Despite a sag in the third period, the Islanders rolled over the New Jersey Devils 5-3 on Thursday and picked up their 7th straight victory. They joined the Carolina Hurricanes as the only teams to string together seven straight victories in the 2021 NHL season.
The Islanders welcomed fans back to Nassau Coliseum for this game, inviting 1,000 front-line workers. They were the first fans in the building since March 7, 2020, five days before last season was suspended due to the pandemic.
“It was special with all the sacrifices they made, all the long hours and sleepless nights,″ Islander forward Matt Martin said. “We are grateful for them to be the first ones in the stands watching Islander hockey.”
Three Wins Came Over Buffalo
The Islanders have now won six consecutive contests on home ice, tying the Tampa Bay Lightning for the longest home winning streak by any team this season. A critic would suggest that, well, three of the wins came over the hapless Buffalo Sabres, but the Islanders also had to climb over the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Boston Bruins.
This game was not without concern. The Islanders lost captain Anders Lee to a knee injury in the first period when he collided with New Jersey forward Pavel Zacha. Lee was favoring his right knee as he was helped off the ice. Lee’s loss would be a significant blow because he is having a great season with a team-leading 12 goals.
“Anders is our captain, our leader. He’s got total respect our whole team,″ coach Barry Trotz said. ”Everyone on our bench felt for him there.”
Barry Trotz with his own wave and banging the glass to the fans after the win. Nice touch. pic.twitter.com/sKG8KNF6JG
— Rob Taub (@RTaub_) March 12, 2021
What is impressive about the Islanders victory was that the scoring was spread throughout the lineup. Five different players found the back of the net, including Martin (5), defensemen Adam Pelech (2), Noah Dobson (3), and forwards Josh Bailey (3) and Brock Nelson (11).
All six Islanders defensemen registered points in this game.
“Everyone was chipping in,” said Ryan Pulock, who had two assists. ”We want to help out our forwards.”
Nelson’s play continues to be a good sign for the Isles. He scored in his fourth straight game and his 11 goals rank second on the team to Lee’s 12. Bailey’s game seems to be coming around too with a team-leading five shots on goal against the Devils and his third goal of the season.
I've said it before and I'll say it again…
The only thing boring about the Islanders is that other teams can't score on them. That team is so in sync it's scary. Love the way they play.— Mike Kelly (@MikeKellyNHL) March 12, 2021
After a very mediocre January, when the Islanders put together a 3-4-2 record for the month, concerns were lifted as the Islanders raced out to an 8-2-2 record in February. March has been even better. The Islanders are unbeaten this month at 6-0-0.
There were some congratulations in order for Trotz and general manager Lou Lamoriello too. Trotz became the third Islanders coach to win 100 games, joining Al Arbour and Jack Capuano, while Lamoriello became the fourth Islanders GM in history to win 100 games, joining Bill Torrey, Mike Milbury and Garth Snow.
Nelson, the 6-foot-4, 212-pound forward, has four goals and one assist in his last five games. After scoring in the opening game of the season against the Rangers, it’s been an uphill battle for Nelson much of the way.
ecSTATic 📊 pic.twitter.com/IgB19vrkXn
— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) March 12, 2021
After the first 13 games, he had only two goals and went nine games without scoring a goal despite getting anywhere from 16 minutes to 20 minutes of ice time a game. One change is that Nelson has been getting more shots on goal. Four times this season, Nelson has registered four shots on goal in a game, and three of them have come in the last seven games. He had three shots on goal against New Jersey.
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Nelson Picking Up His Game
Nelson, the former first round draft pick of the Islanders, No. 30 overall, in 2010, centers the all-important second line with Bailey and Anthony Beauvillier. Nelson’s importance will grow if Lee’s injury turns out to be serious.
Lee played only three minutes of the first period before he was lost for the rest of the game due to the injury. It meant a lot of line shuffling by Trotz. Only the fourth line with Martin, Casey Cizikas and Cal Clutterbuck remained intact for the whole game.
I've said it before and I'll say it again…
The only thing boring about the Islanders is that other teams can't score on them. That team is so in sync it's scary. Love the way they play.— Mike Kelly (@MikeKellyNHL) March 12, 2021
As the Islanders have done most of the season, they took an early lead and then tightened up the defense to limit the opposition’s chances. The Islanders held the Devils to 22 shots on goal, with only 12 of them coming in the first two periods.
Only once in their last seven games have the Islanders allowed more than 30 shots on goal, and that was when the Bruins got 33 shots against them in the Isles’ 2-1 victory on Tuesday.
Trotz didn’t have an update on Lee’s status after the game. Lee is being evaluated, he said. The Islanders don’t have much rest before they face the Devils again in New Jersey on Saturday and Sunday.
The Islanders lead the series with the Devils 3-1, but if Lee can’t play, this seven-game win streak could be in serious doubt.
