Last Thursday, the Islanders arrived at BB&T Center, looking to close up their three-game road trip with a win over the Florida Panthers. Prior to this trip, the Islanders traveled to Dallas and fell to the Stars, 3-1. After the game, Barry Trotz mentioned how the team put in a great amount of effort but for some reason, the puck couldn’t find the back of the net. To begin this trip, the team traveled to Tampa to play the Lightning. The Islanders defeated Tampa 5-1 by netting three goals in the third. Before the game, Barry Trotz made the decision to move Ross Johnston to the first line. Johnston started the scoring and developed the energy that pushed the Isles to a win. Johnston remained on the first line going into the game against Florida, and the Islanders hoped that the momentum that was built up against Tampa can continue against the Panthers.

The scoring began in the second period of the game. Devon Toews netted a power-play goal to get the Islanders on the board. Shortly after, Jordan Eberle fed Mat Barzal with a pass ending in number 13 scoring his thirteenth goal of the season. At the close of the second, Florida was able to respond as Mike Hoffman scored, making the game a 2-1 Islanders lead heading into the third period.

During the third period of the game, both teams battled to score, as the Panthers were looking to tie the game and the Islanders attempted to score another goal to gain a comfortable lead. Fortunately for the Islanders, Anders Lee closed out the third period with an empty-net goal within the last couple of seconds of the game.

Concluding the road trip with a win is not the only positive result coming out of this game. The Islanders improved their power play immensely since the beginning of the trip. In Dallas, the Islanders were not satisfied with the play of their special teams. The Isles were able to make some quick changes, and two out of the three goals scored by the team against Florida were power-play goals.

The Islanders swept the Panthers 3-0 in the 2019-20 season series. Thomas Greiss collected two of those wins after playing an amazing game in net on Thursday. One play that stood out, in particular, was when Panthers forward Brett Connolly tried to score on what seemed to be an open side of the net, but Greiss was able to spot the puck and make a fantastic save. Recently, Greiss has not been the only player to stand out on the ice. Anders Lee and Jordan Eberle have been big names in the past couple of games. Anders Lee recorded his first Gordie Howe hat trick by being credited with an assist on the Devon Toews goal, fighting Brian Boyle and scoring the empty netter to seal the Islanders’ victory. The captain of the Islanders is known for his skill and especially his willingness to stand up for his teammates.

After defeating Buffalo on Sunday, the Islanders look to extend their win streak against Nashville tonight at the Coliseum!

John Smark