Ryan Pulock fed the puck to Mathew Barzal, who rushed down the ice, slipping a pass to Jonathan Drouin before saucing it back to the striding Barzal, weaving from backhand to forehand as he buried a snapshot goal to power the New York Islanders past the New Jersey Devils, 3-2, in the Prudential Center on Monday.
Related: Islanders Hand Devils Their First Home Loss with 3-2 Overtime Victory
The Islanders snagged their first overtime win this season at the expense of the Devils’ perfect home record. With four minutes remaining in regulation, Paul Cotter got called for interference, which awarded New York with their first power play of the night. The Islanders cashed in on the man-advantage after rookie sensation Matthew Schaefer wristed a shot from the high slot, which Jacob Markstrom saved. Kyle Palmieri tapped in the rebound to score what seemed to be the go-ahead goal with a little less than three minutes remaining.
New Jersey pulled their goalie for an extra attacker as they sought the equalizer, not willing to surrender their clean slate at home thus far. Luke Hughes flicked a shot that hit goalie Ilya Sorokin on the shoulder. With less than a minute remaining, Jesper Bratt swung the puck to Simon Nemec in the high slot, who blasted a shot which ricocheted off Simon Holmstrom’s leg to the back of the net, rejuvenating the home crowd. At the 1:17 mark of overtime, Barzal drilled the game-winner, handing New York their second win in a row.
Sorokin Provided a Stronghold for the Islanders
On a night where he made 33 saves, Sorokin proved to be the difference maker as he stood tall between the pipes for the Islanders. Despite conceding a goal on the Devils’ first power play of the night, it was only the first out of two times New Jersey got a crack at the Russian because they exploited a seam in the middle of the slot. He kept the Islanders in close quarters, saving shots from the Devils’ offense, buying some time for the offense to counter with their own playmaking.
Soon enough, Bo Horvat jumped on a one-on-one rush against New Jersey’s netminder, Markstrom, after seemingly going for a line change, tricking the defense as he drilled the game-tying goal, 1-1. Sorokin’s reign continued as he denied the Devils’ best attempts at snatching the lead, with their constant pressure on New York’s blue line. Sorokin gave up New Jersey’s second goal of the night after a deflection caused him to lunge in a different direction, which led to the goal.
Special Teams Proved to Be Special
The Islanders’ penalty kill may have yielded a goal in the early stages of the first period, but they managed to hold their own the rest of the game. The Devils had only a single shot on their second chance at the man advantage, with Sorokin saving Jack Hughes’ attempt. The defense came up with critical defensive stops on New Jersey’s third power play. They first deflected Nico Hischier’s shot before blocking Hughes’ attempt.
On their last shift of the night, the penalty kill unit did not allow a shot for the Devils, clearing possession after possession. New Jersey then got a penalty where, in their only opportunity at a power play, New York capitalized to give themselves a 2-1 lead.
Islanders Won a Game of Chance
Before Barzal scored the go-ahead goal, Pulock almost cost a takeaway, if not for Barzal’s puck handling. If he had not taken care of the puck, the game could have had a different outcome, where the Islanders could not have been looking at moments like this hypothetical turnover, and the Devils could have kept their streak going.
Ride the Momentum
The Islanders have won their second straight game, which coincidentally came against two conference rivals. New York looks to build on this winning streak if they want to have a chance at making the playoffs.
