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3 takeaways from the New York Islanders 6-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning
The New York Islanders picked up two valuable points with a 6-2 win against a team they are chasing in the Eastern Conference standings, the Tampa Bay Lightning. Even though New York missed out on playing against Andrei Vasilevskiy, they took advantage of their matchup against the Lightning's backup netminder while getting points from 11 players.
Since Patrick Roy took over the head coaching duties, the Islanders haven't improved overnight, but their resounding victory on Thursday night could be the beginning of a stretch drive that results in a playoff spot. No matter how you view New York's situation, there's no denying that their performance against Tampa Bay was one of the best all season.
3 takeaways from New York Islanders' 6-2 win over Tampa Bay Lightning
#1. Islanders dominate early and get contributions from everyone
Defenseman Noah Dobson gave the Islanders a quick 1-0 lead at 4:07 before Mathew Barzal and Kyle Palmieri extended the home team's lead to 3-1 after 20 minutes, with New York outshooting the Lightning by a wide margin of 14-3.
Even though the two teams played more even in the second period, with each collecting seven shots, the Islanders tacked on three more goals with a powerplay goal from defenseman Ryan Pulock, with Bo Horvat and Casey Cizikas adding even-strength goals.
Surprisingly, with such a commanding lead after two, New York didn't generate many chances in the third, with three shots, allowing Tampa Bay to press without scoring another goal.
Overall, 11 players in the New York lineup collected a point, with four of the six defensemen each having one. Barzal was voted the first star with two points, while Horvat was the second star with a goal and assist.
#2. New York has their best offensive outburst under new head coach Patrick Roy
Under former head coach Lane Lambert, the Isles scored more than five goals just once, with seven against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Dec. 7. Since taking over the coaching duties on Jan. 20, New York was only 2-2-1 in Roy's first six games, actually getting outscored, 14-13 in those contests.
On Thursday night, the Islanders had their second-best offensive game of the season, scoring six against Lightning backup Jonas Johansson. With a goal differential of four, New York improves to 3-2-1 under the Hall of Famer bench boss, outscoring opponents, 19-16.
Although the team still has a minus-18 goal differential for the year, the win gets them within two points of the final wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference.
#3. Tampa Bay got blown out by a team they are battling in the wildcard race
The Lightning were 8-1-0 heading into the All-Star break, only to drop their first two contests since returning to action on Monday, losing 3-1 to the New York Rangers and 6-2 to the Islanders. However, the loss to the Rangers and a Toronto Maple Leafs loss hurt their chances to climb into a top spot in the Atlantic Division.
However, on Thursday, against the Isles, the Lightning had a rough night and gave up two crucial points to a scrappy team that is now three points from their position as the top wild-card team.
Of course, tonight didn't alter the standings because the Detroit Red Wings didn't play, but New York got closer to a postseason spot, while Tampa Bay didn't do themselves any favors by losing to a non-playoff team.
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