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The New York Islanders picked up a big road win last night, defeating the Carolina Hurricanes 6-2.
The game also marked Josh Bailey’s 1000th NHL game, all of which have been played with the Islanders.
The Islanders put together a pretty strong opening frame, doing a good job pressuring Carolina’s defenders. Then late in the first period, Mathew Barzal ended up with the puck on an odd-man rush and dished it to Oliver Wahlstrom, who ripped a shot past Frederik Andersen, putting New York up 1-0 after 20 minutes.
New York did let up a bit through the first half of the second frame and Carolina capitalized, with Matin Necas finishing off a nice give-and-go play. However, later in the frame, Casey Cizikas was able to take the puck off Jalen Chatfield on the forecheck and got the puck out front to Matt Martin, giving New York another one-goal lead.
The Hurricanes responded a minute later through, with a point shot from Brent Burns redirecting in off Sebastian Aho’s skate and in (Islanders’ Aho), making it a 2-2 game. The scoring continued only a minute after that though, as Alexander Romanov made a good play to pick off a pass in the neutral zone and after New York went down on a rush the other way, Josh Bailey outwaited Andersen to backhand a shot past him, putting the Islanders back up by a goal after the second period.
New York then followed up with a great third period, with Brock Nelson striking only four minutes into the period off a pass from Anthony Beauvillier. Then later in the period, Beauvillier once again found Nelson, who beat Andersen before he could slide over for his second goal of the game. Zach Parise then added an empty netter with about two minutes to go, leading to a 6-2 Islanders win.
This was such a key win for the Islanders, not just in terms of impact but also just the performance itself. They were able to score six goals against a top team and were forechecking hard and consistently generating quality chances. This year, the Islanders are showing they’re able to score and while their offensive output hasn’t been fully consistent yet, there’s more reason for optimism.
Another key point is that these are the games New York didn’t often win last year. While they were consistently good against weak teams, they really struggled once the competition got tougher. With wins against the New York Rangers and Carolina Hurricanes in two straight games, they’re showing they can keep up.
The Islanders have gone 2-2-0 so far on a really difficult five-game stretch against top teams, with their final game of that series coming tonight against the Colorado Avalanche.
OTHER ARTICLES FROM OCTOBER
Islanders sign Mathew Barzal to eight-year contract extension
Islanders announce opening night roster
Andy Greene announces retirement
Islanders fall short against Panthers in season opener
Islanders blow out Ducks, Lane Lambert picks up first win as NHL head coach
Islanders earn another home win, defeat Sharks 5-2
Islanders fall flat in loss to Devils
Islanders lose to Lightning in first road game of season
Islanders come up short against Panthers for third straight loss
Islanders shut out Rangers, Kieffer Bellows claimed by Flyers 
New York Islanders Blogger • 
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