3 Takeaways: Islanders Dig Deep in 4-1 Win Over Bruins

The New York Islanders got a much-needed win on Thursday night, beating the Boston Bruins 4-1 at UBS Arena.
It was big in the sense that they snapped a three-game losing streak and perhaps bigger that they picked up a pair of points in regulation against the Bruins, the team holding the second Wild Card in the Eastern Conference.

With the win - the Islanders' sixth-straight home victory over Boston - the Islanders are 16 points back of the Bruins with four games in hand. That's still a sizable margin, but the implications of losing on Thursday were dire.
"It was a playoff game for us tonight," Mathew Barzal said. "We knew tonight was huge after dropping one in Buffalo and where we are at in the standings, we know who we're chasing, so that was a big win for us."
JG Pageau, Noah Dobson (1G, 1A), Barzal (1G, 1A) and Brock Nelson (1G, 1A) scored for the Islanders, who responded with three unanswered goals after Taylor Hall opened the scoring in the first period. Ilya Sorokin stopped 26 of 27 in the win, while Linus Ullmark stopped 25 of 28 in the loss.

ISLES ALLOW OPENING GOAL, FIND A WAY TO COME BACK:

The Islanders allowed the opening for the 10th time in the last 11 games, after giving up the icebreaker in the first period of Thursday's contest.
Hall opened the scoring, beating Sorokin with a sharp-angled shot from the corner, as the puck hit the post, banked off the Islanders goaltender and in at 17:26.
The Islanders entered the game 4-16-2 when allowing the opening goal and the continuing trend of allowing the first goal put the Islanders back into chase mode.
ISLES 4, BRUINS 1
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Full Highlights

KINGER'S CALLS
Pageau Pokes in Power-Play Goal
Dobson's GWG
Barzal's Putback
Nelson's Empty-Netter
"I didn't know how we were going to respond because we've been going upstream when it comes to the games, every game we're chasing it," Head Coach Barry Trotz said. "Today I was wondering how we'd respond in the second and third and we responded well."
Upstream or not, the Islanders started to turn the tide in the second period, outshooting the Bruins 23-14 over the final 40 minutes. It translated into goals, as Pageau potted a power-play goal at 11:30, getting behind Brandon Carlo and knocking in a Dobson rebound. The goal was Pageau's second in the last three games after going 14 games without a goal previously.
Unlike Saturday's contest in Calgary or Tuesday's affair in Buffalo, the Islanders were able to pull ahead after tying the score. Dobson put a shot into traffic that clanked off the post, hit Ullmark in the back and in at 5:50 of the third.
"We found a way to ramp it up," Nelson said.
The Islanders continued to lay the hammer in the third period. Barzal potted a Kieffer Bellows rebound at 13:32 to make it 3-1 and Nelson iced the game with an empty netter at 18:47. The Isles outshot the Bruins 10-7 in the final frame and the Bruins did not generate a shot on goal in the final 7:05 of the period.
While the Islanders offense keyed the comeback, Sorokin deserved credit for bouncing back after the first period flub. Sorokin stopped 14 of 14 in the final 40 minutes, including a big pad save on Hall looking to take advantage of a rebound.

DOBSON CONTINUES TO RACK UP POINTS:

Dobson played a big role in Thursday's win, scoring the game-winning goal and adding an assist on the game-tying goal. In the process, Dobson extended his point streak to three games on Thursday and now has five points (2G, 3A) in his last five games.
The points were Dobson's 21st and 22nd of the season, moving him ahead of Josh Bailey for third in team scoring. Dobson's 21 points are tops among defensemen and the third-year blueliner has already set career highs in goals (78, assists (14) and points (22), despite playing in four fewer games than his sophomore season.
On the goals themselves, Dobson stepped into a no-look pass from Barzal on the Islanders second power play, hammering a slap shot on Linus Ullmark, with Pageau crashing the net for the rebound.
Dobson used a softer touch on the go-ahead goal at 5:50 of the third period, sending a wrister into traffic, hitting the post, caroming off Ullmark's back and in. The goal was Dobson's eighth of the season and his second game-winner.
The defenseman led the Islanders with six shot attempts on Thursday and was tied for second on the team with four shots on goal. That's the type of shooter's mentality that's allowed him to take a step in his third year.
"Dobson is feeling that he's not only just a member of the team, but he's a big part of the team now," Trotz said. "He's crossing over to being that big player that you rely on. He's running our first power play, he's playing in lots of different situations for us, he's creating some offense, he gets to join the offense a little bit in situations. I think he understands that he has to have some really big impact for us. Tonight he did."

Video: BOS@NYI: Smart passing from Barzal pays off

BELLOWS IN FOR BAILEY:

With Josh Bailey day-to-day with an upper-body injury, Kieffer Bellows drew into the lineup for the first time since Jan. 25, sitting out the previous eight games.
Bellows played alongside Brock Nelson and Anthony Beauvillier, as Kyle Palmieri shifted up to Mathew Barzal's wing with Bailey out.
Bellows made the most of his chance, picking up the primary assist on Barzal's goal, leading the team with five shots on goal, while also contributing five hits in 14:53 of ice time - all even strength.
"Just getting back in the lineup, I wanted to keep it simple," Bellows said. "I thought the boys were really supportive of me and wanted to help me out there. I felt good about my game. All around, I thought everyone played well in the second and third. That's why we came out with the win."

Trotz praised Bellows detail in all three zones, firmness in battles and physical play.
"That's the game you want from Kieffer night in and night out," Trotz said. "That's the game that's a bit of a blueprint for him to be real productive player in this league."
Earlier in the day Trotz said Bellows is going to have an opportunity to transition into a more full-time role, so Thursday was a good game to build off.
"Just hearing that, it gives me confidence to go out there and play my game and just play for these guys," Bellows said of Trotz's comments. That's just the main goal, just go out there play my game, and hopefully stick. Just do whatever it takes to help these guys win."

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders host the Montreal Canadiens on Sunday afternoon at UBS Arena. Puck drop is at 2 p.m.