3 Takeaways: Islanders Power Past Penguins 5-1

The New York Islanders talked about feeling re-charged after their three-day holiday break - and they certainly looked charged up in a 5-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Mathew Barzal and Anders Lee each had a pair of goals, while Josh Bailey (1G, 1A) and Brock Nelson each had two point nights as the Islanders picked up two regulation points against the Penguins, who entered the game on a 13-2-2 streak. Pierre-Oliver Joseph scored the lone goal for the Penguins.

"It's tight in the standings and a division rival, so it's good to get on them early and get a big win," Dobson said. "We just have to learn from we did tonight. We know how to play, play the right way and build on it and take it into the next game."
The Islanders were good at both ends of the ice, taking over 40 shots (42 total) for the eighth time this season, while tying a season-low for shots allowed with 21.
"We felt like we had a pretty good effort going into [the break]," Bailey said. "And we wanted to follow that up here today."

SECOND PERIOD SURGE:

The Islanders got off to a good start on Tuesday night, with Lee beating Tristan Jarry with a dart after a Penguins turnover 63 seconds in, but despite generating a bevy of the high-danger chances (6-0 at five-on-five per Natural Stat Trick), the teams were mired in a 1-1 tie after 20 minutes.
That changed in an explosive second period for the Islanders, who scored three straight goals and took command of the contest.
"Sometimes you have a good period and you still end up even, so we knew if we just kept sticking with it we'd be just fine," Lee said. "It's always nice to definitely get the go-ahead and go from there. So it was a big early goal and second."
It started early, with Barzal tipping a Hudson Fasching shot past Jarry at the 50-second mark. Bailey extended the lead to 3-1 at 11:32, as Noah Dobson froze everyone and sent a slap pass across the zone to the wide-open veteran, who easily deposited the puck. Barzal made it 4-1 with his second of the game, snapping a quick shot off after the puck bounced off a pair of Penguins.
The Islanders outshot the Penguins 20-4 in the middle frame and had seven high-danger chances compared to the Penguins three.

FASCHING FILLS AND FITS IN ON FIRST LINE:

The injury-plagued Islanders were dealt another blow early on Tuesday night, as Oliver Wahlstrom left the game in the opening minutes after taking a high hit from Pierre-Oliver Joseph.
While concern for Wahlstrom was paramount, the absence opened up an opportunity for Hudson Fasching, who stepped in alongside Barzal and Bailey.
Fasching helped key the Islanders first goal, slapping a Bailey pass on net that Barzal tipped to put New York ahead 2-1 50 seconds into the middle frame. Fasching helped create the chaos that led to Barzal's second goal, but it didn't wind on the scoresheet.
"They're awesome players and so it's fun to go out there and make plays and just try to complement them," Fasching said. "I try to go to the net and we created some opportunities and got a couple goals off of it."
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Postgame: Dobson
Postgame: Bailey
Postgame: Lee
Fasching, who has played in nine games since being recalled, finished the game with an assist and three shot attempts in 12:38 TOI.
"Ever since he's come up, in training camp, and when he's come up with us, he's looked really good," Bailey said. "He's stepped in and filled roles with guys being out and he's done a great job. He's a great guy to go along with it to, so he has been a welcomed addition."

CIZIKAS SIZZLES ON THE WING:

Perhaps it was the three-day break, or perhaps it was playing on the wing, but Casey Cizikas had plenty of bounce in his step on Tuesday's game.
Returning to the lineup after missing Friday's game with an upper-body injury - and playing right wing on a line with Zach Parise and JG Pageau - Cizikas was seemingly shot out of a cannon.
"I thought it was pretty good," Head Coach Lane Lambert said. "Everybody works on areas of position on the wing, wall plays and things like that in practice, so it's not completely foreign to him, but I thought he did a really good job."
With the Islanders up 1-0, the 31-year-old forward had a goal disallowed early in the first period. While Cizikas clearly stuffed the puck in on Jarry during a goalmouth scramble, the play was called back due to a Mathew Barzal offside call.
Cizikas set up another chance in the opening frame, leading a two-on-one rush with Hudson Fasching, as the Islanders lines got a little jumbled after Oliver Wahlstrom exited the contest.
Cizikas doesn't normally start on the wing, but he did have prior experience playing on the wing during late-game situations where he and Pageau were on the ice together, so the transition wasn't as stark. Despite playing on the wing, Cizikas still took 10 faceoffs, winning seven. He finished the game with a team-high four hits and three shot attempts in 17:08 TOI.

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders take on the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday night at UBS Arena. Puck drop is at 7:30 p.m.