3 Takeaways: Islanders Erupt with Seven Goals to Overtake Leafs 7-2

The New York Islanders utilized a full team effort in an explosive 7-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night at UBS Arena for their third consecutive win.
Zach Parise, Hudson Fasching, Cal Clutterbuck (2G, 1A), Simon Holmstrom, Noah Dobson (1G, 1A) and Anders Lee (1G, 1A) scored to match a season high-seven goals. Sam Lafferty and Mitch Marner put up goals for the Leafs.
"We played pretty well, 200 feet against a pretty good offensive team," Clutterbuck said after the win. "There seems to be a lot of good offensive teams in the mix here. It just goes to show that if we can stick to the plan and be very disciplined in it, we can have success."

Ilya Sorokin made 23 saves, but the stat sheet doesn't do the netminder justice. The goaltender limited the Leafs to one goal in the opening frame, boosting the Islanders' confidence, holding strong through 60 minutes for his 26th win of the season.
With Tuesday's win, the Islanders reached a season-high 10 games over the NHL-.500, protecting their first wild card status with 82 points. The Florida Panthers (79 points) fell 6-3 to the Philadelphia Flyers, while the Pittsburgh Penguins (78 points) were idle.
"You don't want to get too caught up in scoreboard watching," Parise said after the win. "But we have to worry about how we're playing and then let everything just fall where it may."

SOROKIN'S PADDLE SAVE THE TURNING POINT

Sorokin held strong through what was a gritty first period for the Islanders, most notably making a save of the year candidate in what ultimately proved to be a turning point in the game.
The Islanders were down 1-0 after a fluky goal in the form of Timothy Liljegren's shot bouncing off Scott Mayfield and Sam Lafferty to find the back of the net. In what could've been a 2-0 tally with Erik Gustafsson's wide-open chance, the Russian netminder came up with a tremendous block to save the game, reaching back with his paddle to deny Gustafsson to cheers erupting throughout UBS Arena.
"It woke us up on the bench," Anders Lee said of the paddle save. "That turned the tide a little bit, we needed that. It could've been 2-0, 10 minutes in."
"You almost feel like you got one for free," Cal Clutterbuck said. "You look at the scoreboard and [realize] this one could've gotten away from you. But it was still 1-0."
Sorokin also kept the Islanders in the game to support Parise's game-tying goal, stopping David Kampf's shorthanded breakaway, sliding over to make a pad save to preserve the tie. He also stopped eight combined shots from Auston Matthews, William Nylander and John Tavares.
The win was Sorokin's 26th of the season, tying his career-high set last year. Sorokin also became the first Islanders goalie to win 26 games in consecutive seasons since Rick DiPietro did so three times from 2005-06. Chico Resch is the only other Islanders goalie with multiple 26-win campaigns.

THE PARISE-PAGEAU-FASCHING LINE STAYS HOT

The trio of Zach Parise, JG Pageau and Hudson Fasching have been hot of late and were major contributors in the Islanders' breakout middle frame.
Down 1-0, Parise capitalized off a backdoor feed from Scott Mayfield to tie the score at one apiece, scoring his 19th goal and 30th point of the season in the process.
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KINGER'S CALLS
Parise Starts Scoring
Fasching Finds Back of Net
Clutterbuck's First
Clutterbuck's Second
Holmstrom Nets 5th
Dobson's ENG
Lee Passes Bourne
Pageau collected the secondary assist on the Isles first goal, extending his point streak to four games (2G, 4A) in his fourth game back since returning from injury. In a two-point night with a pair of assists, the 30-year-old center also recorded a team-high six hits.
"He's such a big part of our team, even when he's not on the scoresheet," Parise said of his linemate. He's been playing really well since he got back from injury."
With the game knotted at one apiece, Hudson Fasching took matters into his own hands for an unassisted goal to take the Islanders' first lead.
Timothy Liljegren fanned on a pass and Fasching was quick to collect the loose puck and charge the net, firing off a wrister from the dot to take the 2-1 lead. Fasching netted his seventh of the season and extended his point streak to three games (2G, 1A) in the process. Fasching has eight points (4G, 4A) in his last 10 games.
"He had a great game tonight," Lee said of Fasching. "He was on pucks, made smart decisions throughout the night and came up with a big-time goal. No surprise, he's got a ton of skill and he can show it off."
The Parise-Pageau-Fasching line put up a combined six goals and six assists in their last three games as a trio.
"We're talking a lot," Parise said of the chemistry of his line. "We played a little bit earlier together and played well. And since we've been reunited, we're getting more familiar with where everybody is on the ice. We're getting chances every game."

CLUTTERBUCK HAS FIRST THREE-POINT GAME

Cal Clutterbuck returned to his physical style of play almost immediately after returning from injury on Mar. 11, but he found his offensive groove against the Maple Leafs with his first-career three-point night.
"I play the game a certain way and I do things that don't always involve scoring goals," Clutterbuck said. "I also feel like I have the ability to [score] when I have the chance. I just stuck with it, burying it when I get a chance."
With a 2-1 Islanders lead late in the second period, the veteran winger positioned himself in front of the net to deflect a shot from Ryan Pulock to beat Ilya Samsonov. Clutterbuck scored his fifth goal of the season and first since Jan. 5.
The Leafs came within one with a Mitch Marner one timer off a feed from Auston Matthews, but Clutterbuck quickly regained the two-goal advantage in under a minute. The veteran winger took advantage of a breakaway, beating Samsonov clean in the third frame, marking his eighth career two-goal game and first since Dec. 16, 2021.
Clutterbuck rounded out his night with the secondary assist on Lee's goal to make it 7-2, marking his first-career three-point game.

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders take on the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday night at Nationwide Arena. Puck drop is at 7 p.m.