*Photo from the Philadelphia Inquirer*
New York wins series 4-2
The New York Islanders were free falling during the second half of the regular season. Halfway through the season, they were first in the East Division, and by the start of the playoffs, they had fell all the way down to 4th, the last team in from the East. During the playoffs though, they found that early season form. Brock Nelson scored two goals, Kyle Palmieri scored, and the Islanders defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins with a 5-3 win Wednesday night.
With the win, the Islanders have moved on to the second round of the playoffs, where they will battle the division rival and 3rd seeded Boston Bruins, to determine who will represent the East Division in the 3rd round, and have a shot at the Stanley Cup this season.
Islanders coach Barry Trotz said of moving on that "When everybody stays on task, a lot can get accomplished with the group. I've said it probably to every team I've had, 'You want to go somewhere fast, go by yourself. You want to go somewhere far, go with the group.' This group believes in the group, the strength in the group."
Anthony Beauvillier started the scoring for the Islanders 5:16 into the game, tying it at 1-1 after an early Penguins goal. 7 minutes later, Palmieri re-tied the game at 2-2 with his 3rd goal of the playoffs. In the second period, with Pittsburgh ahead 3-2, Nelson scored his second and 3rd goals of the postseason, and Ryan Pulock scored, giving the Islanders a 5-3 win, which held for the rest of the game.
Nelson said "This group always sticks with it. The fans gave us a boost, they were fired up today. They were rowdy, they were loud. Once we got the lead, they were loud through the end. It's awesome having them back. We just wanted to get that one in front of them. It was a crazy game, but never out of reach. No quit in this team. We always try to fight back, and we were able to do that tonight."
Ilya Sorokin continued his strong play in goal for the Islanders with his 3rd straight win of the series. Sorokin, a major factor in the success of the Islanders this postseason, saved 34 of 37 shots, for a .919 save percentage, keeping the big guns of the Penguins offense at bay.
The Penguins kicked off the scoring in game 6, with Jeff Carter continuing his hot streak by scoring his 4th goal of the playoffs just 1:27 into the game. After the Islanders tied it up, Jake Guentzel gave the Penguins a 2-1 lead on the power play. In the second period, Jason Zucker scored 1:53 into the period, giving Pittsburgh a 3-2 lead, before the Islanders scored 3 unanswered goals for the win.
Tristan Jarry started in goal for the Penguins, and did not have a very good night. Jarry saved just 19 out of 24 shots, recording a paltry .792 save percentage, which is a main reason why the Penguins lost. The Penguins have now lost in the first round of the playoffs the last 3 seasons, with the last time they made it past the first round being 2017-2018, when they lost in the second round to the eventual champions, the Washington Capitals.
Penguins captain Sidney Crosby said "I think it's just disappointment. It's not guaranteed to make the playoffs. We've been fortunate that we've been there a lot. Every time you get to play in the playoffs, it's an opportunity. It really is the best time of the year. You want to be in it. You want to play for a long time. You want to compete for the Stanley Cup, so it's never a good feeling when you lose."
The Islanders now wait for the second round to start against the Bruins, while the Penguins shift to offseason mode.
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