the Boston Bruins lost home-ice advantage Monday night with a 4-3 overtime loss to the New York Islanders at the TD Garden.
Islanders forward Casey Cizikas scored 14:48 into overtime to even the best-of-seven series at 1-1 Monday night as the series shifts back to Long Island.
Things started out well for the Black and Gold with Boston native Charlie Coyle scoring just 2:36 into the game for a quick 1-0 lead.
OK, Chuck.#NHLBruins | @CharlieCoyle_3 pic.twitter.com/j3M78nRrNa
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) May 31, 2021
The Bruins had several chances to double the lead, but could not beat New York goalie Semyon Varlamov. Slowly, the Islanders took control of the game and did so with three second-period goals from Josh Bailey, Kyle Palmieri, and Jean-Gabriel Pageau for a 3-1 lead.
The Bruins battled back in the third period and tied the game with two goals in the final 10 minutes. Captain Patrice Bergeron cut the deficit to 3-2 with a wrist shot from the slot, before the Islanders took a too-many-men on the ice penalty giving the Black and Gold a power play.
Brad Marchand took full advantage and tied the game when he ripped a wrist shot by Varlamov to tie the game 3-3, sending Game 2 to overtime, where Cizikas scored his first goal of the postseason to even the series.
Having home-ice advantage going into the series was key for Boston, as they lost all four games on Long Island this season and lost them in different ways. They were blown out, lost by a shutout, lost in a shootout, and lost by two goals.
With the series tied, if the Bruins are going to advance, they are going to have to win at least one game on Long Island following Monday night’s loss. Game 3 is Thursday night and Boston’s first crack to win on the Island.