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The New York Islanders snapped their three-game losing streak last night, taking down the Ottawa Senators 3-2 at home.
Oliver Wahlstrom jumped to the third line, while Cal Clutterbuck moved back onto the fourth line, and Ilya Sorokin got another start.
The Islanders managed to open the scoring only three minutes into the game, with Bo Horvat beating Joonas Korpisalo in-close just seconds into a power play. The teams traded power plays from there, but Claude Giroux may have had the best chance out of either opportunity while shorthanded, but was stopped by Sorokin on a 2-on-1.
New York was getting a lot of pucks on net though, and Pierre Engvall had a good chance a little later where he just couldn’t beat Korpisalo in alone on a rush. But shortly after, Casey Cizikas forced a turnover with a great forecheck, and was able to get the puck out to Cal Clutterbuck, who was able to extend the lead.
Ottawa did have their opportunities after that, with Travis Hamonic getting to the inside on a rush for a chance, and then Brady Tkachuk hitting a post. Despite the Islanders being under a bit of pressure late in the frame though and giving up a power play, they were able to get to intermission with their 2-0 lead intact, after a really strong opening frame.
We saw a fight between Matt Martin and Mark Kastelic early on in the second period afterwards, before a good chance for Brock Nelson on a rush. However, the Islanders ended up negating another power play with two penalties to give up a 4-on-3 power play later, and Claude Giroux was able to pick a corner through traffic to beat Sorokin, bringing Ottawa back to within one.
We then had a bit of a delay midway through the frame, as Erik Brannstrom took a hit from Cal Clutterbuck and his head hit the ice while falling, and he needed help being stretchered off. After play resumed though, the Senators managed to tie the game with about seven minutes left in the period, with Jakob Chychrun getting a shot on net through a screen. New York was forced to kill off multiple power plays after that, with the Islanders having lost absolutely all momentum by the end of the frame.
The Senators then had some great chances to take the lead on a power play early into the third period, but Sorokin made some huge saves to keep the game tied. However, after Noah Dobson was denied on a good chance on a rush the other way, the Islanders came back down ice only about a minute later, and Dobson took a pass to blast a shot past Korpisalo, putting the Islanders back ahead.
Ottawa had some good chances to tie it from there, right down to the last few seconds of the game, but New York hung on for the 3-2 win.
It’s a big win, but a bit of a hard game to evaluate for New York. The Islanders came out really strong in the opening frame, but with a rough second period (largely thanks to penalty trouble), any good they did early on was mostly undone in the middle frame. By the final buzzer, they needed 45 saves from Ilya Sorokin in the win.
But regardless, the Islanders capitalized on their chances, and held on for the win. New York also seemed to be getting contributions from all lines (even if inconsistent at times), which was good to see.
I think the penalty trouble needs to be addressed though, considering things could’ve gone quite a bit worse if the Islanders’ penalty kill wasn’t as good as it was, going 7-for-8 with their kills. There also seems to be a pattern of New York negating their own power plays with those penalties, which can be a momentum-killer as well.
A huge positive though: Noah Dobson also seems to have taken even more of a step this season. He’s leading the team in points with two goals and five assists, and has played a big part in driving the Islanders' offense.
The Metropolitan Division is a little all over the place right now, and it’s a big win to keep pace. The Islanders will be back in action tomorrow, when they face the Columbus Blue Jackets
OTHER ARTICLES FROM OCTOBER
- Islanders announce 23-man roster
- Ross Johnston claimed off waivers by Ducks
- Islanders start the season strong with win over Sabres
- Islanders shut down Coyotes for 1-0 win
- Islanders give up four power play goals, fall to Devils in overtime
- Islanders’ loss to Sabres marks first dud of season
- Islanders come up short in back-and-forth loss to Avalanche 
New York Islanders Blogger • 
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