It doesn’t take long in a playoff series for a narrative or controversy to kind of take hold. Every game is so important, and the outcome of each game has such wild potential swings — 1-1 or 0-2, 3-0 or 2-1, 3-1 or 2-2, etc. — that every big moment is magnified in importance.
So it was in Game 2, where the Isles had a late lead but lost it, which paved the way for a controversial overtime goal that highlighted the penalty disparity and left the Islanders heading home trailing 2-0 instead of tied 1-1.
I try (usually successfully) to not dwell on officiating, and I try not to get too caught up when a missed call happens in the vicinity of a pivotal moment — calls are missed constantly, and officials’ human flaws are exacerbated by the high-stakes playoffs.