National Hockey League
NY Islanders 3, New Jersey 2
When: 7:00 PM ET, Saturday, March 13, 2021
Where: Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey
Referees: Pierre Lambert, Justin St. Pierre
Linesmen: Libor Suchanek, Rody Vaughan
Attendance: 1800

Oliver Wahlstrom scored the decisive goal in the shootout Sunday night for the visiting New York Islanders, who overcame a pair of unexpected absences and then dodged defeat early in overtime before extending their winning streak to nine games with a 3-2 win over the New Jersey Devils in Newark, N.J.

Kieffer Bellows and Brock Nelson scored in the first period and Anthony Beauvillier forced a fourth round in the shootout by scoring for the Islanders. Goalie Ilya Sorokin made 29 saves before stopping three of four shots in the shootout.

The Islanders played without center Jean-Gabriel Pageau and defenseman Noah Dobson, who were placed on the NHL's COVID-19 protocol list. Pageau was never listed on New York's roster while Dobson took warmups before being scratched.

The Islanders played short-handed for a few minutes until Sebastian Aho joined the bench. Aho, who shares the same name as a Carolina Hurricanes forward and who hadn't played in an NHL game since Mar. 18, 2018, earned an assist on his first shift.

Janne Kuokkanen and Yegor Sharangovich also scored for the Devils, who lost their franchise-record 11th straight game at home. Nikita Gusev scored on the first shot of the shootout before New Jersey went 0-for-3 the rest of the way. Goalie Scott Wedgewood made 32 saves in defeat.

The Devils almost won the game 27 seconds into overtime, but P.K. Subban's goal was waved off due to an offsides call.

Aho wasted no time contributing as the defenseman corralled the puck after Jordan Eberle fired it off the back boards and blasted a shot that bounced off Bellows' body and fluttered past Wedgewood at 4:18.

The lead lasted just 54 seconds before the Devils tied the score on a power play generated when Andy Greene was whistled for delay of game. Kuokkanen put home the rebound of a shot by Damon Severson that bounced off the skates of Kyle Palmieri a mere 17 seconds after Greene went to the bench.

The Islanders took the lead in surprising fashion just before the horn when Nelson collected the puck along the boards, whirled and fired a shot that sailed past a screened Wedgewood with 1.7 seconds remaining.

Sharangovich tied the score with 3:56 left in the second.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
NY Islanders   New Jersey
Kieffer Bellows 2 Points Janne Kuokkanen 1
Kieffer Bellows 2 Goals Janne Kuokkanen 1
Jordan Eberle 2 Assists Kyle Palmieri 1
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Semyon Varlamov .929 Save Percentage Mackenzie Blackwood .897
Semyon Varlamov 26 Saves Mackenzie Blackwood 26
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
NY Islanders 29 3 0-4 3-3 6 23
New Jersey 28 2 0-3 4-4 8 27
Upcoming Games
  • New Jersey will play their next game at home against NY Islanders. The Devils have a W/L % of .375 after a win and .333 after a loss.
  • NY Islanders will play their next game on the road against New Jersey. The Islanders have a W/L % of .706 after a win and .500 after a loss.