COLUMBUS, Ohio — The short-handed Blue Jackets made the Islanders work for this win, to be sure. But the Islanders’ biggest victory may have been sustaining a concentrated effort coming off two emotional wins, the Thanksgiving holiday and a questionable second-period sequence that yielded two power-play goals.
They couldn’t hold a two-goal lead but still extended their winning streak to three with a 3-2 victory on Friday night at Nationwide Arena, their 12th win in their last 16 games.
Brock Nelson became the first Islander to reach 10 goals this season when he scored the unassisted winner at 6:10 of the third period. Nelson got to the right post and lifted a shot just under the crossbar.
Two days after stopping a career-high 49 shots in Wednesday’s 3-0 win over the Oilers at UBS Arena, Ilya Sorokin stuffed Johnny Gaudreau at the right post at 18:41 of the third period and made 24 saves for the Islanders (14-8-0).
“It was an emotional win,” coach Lane Lambert said regarding Wednesday's victory. “It was a big win against a good hockey team with two good players [the Oilers’ twin superstars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl]. Thanksgiving. Families. And then we get back here on the road. So we’ve got to make sure we’re focused.”
Sorokin also made 30 saves in a 3-2 overtime win in Toronto on Monday night.
The Blue Jackets (7-12-1), who finished their lengthy homestand 3-3-0, have eight players on injured reserve — goalie Elvis Merzlikins (hip), defensemen Adam Boqvist (foot), Nick Blankenburg (ankle), Zach Werenski (labrum) and Jake Bean (shoulder) and forwards Justin Danforth (labrum), Jakub Voracek (upper body) and Patrik Laine (ankle).
Yegor Chinakhov returned after missing one game with an upper-body issue and brought the Blue Jackets within 2-1 at 14:05 of the second period with a five-on-three power play goal. The goal snapped Sorokin’s shutout streak at 121:55.
Cal Clutterbuck was whistled for interference on defenseman Andrew Peeke at 13:37, simultaneous to defenseman Adam Pelech being called for slashing Boone Jenner. The second call seemed to be a little soft and a slash on Nelson also appeared to be missed.
Kent Johnson tied it at 2 just 33 seconds after Chinakhov’s goal with a five-on-four power play tally.
The Islanders fulfilled Lambert’s edict for a focused start with a strong first period, taking five of the first six shots and coming away with a 1-0 lead.
Oliver Wahlstrom patiently moved to his right and waited for an opening to shoot off Mathew Barzal’s feed on the rush, blistering a shot past Joonas Korpisalo (21 saves) at 17:26.
It extended Barzal’s point streak to seven games, while Simon Holmstrom, in the lineup for a second straight game with Kyle Palmieri (upper body) still day-to-day, notched his first career NHL point with the secondary assist on a quick pass off the boards.
It took more than three years for Holmstrom to make his NHL debut on Wednesday, after being selected 23rd overall in 2019. It was only natural for the former first-rounder to wonder when his chance would come as he continued to play with the Islanders’ AHL affiliate in Bridgeport.
"You have to deserve the chance," Holmstrom said. "I was just trying to do my best down there and get it going. I knew it was coming someday and I was just very happy when it came.”
Jean-Gabriel Pageau made it 2-0 at 7:51 of the second period as he tucked the puck in at the left post after defenseman Noah Dobson blasted it off the backboards. It was his second power-play goal and third special teams’ goal in the last two games.
