3 Takeaways: Gutsy Game Five Win Keeps Islanders Season Alive

The New York Islanders are taking things one game at a time - and after a 3-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes in Game Five at PNC Arena, they'll have at least one more.
The Isles kept their season alive with Tuesday's win, forcing a Game Six on Friday night at UBS Arena, where they'll have to do it again, as they still trail the Hurricanes 3-2 in their best-of-seven series.

"You've seen this from this group a lot this year. It's a resilient group," Anders Lee said. "Our road just to get in wasn't that easy. We had to pull ourselves out of a hole after tough stretches, but we believe in one another. We believe in this group and what we can do and how we can play. That was no different coming into this evening."
It was a character win, with the Islanders shaking off an undisciplined and frustrating loss in Game Four. They did it in hostile territory, handing the Hurricanes just their second loss in their last 11 games at a boisterous PNC Arena.
Pierre Engvall and Brock Nelson each recorded a goal and an assist, while Mathew Barzal also scored for the Islanders. Paul Stastny and Sebastian Aho scored for the Hurricanes. Ilya Sorokin stopped 34-of-36 shots in the win, while Antti Raanta stopped 19-of-22 in the loss.
"Just a phenomenal effort from Sorokin on out," Lee said. "I'm proud of it and now we can reset and get back in our building."

NELSON AND ENGVALL LEAD THE WAY:

Lane Lambert did some early game line shuffling on Tuesday, flip-flopping JG Pageau and Bo Horvat, but it was an intact line that led the way for the Islanders.
Pierre Engvall, Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri combined for five points in the win, coming together for the first two Islanders tallies.
GM 5: ISLES 3, CANES 2
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Postgame: Lambert
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KINGER'S CALLS
Engvall Opens Scoring
Nelson Extends the Lead
Barzal Wrists One
Engvall opened the scoring at 10:27 of the first period, pressuring Brent Burns and Jaccob Slavin into turning the puck over to Nelson along the wall. Nelson threw it back to a wide-open Engvall, who had all sorts of time and space to beat Raanta for his first point of the playoffs, ever.
"I thought he was flying," Nelson said of Engvall. "He did a good job hounding it and finding himself in good spots. He can generate chances by himself with his speed, so that's huge."
The Engvall goal had some other significance, as it marked the first time in 10 playoff games the Islanders netted a first period tally.
The goal helped turn the tables for the Islanders, who were outshot 4-0 in the early going and misfired on their first power play opportunity, conceding a shorthanded breakaway to Jordan Staal. The goal also snapped the Islanders 24-game streak of not leading after a first period.
Engvall played a role in the second goal, as his shot hit Carolina's Sebastian Aho in the face before Nelson whacked in the rebound at 3:16. The line combined for seven of the Islanders' 22 shots in the game and also had a good shift to keep the puck in the offensive zone during the Hurricanes third period comeback bid.
Engvall and Nelson were named the first and second stars of the game, respectively.

ISLES FINALLY GET SOME BREAKS:

Some good fortune finally went the Islanders way on Tuesday.
After a series that saw an own goal, a 6-0 power-play advantage, a missed high stick in an overtime and a few other calls go against the Islanders, a few things went right.
Stefan Noesen's would-be power-play goal was successfully challenged and overturned in the first period, keeping the game 1-0 in the Islanders favor. It was a short review and a fairly cut and dry offside call, but the Isles eyes in the sky still had to see it and radio down to Lambert on the bench.
"It's a break, but we've seen it all the time, you go offside and these things happen," Lee said. "Momentum might change a little bit there, end of the period it would be tough to give up a goal then, but we got the right call there."
They caught a second break on the same power play, as Sebastian Aho rang a shot off the post.
They caught a third break when Engvall's shot hit Aho in the face, leading directly to Nelson's 2-0 goal.
They caught a fourth break when Brent Burns rang a shot off the post on Carolina's second power play.
(The Hurricanes warning siren also broke to start the third period, so even though it was a physical break, it was really more of an omen.)

That's not to say they didn't work for Tuesday's win, far from it actually. The Islanders blocked 22 of Carolina's 77 shot attempts and outhit the Hurricanes 33-27. They went four-for-four on the penalty kill, which didn't include having to kill off two-and-a-half minute six-on-five at the end of the game.
Scott Mayfield may have personified the Islanders guts in the third period, pinning the puck against the boards to kill off at least 20 seconds during a late Hurricanes power play. That play led to another break for the Islanders, as Carolina's Sebastian Aho took a high-sticking penalty in the scrum, negating the man advantage.
"That's old time hockey," Lee said of Mayfield. "It's a big scrum and we come up with a fortunate call. I don't know how long it killed but felt like a long time."
There was also a little bit of irony that one of the few breaks that didn't go their way - Noah Dobson negating an Islanders power play after an interference call on Aho - turned into the Islanders game-winner.
Skating four-on-four, Mathew Barzal took advantage of a Martin Necas turnover at the Islanders blue line, kept, shot and scored on a two-on-one rush for what held up as the eventual winner.

SOROKIN STANDS TALL:

Ilya Sorokin played his best game of the series on Tuesday, stepping up for 34 saves on a night the Islanders needed their elite goaltender at his best.
Sorokin's flashiest save came on a backdoor look for Seth Jarvis in the second period, sliding across his net to get a glove on the puck. He was also sharp on Jesse Puljujarvi from the low slot in the third period and robbed Jarvis again on a deflection late during the six-on-five.
He wasn't at fault for Paul Stastny's deflection at 13:10, or Aho's seeing-eye snipe on a Jarvis feed at 10:28. It was just business as usual for the elite netminder, who stayed steady with the season on the line.
"He's been our backbone all year," Barzal said. "You look at most important players in the league, to their own teams. I think he's in the top three or five."

NEXT GAME:

See you at the Party Plaza
, as the Islanders host the Hurricanes for Game Six on Friday night at UBS Arena. A time will be announced at a later date.