— x - New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) May 27, 2021
Oliver Wahlstrom was out for the Islanders after being injured in Game 5 and as a result, Travis Zajac entered the lineup, playing with Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Kyle Palmieri on New York’s third line.
Jeff Carter opened the scoring for the Penguins not much more than a minute into the game but the Islanders quickly responded, with Anthony Beauvillier making a great move in close off a solid pass from Brock Nelson and beating Tristan Jarry to tie it. Pittsburgh took back the lead with a power play goal from Jake Guentzel but New York drew even once again under a minute later, with Kyle Palmieri capitalizing on a rebound. The Islanders didn’t have a great first period and while they did have some good chances on the rush, they weren’t necessarily the better team overall.
The excitement didn’t stop in the second period. Once again, Pittsburgh scored early into the frame, with Jason Zucker tipping in a point shot from Cody Ceci. The back-and-forth continued though, as Josh Bailey found Brock Nelson with a great backdoor pass to tie the game at 3-3 a little later on.
This time, however, the Islanders finally managed to take the lead, as Ryan Pulock’s point shot found its way in through traffic just 13 seconds later. A few minutes later, the second line continued with their great game, with Brock Nelson taking the puck to the slot and beating Jarry through the five-hole to bring the lead to 5-3, where it would remain heading into the final frame.
The third period was very fast-paced, as the Penguins pushed to try and save their season. Forwards were forechecking extremely hard and though Pittsburgh did manage to keep New York stuck in their own end, the Islanders were still able to limit chances from the front of the net.
Last night was certainly a better performance by the Islanders than we saw in Game 5 and New York did a much better job of limiting quality chances for the Penguins. I’d be a bit concerned about how things may have gone if the goalies were swapped, as Jarry had far from a solid outing, but the key is that the Islanders found a way to get the job done.
This marks the third year in a row in which the Islanders have reached at least the second round of the playoffs. New York is now set to face the Boston Bruins in the second round, after the Bruins eliminated the Washington Capitals in five games.
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Who do you think will win the second round series?
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