After two games of silence, the New York Islanders offensive firepower returned Saturday night in St. Louis.
After scoring just one goal in their last two games the Islanders continued their strong offensive output this season with five goals in a 5-2 win over the St. Louis Blues.
The Blues entered the game owning the NHL’s second-highest point total—27—and were 9-1-1 in their previous 11 games.
For fans of the Islanders, their lack of scoring in the previous two games made them nervous. Regardless of the impressive offensive showing, they put on in their first 14 games, Islanders fans are still cautious that their lack of secondary scoring will rise up at the worst time.
John Tavares continued his wonderful start to the season by getting the Islanders started just 3:21 into the game with his 13th goal of the season. Only Nikita Kutcherov has more goals with 16 this season.
After Casey Cizikas scored at 10:07 to surpass the Islanders goal total of the previous two games, Jordan Eberle gave the Islanders a 3-0 lead just three minutes later. Entering the game the Blues had allowed just two first period goals all season. The Islanders surpassed that by the 14-minute mark.
From there the Islanders held on, as Joshua Ho-Sang and Anders Lee added goals to give the Islanders seven games already this season of five goals or more. They had just 10 such games all of last season.
The Islanders recalled Ho-Sang on an emergency basis, and he paid immediate dividends scoring his first goal of the season. If the Islanders are going to make any noise in the Eastern Conference, having Ho-Sang as a constant is a must. His speed and playmaking ability are vital to the Islanders long-term success this season.
After being sent down to Bridgeport on October 25, Ho-Sang collected six points in his six games. Hopefully, his return will be permanent this time. His goal in the second period gave the Islanders 16 different players who have scored this season.
The Islanders now have four days off before they return home to take on the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday.