ELMONT, N.Y. — A blowout win over the Ducks after their long flight from the West Coast is no more an indicator of how the Islanders will fare this season than their season-opening loss two nights prior.
But there sure was a lot more of what new coach Lane Lambert is trying to coax out of the Islanders in Saturday night’s 7-1 win at UBS Arena. They carried the play in all three zones and played with a consistent pace — particularly in transition and counterattacking — that was lacking in Thursday night’s 3-1 loss to the visiting Panthers.
The Islanders defensemen were consistently pushing the attack, something Lambert has stressed since training camp opened. Scott Mayfield, who turned 30 on Friday, notched the first two-goal game of his career. Robin Salo also had his first career two-goal game. The Islanders hadn’t gotten two goals from two defensemen in a game since 1993. Noah Dobson scored his second goal of the young season.
