The Isles looked almost perfect in their first game since their memorable playoff run.
New York Islanders fans are excited to watch their team make another deep cup run. An opening night shut-out against their in-state rivals should make them even more so.
1st period: Squad Goals
Brock Nelson, who was the team’s leading goal scorer last year, wasted no time doing what he does best, putting the Islanders up 1-0 on a power play less than three minutes in.
A power play goal by a team that wasn’t good on the man advantage last season for the first goal of the year sure is nice.
Not long after, captain Anders Lee took a high stick to the face and, as he was skating off, just had to quickly go and score a goal while bleeding profusely.
Mathew Barzal missed the first few days of training camp, but didn’t look rusty, completely owning Rangers defenseman Tony DeAngelo to give the Islanders their third goal of the period.
2nd period: Gimme, gimme more (goals)
The Islanders calmed down a bit this period, but were able to add to their total.
Semyon Varlamov, who had been quiet in the first period, made an excellent sequence of saves about seven and a half minutes in.
The Islanders caught a break at around the nine minute mark when the referee called off a Rangers goal.
3rd period:YES! YES! YES!
There isn’t too much to say about the Islanders in the third. The defense, which had already looked great throughout the game, prevented the Rangers from getting even one goal on the board.
This was a big win for the Islanders and they’ll go into their second game of the year, also against the New York Rangers, with confidence.
Key moment: “Barzy-Warzy” rips one home
Barzal’s goal was the best of the game, and he showed that the time he missed wouldn’t be a problem.
Player of the game: Can’t spell “Islanders” without “Anders”
With a goal and an assist, captain Lee takes home the honor of star of the game. This should be the first step to a very successful season for the Islanders’ top left winger.
