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The New York Islanders picked up their fifth straight win last night, defeating the St. Louis Blues 5-2.
Matt Martin re-entered the lineup for the Islanders, while Ilya Sorokin got his eighth start of the season.
The Islanders were outplayed through the first half of the opening frame, with the Blues generating some pretty good chances. Then about eight minutes in, Torey Krug’s point shot missed the net but came out to Vladimir Tarasenko on the other side, who beat Ilya Sorokin. New York actually did end up outshooting St. Louis 13-10 in the frame but still exited the period down a goal.
New York came out with a huge second period though, kickstarted by a goal from Kyle Palmieri, redirecting a shot from Noah Dobson 14 seconds into the period. The Islanders then took the lead on a man advantage later in the frame, as Ryan O’Reilly couldn’t clear the puck and Noah Dobson got a pass down to Anders Lee, who put a cross-crease pass to Brock Nelson to score. Then only two minutes after that, Josh Bailey went down on a rush and while his initial chance was stopped, he poked the loose puck off Nick Leddy and in to extend the lead. New York wasn’t done there, and a few minutes later, Nelson found Lee in front who managed to beat Binnington for the Islanders’ fourth goal in about 10 minutes. It did look like St. Louis had got one back later in the frame off a goal from Nick Leddy after some chaos in front but after a coach’s challenge, the goal was overturned for goalie interference. The Islanders hung onto the three-goal lead for the remainder of the period, holding a 4-1 lead after 40 minutes.
The Blues did generate some momentum in the third period and managed to capitalize on a power play off somewhat of a flukey deflection, cutting the lead to 4-2. The Islanders were outshot 12-3 in the frame but managed to hang on, as Jean-Gabriel Pageau buried a late empty net goal to secure a 5-2 win.
It’s another big win for the Islanders, who continue to climb in a tough Metropolitan Division.
Once again, the Islanders had no issues finding the back of the net and through 11 games, they sit fourth in the NHL in goals per game. Brock Nelson and Anders Lee alone have combined for 11 goals so far, but New York isn’t necessarily only relying on their top forwards, also getting contributions from most of their forward group at this point.
Sorokin continues to be great as well, putting together another really solid outing. Only three goalies who’ve played at least five games this season have a higher save percentage than him.
The Islanders will wrap up their three-game road trip tomorrow, when they face the Detroit Red Wings.
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