Noah Dobson, Mathew Barzal and Brock Nelson scored in the third period Thursday for the New York Islanders, who earned a rare win against a playoff contender by beating the Boston Bruins 4-1 in Elmont, N.Y.
Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored in the second period for the Islanders, who snapped a three-game losing streak and improved to 2-0-0 against the Bruins, whom New York beat in a heated six-game, second-round Eastern Conference series last spring.
The Islanders, who are 16 points behind the Bruins in the race for the final Eastern Conference wild-card spot, are 2-16-2 against the other 15 teams that entered Thursday in a playoff position.
New York goalie Ilya Sorokin made 26 saves.
Taylor Hall scored in the first period for the Bruins, who have lost four of five (1-3-1). Linus Ullmark recorded 25 saves.
An Islanders turnover following an odd-angle shot from the Bruins’ goal line led to the Bruins scoring the opening goal.
A shot by New York’s Adam Pelech shot clipped off the stick of Boston’s Mike Reilly and bounced to Bruins center Craig Smith, who shoveled the puck ahead to Hall. The left winger gained possession in the neutral zone, surged past Casey Cizikas along the left side of the ice and deked Sebastian Aho before firing a shot from the goal line that fluttered behind Sorokin 17:26 into the game.
A tripping penalty on Boston’s Erik Haula generated the power play that resulted in Pageau’s goal at 11:30 of the second period. Ullmark stopped but could not glove a slap shot by Dobson, and Pageau, who was in between two Boston players, reached around Ullmark and backhanded the rebound into the gaping net.
Dobson scored the go-ahead goal at 5:50 of the third period. New York’s Brock Nelson forced a turnover by Derek Forbort behind the Bruins’ line and dished to an open Dobson, whose shot from just in front of the blue line sailed past Ullmark as he was screened by Forbort, Boston’s Brandon Carlo and the Islanders’ Cal Clutterbuck.
Kieffer Bellows took a drop pass from Barzal and was turned back twice by Ullmark before Barzal raced around the cage and put back the second rebound for an insurance goal with 6:28 left.
Nelson added an empty-netter with 1:13 remaining.
–Field Level Media
