Takeaways: Islanders Wrap Preseason With 4-1 Loss to Devils
The Islanders wrap up preseason with a 1-3-0 record
By Cory Wright NewYorkIslanders.com September 27, 2026 Link copied The New York Islanders closed out the preseason on a losing note, falling 4-1 to the New Jersey Devils at UBS Arena.
Luke Evangelista (2G) scored twice, while Arseny Gritsyuk and Dougie Hamilton also scored for New Jersey, who built a 4-0 lead by the end of the second period. Simon Holmstrom scored the lone goal for the Islanders, breaking Jake Allen’s shutout bid with 4:39 to play.
With the loss, the Islanders close out the preseason with a 1-3-0 record – effectively 1-1-0 on nights they iced a veteran-heavy lineup.
“I really liked parts of it,” Head Coach Pete DeBoer said of the team’s preseason. “The Ranger game, I really liked how we looked and how we played. Tonight, I didn't.”
“You don't want to overreact,” DeBoer added. “Tonight wasn't our best night, and thank God it didn't cost us two points.”
DeBoer and the Islanders acknowledged that it’s still a work in progress for the team to adapt to new systems. The Islanders were outshot 26-15 on Saturday and only generated five high-danger chances at five-on-five (per Natural Stat Trick) compared to 11 for New Jersey.
Defensive breakdowns led to the Devils' third and fourth goals and a handful of other quality chances and the Islanders offense passed up a few too many shooting opportunities. Matthew Schaefer (upper body) and Brayden Schenn (lower body) were held out for precautionary reasons, and coupled with Mathew Barzal (knee) and Tony DeAngelo out of the lineup likely added to the Isles low shot and chance totals.
“We got just outskated and outworked in general tonight, so that's not a system adjustment thing,” Kyle Palmieri said. “Turn the page on the preseason here and get ourselves ready for Toronto on Wednesday.”