Islanders Overcome Defiant Devils 4-3 in Overtime

NEWARK, NJ — The New York Islanders (3-2-2) defeated the New Jersey Devils (5-4-2) 4-3 in overtime in the Prudential Center on Friday night. Bo Horvat scored the overtime winner 1:09 into the extra frame, lifting the Islanders to a victory over the Devils. Horvat’s winner came after a gorgeous seam pass by Mat Barzal.

Barzal’s pass split the defenders perfectly, and Horvat’s one-timer has proven lethal time and again, with this time showing nothing different. https://x.com/NYIslanders/status/1849993682218262913 The game reached overtime after the Islanders blew their third third-period lead of the season in just the seventh game.



This time felt the least deserved of the season, but Noah Dobson, with an inexplicable mistake, fumbled and then knocked the puck backward from the slot to the backdoor. Jesper Bratt did not hesitate and buried the tying goal, earning the Devils a needed point. Ilya Sorokin stopped 32/35 shots in the win, while Jake Allen stopped 26/30 for the Devils.

Brock Nelson, Kyle Palmieri, and Anders Lee scored the other goals for the Islanders. Nico Hischier and Curtis Lazar had the other Devils’ markers. First Period: The Islanders started with a frenetic pace, and just 1:23 into the game, Brock Nelson deflected an Adam Pelech shot past Allen for a quick 1-0 lead.

The Islanders enjoyed the lion’s share of the opportunities early, but Allen settled in enough to hold the Islanders at bay. Bo Horvat had a one-timer chip shot squeak past Allen, but just wide. Simon Holmstrom followed it up with a bank shot attempt, but it skittered harmlessly through.

The Islanders also had an early power play, with the best chance being a Holmstrom deflection into a Maxim Tsyplakov rebound attempt that wouldn’t go. Just after the midway point of the period, the Islanders’ fourth line iced the puck and got caught tired. Scott Mayfield chipped it high off the glass, but the Devils kept it alive and got a 2-on-1.

Jesper Bratt found Nico Hischier for a one-timer that beat Sorokin to tie the game at one. Less than a minute after the goal, Brenden Dillon slashed Holmstrom, sending the Islanders back to the power play. The first 90-100 seconds of it were pretty miserable, with the Islanders failing to set up.

Then, in the dying seconds of the power play, Jean-Gabriel Pageau slid a pass to Noah Dobson, who fired an unscreened shot at Allen, who couldn’t handle the rebound. Anders Lee , who made an incredibly high-IQ play, buried the rebound. He started off behind Dougie Hamilton on the left-hand side of the net.

Hamilton’s sole focus is boxing him out while Dobson takes the shot. Lee, meanwhile, dipped around the net underneath Hamilton’s nose. Dobson’s shot produced a rebound, and that’s how Lee found himself all alone.

https://x.com/NYIslanders/status/1849961141432443058 Later in overtime, Horvat used a similar move to beat Hamilton and it worked again. Second Period: This entire period became all about Alexander Romanov.

Early in the second frame, Kurtis MacDermid rocked Romanov with a clean hit that flung Romanov’s helmet from him. Scott Mayfield answered the bell and dropped the gloves with MacDermid in the apparent league-mandated fight after a big hit. After the referees discussed it, Mayfield received two extra minutes for roughing but not the 10-minute instigator.

Romanov stayed in the game and dropped Jack Hughes with a big hit of his own during the kill, adding a physical edge to the game. Kyle MacLean then had two big shorthanded opportunities during the kill, but Allen denied both. Moments after the power play, Paul Cotter received the puck behind the net, skated it around, and whipped a crisp pass to Curtis Lazar.

Lazar fired instantly, and the shot beat Sorokin, who had such little time it looked like he had no clue what was happening. Romanov lost Lazar on the goal, losing the battle in front. It was not a pretty goal defensively.

After that, the Devils surged for more chances, but Sorokin stood tall. The Islanders weathered the surge, and then, on a rush, Nelson delayed, dropped to the charging Romanov. Romanov took a one-timer, and Kyle Palmieri deflected it past Allen for the 3-2 lead.

The teams traded late power plays, with neither team getting major looks. The frame ended 3-2 Islanders, with the Devils still having 56 seconds of power play time to start the third. Third Period and Overtime: During the third period, the Islanders settled in and sat back to start to finish off the kill.

The Devils got some looks courtesy of Jack Hughes, but the kill came and went. The scariest moment early in the third came when Erik Haula banked a shot off Cizikas into Sorokin from below the red line. Sorokin stayed alert and kept it out.

Oliver Wahlstrom made a strong play in the offensive zone, sending a shot that came to MacLean at the backdoor, who Dougie Hamilton hooked. With a chance to potentially kill off the game midway through the third, the power play sputtered despite Horvat and Nelson switching units. The Islanders played smart hockey for most of the third period.

Not trying to do too much, chipping it out, making the plays they needed to make. They drained the clock into the final two minutes when the Devils could finally pull Allen for the extra attacker. That’s where it all fell apart.

Sorokin made a nice pad save, and the puck came out of danger. Then, Scott Mayfield made a nice block, and the puck dropped to Noah Dobson in the slot. Dobson panicked and knocked the puck backward to Bratt on the backdoor, who happily slammed the puck in.

Dobson’s mistake just cannot happen to a player who needs to take a step forward this year. Overtime started disastrously for the Islanders. The Devils won the draw.

Hughes and Hischier flew into the attacking zone, but Hischier struck iron with a ridiculous wrister that came within inches of sinking the Islanders. Instead, it stayed out, and Horvat went down the other way and beat the Devils. The Islanders are back in action tomorrow night when they welcome the reigning Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers at 7:30 in UBS Arena.

This article first appeared on NYI Hockey Now and was syndicated with permission..