The Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Islanders squared off for the first time in the 2024-25 season. The Metropolitan Division rivals played a back-and-forth game led by Alex Nedeljkovic (Penguins) and Ilya Sorokin (Islanders) standing tall between the pipes for their respective teams. Three periods were not enough for the two teams to decide a winner, as the game would end up being decided in a shootout, with the Islanders pulling out a 4-3 victory.
Game Recap
A scoreless first period was highlighted by both netminders standing tall, with Sorokin facing most of the shots in the period thanks to the Penguins controlling the pace of play for 15 minutes. Neither team had true high-danger chances until the last few minutes of the period. The Islanders got the best opportunity when Maxim Tysplakov found himself on a breakaway with just under a minute left but was shut down by Nedeljkovic.
The second period finally saw some goal-scoring, with Sidney Crosby kicking things off thanks to a strong forecheck by Rickard Rakell that forced a turnover behind the Islanders’ net. Evgeni Malkin would find Crosby for one of his patented backhanded shots that beat Sorokin. The Penguins held the lead until around six minutes left in the period when Kyle Palmieri cashed in on an excellent display of hand-eye coordination on a rebound that Nedejkovic lost sight of after the original shot soared high above everyone on the ice.
The 1-1 tie did not last long, as the Penguins finally cashed in on their third power play attempt of the game when Malkin let a one-timer go from the hash marks off a nice pass from Matt Grzelyck to give the Penguins a 2-1 lead heading into the third period. The third period and leads continued to be an Achilles heel for the Penguins, who blew a two-goal lead after Michael Bunting tallied his first goal of the season seven minutes into the period. After the Penguins built the two-goal lead, the Islanders took control of the period, cashing in on their own power play thanks to a goal from Simon Holmstrom before Jean-Gabriel Pageau tied the game up with just over seven minutes left in regulation.
Both teams had power plays in overtime, but neither could capitalize, and the game ended up being won in a shootout thanks to Bo Horvat scoring the only goal of the shootout.
The Islanders moved to 5-6-2 on the season and will travel to Ottawa to take on the Senators on Nov. 7. The Penguins fell to 5-7-2 and will hit the ice again on Nov. 7 when they head to Carolina to take on the Hurricanes.
