The modern Islanders set an NHL record Sunday on a day when the franchise honored the players that delivered four Stanley Cups to the franchise 25 years ago. This new record, unfortunately, was not one they could be proud of. The Isles took 53 shots on net but failed to score a goal on Panthers' backup Craig Anderson. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, that is the most shots on goal taken by a losing team in a shutout since shots became an official NHL statistic in 1955. David Booth scored the only goal of the game midway through the first period in a 1-0 Florida victory. Wade Dubielewicz got the start for the Islanders and made 29 saves in a losing cause.

"We had at least 25 to 30 good opportunities," said head coach Ted Nolan. "They worked hard. They threw everything at the kid, especially in the second period. The way the team worked, you couldn't ask for anything more. You have to give their goaltender credit. He made some real big saves. He didn't give us too much on the second and third shots."

The only goal of the game came at the 9:57 mark of the opening period. Dubielewicz saved an Olli Jokinen shot with his paddle but the rebound came to Booth in between the circles. He took a wrist shot that deflected off the skate of the Isles' Josef Vasicek and into the net.

"I was trying to keep the puck from going back door and keep it on the strong side of the ice," Dubielewicz said. "But I didn't get my paddle far enough around and the puck ended up going straight out onto Booth's stick."

In the second period, the Isles set a franchise record with 29 shots on goal but still couldn't solve Anderson. The Panther goalie was quick to praise his teammates for their effort.

"A lot went untold there,” Anderson said. “A lot of guys were blocking shots, a lot of guys were collapsing, putting their faces on the line. Most of the shots were from the outside. They did a good job of clogging up the middle and allowing me to see the puck. A lot of times, I got point shots that hit me in the chest.”

The Islanders had plenty of chances to score but Anderson was equal to the task every time. Mike Comrie was open early in the second period but his shot clanked off the post. Trent Hunter tipped a shot by Ruslan Fedotenko 6:13 into the period but Anderson made a pad save. Later, Blake Comeau hustled to negate an icing and then set up Jeff Tambellini for a wrist, shot but it landed squarely in Anderson's chest.

Despite the high number of shots, the Islanders struggled to get to rebounds and didn't get too many second or third chances to score. After two critical losses this weekend, the frustration was clearly starting to build in the Islander locker room.

"We threw everything at him," Fedotenko said after the game. "No excuses. We need to score the goal...It shouldn't be that difficult to put that little black puck in that big net."

“I think the most frustrating thing is letting four points slip away this weekend,” Comrie said. “In similar games, we get a lot of shots, but I think we make the goalies look better than they are. We’ve got to get quality shots and get traffic in front of the net. Everybody’s got to step up.”

Nolan was more succinct as the Isles head into a home-and-home series against the Rangers this week sitting five points out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference standings. "The make or break point is definitely here."

Notes

Defenseman Bruno Gervais left the game in the first period after taking a hard check along the boards from Branislav Mezei. He suffered a mild concussion and a bruised thigh and did not return. He will be evaluated further on Monday.

Every Islander player had at least one shot on goal in the game. Trent Hunter led the team with seven while Richard Park added six.

The Islanders also won 73 percent of the face-offs in the game, led by Josef Vasicek who won 7-of-8 draws and Mike Comrie who took 7 out of 10.

The club also announced that they would hold an alumni weekend every season in conjunction with the induction of new players into the team's Hall of Fame.