NEWARK, N.J. — The Islanders didn’t underestimate the Devils this time around.
“They’re a fast team,” Casey Cizikas said. “I think we didn’t respect them enough in that first game and that’s on us. That’s something we definitely learned from.”
The Islanders handed the Devils a rare loss on Friday night at Prudential Center, opening a four-goal lead in the third period of a chippy game and holding on, 6-4.
Given that the Devils (21-5-1) were 18-1-1 since Oct. 25 and the Islanders (17-11-0) came within one goal of their season high, this win likely ranks as the best of the season.
Brock Nelson scored twice to extend his point streak to seven games, Semyon Varlamov made 25 saves, defenseman Alexander Romanov made an impact with two assists and physically, knocking Miles Wood from the game. The Islanders managed with just 11 forwards after Anthony Beauvillier was hurt in the first period.
And they managed after Devils coach pulled goalie Akira Schmid for an extra skater with more than seven minutes left in regulation. Jack Hughes, who did not come off the ice except for 10 seconds at six-on-five, brought the Devils within 6-4 at 13:39 of the third period and defenseman Dougie Hamilton later hit the crossbar.
It opened a particularly tough stretch of schedule for the Islanders. The second-place Hurricanes visit UBS Arena on Saturday night and the Islanders then begin a season-long five-game road trip against the Atlantic Division-leading Bruins on Tuesday night.
“These are some top-dog teams,” captain Anders Lee said. “It creates a little bit of energy just by knowing how big a challenge it can be.”
The Devils, catching the Islanders flat-footed with their speed, dominated the teams’ first meeting with a 4-1 win at UBS Arena on Oct. 20 as they held a 41-17 shot advantage and outchanced the Islanders 75-48.
Cizikas said that game served as a “wake-up call” for the Islanders, who proceeded to win 13 of their next 19 games.
The Islanders drove Vitek Vanecek from the game in favor of a sharper Schmid after he allowed four goals on 17 shots. Cizikas, finishing off an odd-man rush on Matt Martin’s feed, made it 3-1 at 3:31 of the second period with his first goal of the season. Oliver Wahlstrom, from the left circle, pushed it to 4-1 just 34 seconds later.
Dawson Mercer cut that to 4-2 on the rush at 6:03. But Nelson’s second goal of the game, a one-timer on the power play from low in the right circle, made it 5-2 at 16:47 of the second period.
The second period grew increasingly chippier, culminating with Romanov flattening Wood with a clean check at 12:05 but Tomas Tatar still fighting the Islanders defenseman.
Beauvillier, taking Lee’s feed and skating hard to the crease, slammed into the backboards and immediately began favoring his left shoulder/arm at 9:09 of the first period. He took one more shift before he retreated to the dressing room.
Cal Clutterbuck returned in the second period with a bloodied face and a full-cage face mask after exiting the first period at 10:33. He extended the Islanders’ lead to 6-2 at 1:00 of the third period after forcing a turnover.
Nico Hischier’s power-play goal, roofing a shot from a sharp angle on the right, gave the Devils a 1-0 lead at 5:32 of the first period.
But Nelson deked Vanceck and converted an equalizing wraparound to the right post at 15:37 of the first period. Lee’s hard shot from the slot gave the Islanders a 2-0 lead with 9.0 seconds remaining before the first intermission as he snapped a 13-game goal drought.
