The other 18 players dressed for the Colorado Avalanche had an excuse through the first two games. The goaltending just wasn’t there for them to win. 

That excuse wasn’t there on Monday. Not that Georgiev was great, but he was far from the only problem.

Down $27 million worth of players, it will be tough for the Avs to win consistently if their best players aren’t performing. Those top players certainly did not perform against coach Patrick Roy and the New York Islanders, and Jared Bednar took notice. 

Halfway through the second period, with his team having given up a goal against and generated a whopping zero shots on goal, Bednar put his top players out on the ice for a power play. That shift lasted just 12 seconds, ending with Mikko Rantanen having the puck taken off his stick for a good shorthanded chance for the road team. 

Bednar yanked his best players off the ice and put three rookies out there, who at least got the puck into the offensive zone. He gave his best players another chance, but the puck ended up in the back of the net, as a Cale Makar pass went right to the stick of Brock Nelson, who beat Georgiev to make it 4-1. That came just a few minutes after the top line got stuck in their own end for another goal against.

“There’s no excuses,” Bednar said. “I didn’t like our game tonight, top to bottom. It was terrible … it looked like we were cheating the game.”

It didn’t get much better in the third. While the big guns scored a powerplay goal, the top players were on the ice for another goal against, with Makar losing his man near the net. 

It wasn’t all on Makar, but after the game, he put a large chunk of the blame on himself.

“Three of their six goals, four of their six goals, directly my fault,” Makar said after the game. “Some really stupid, childish mistakes.”

Mistakes this team can’t really afford right now with the team down so many players.

Bednar was hoping the injuries and missing players would lead to his team buckling down a bit defensively. That didn’t happen.

Edmonton is also 0-3 to start the season, so it’s not time to panic, but the Avalanche now must win two straight at home to at least salvage this homestand.

Wednesday against the Bruins will be a big one. 

Islanders 6, Avalanche 2

What happened: Colorado gave up four unanswered goals after scoring first on its way to its third straight loss to start the season.

What went right: Not a whole lot, but Calum Ritchie got things started with his first career goal. On the next shift, he nearly buried another, beating his man to the net for a good opportunity. Bednar wanted him to play with the puck more and he did a little bit of that Monday.

What went wrong: Devon Toews was not available to the team due to a lower-body injury. That enough is bad news, but his replacement, Oliver Kylington, really struggled. The puck rolled off his stick all night long and he never looked comfortable.

Between the pipes: Alexandar Georgiev made it the entire game in net for Colorado, but still took the loss with 32 saves on 37 shots.

What’s next: The Avalanche host the Boston Bruins at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday.