Suddenly everything going wrong as Islanders fall out of first

The Islanders had gone nearly three months without losing successive games in regulation, and more than six weeks owning at least a share of first place in the suddenly tightening Metropolitan Division.

Both of those impressive, if wholly unexpected, accomplishments fell by the wayside in Sunday’s ugly 4-1 loss to the Flyers at the Coliseum. It notably marked the Isles’ second straight home defeat since the throaty night of catharsis for their fans and franchise on Thursday in John Tavares’ “We Don’t Need You” return to Long Island.

Coupled with the Capitals’ bizarre shootout victory earlier Sunday against the Rangers, the Isles dropped out of first place for the first time since Jan. 18, when they took over the division lead with a victory in coach Barry Trotz’s return to Washington.

“Teams are coming … It just seems like everyone is winning, and we have to keep pace,” said forward Jordan Eberle, who engaged in a rare fight in the third period to try to spark the Isles. “I know we had put up a little bit of leeway [in the standings], but that’s gone now.

“We have to find a way, and the biggest game is the next one. We need to find that desperation in our game again.”

The Isles, who face the dead-last and trade-depleted Senators at the Coliseum on Tuesday and then in Ottawa two days later, fell to 2-4-1 over their past seven games, including losses in three of the first four (all of the non-Tavares entries) of this critical five-game homestand. They also scored just once in Friday’s 3-1 defeat to the Caps.

And now, after dropping two in a row in regulation for the first time since Dec. 4-6, the Isles sit just three points ahead of third-place Carolina in the Metro, and six clear of No. 9 Columbus in the Eastern Conference pending the Blue Jackets’ game Sunday night against Winnipeg.

“I’ve been in this a long time and I always say you’re gonna have stretches of 10 games, when good teams are going to have those 8-1-1 records, and then the next 10 you’re gonna have to grind through it,” Trotz said. “You’re gonna go through a 10-game stretch where it isn’t easy. You don’t get the goaltending, the power play doesn’t click, whatever.

“But you’re gonna have to grind through it. Right now, I think we have to grind through stuff.”

Ace goalie Robin Lehner was pulled barely three minutes into the second period, his shortest stint of the year, while counterpart Brian Elliot made 29 stops for the rolling Flyers. Philly improved to 16-3-2 over its past 21 games under former Isles coach Scott Gordon to climb back into the playoff race, five points behind No. 8 Montreal.

The Flyers netted the only two goals of the initial 20 minutes, with Travis Konecny opening the scoring with a unimpeded beeline to the net from the left wall at 8:21. The Isles (37-21-7) fell behind by two when no one cleared a rebound in front of Lehner for several seconds before Travis Sanheim scooped the puck over Lehner’s left shoulder with 5:01 left in the period.

Scott Laughton also was left alone in the slot and scored 3:18 into the second, prompting Trotz to spare Lehner and replace him with Thomas Greiss. Sean Couturier was credited with his 27th when the puck bounded in off his skate at the left post for a 4-0 game at 15:14.

A chorus of boos sent the Isles to the dressing room at the end of the period, a similar refrain with a very different target from a few nights earlier when Tavares came back to town.

“I think the other night [against Washington] you could tell that we were a little flat, and then tonight obviously we didn’t have the jump to get us back in it,” captain Anders Lee said. “We’re playing desperate teams who are trying to stay in it, and now we have to turn our heads and be the desperate team, trying not only to stay on top, but to continue to fight.”