— x - New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) May 30, 2021
Despite the Bruins controlling much of the first period, it was the Islanders who struck first. Anthony Beauvillier got New York on the board with a power play goal just over halfway through the frame, tipping in a point shot from Noah Dobson. Boston would answer before the end of the period on a power play of their own, however, as David Pastrnak picked up a rebound and had a ton of time and space to outwait Ilya Sorokin and beat him with under 30 seconds to go in the frame.
The second period was similar to the first, in the sense that the Bruins controlled a good chunk of the play but the Islanders managed to stick around. Boston took the lead in the second period, with David Pastrnak scoring his second goal of the game, once again off a rebound, with him one-timing this one in. The Islanders continued to stay in the game though, with Adam Pelech scoring on a hard, perfectly placed slapshot that tied the game. So despite the Islanders being down 30-12 in shots after 40 minutes, the score remained even.
Things got away from New York in the third period though and the chances they were giving up caught up to them. Charlie McAvoy gave the Bruins the lead with a slapshot from the point through a bit of traffic, before David Pastrnak scored again to complete the hat trick and put the Bruins up 4-2. Taylor Hall would later bury an empty net goal to secure the win for Boston.
This was a really, really rough game for the Islanders. At no point did they really have control and they were getting completely outchanced throughout the night. New York’s defense couldn’t contain Boston’s offense whatsoever and the score makes the game seem as though it was much closer than it actually was.
Ilya Sorokin bobbled the puck quite a bit and gave up some big rebounds but in reality, he also kept the Islanders in the game through the first two periods. Without him, Boston could have had a larger lead earlier on.
The Islanders are going to need a completely different effort in Game 2 or this series could get away from them quickly.
***We've launched a HockeyBuzz Islanders Twitter account! For anyone interested, you can follow @HB_Islanders for updates on articles, Islanders news, etc.***
Are you concerned about New York's chances in the series after their performance in Game 1?
New York Islanders Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»