In Elmont, the New York Islanders breezed past the New Jersey Devils on Monday night by a 5-1 count. 
Pierre Engvall scored in the opening stanza to give the Isles a1-0 lead.
Erik Haula, the lone striker for New Jersey, scored at 6:13 of the second to tie the game, 1-1.
“We knew coming into this game obviously they’re fighting for a playoff spot, so they’re desperate,” New Jersey’s Timo Meier said. “I thought over the full game they won more battles, they were harder on pucks, and that’s what cost us the game.
“We’ve got to find a way to get that next gear. We’ve got some important games getting ready for the most important time of the year, so I think it’s important for us that we can get our game to another level.”
From there, it was all New York.
“To a man, everybody worked; there wasn’t any passengers,” New York coach Lane Lambert said. “Certainly, full marks to our guys for the effort they put in.”
Ilya Sorokin made 30 saves in the Islanders win.
New York improved to 38-28-9, and moved three points clear of the Pittsburgh Penguins for the first wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.
Kyle Palmieri then scored his first of the night in the middle frame frame for a 2-1 lead to the Isles, and then hit for a double in the third period to give the Islanders a 3-1 lead.
“It feels good to contribute [offensively],” Palmieri said. “Our line as a whole (with Pierre Engvall and Brock Nelson), and our team, is playing well. We just [have] to keep that going.”
New Jersey dropped to 46-20-8 on their third loss in four games.
“Our goaltender played pretty well,” Haula said. “Second period, they were peppering us. … [Vanecek] held them just one [goal] in the second. He made a lot of good saves.”
In the final 62 seconds of the third period, Bo Horvat and Zach Parise added empty-net goals for the 5-1 final.
“Obviously we didn’t like the results Friday [and] Saturday,” Palmieri said, referring to a 5-4 overtime loss at the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday and a 2-0 loss to Buffalo Sabres here Saturday. “We left some points on the table. And we know going into this week it’s six, seven games left; it’s make or break the rest of the way. It was a good effort tonight and we’re happy to get the win.”
Vitek Vanecek made 31 saves in the New Jersey loss.
You must be logged in to post a comment.