3 Takeaways: Islanders Ride Special Teams to 4-2 Win Over Sens

There was no need for a comeback on Monday night, as the Islanders jumped out ahead early and skated to a 4-2 win over the Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre.
Oliver Wahlstrom and Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored power-play goals, while Noah Dobson (1G, 1A) netted an even-strength marker. Mathew Barzal dished out a pair of assists, as the Islanders won for the ninth time in their last 11 games. Semyon Varlamov stopped 36 of 38 shots in the win.

With the win, the Islanders improved to 6-0-0 when opening the scoring, as well as 7-0-0 when leading after two periods.
"It's nice to score the first goal, that's for sure," Head Coach Lane Lambert said. "We've had some comebacks, but tonight, I thought we did a really good job with the lead and it was a really a character win. It was as much character win or more as the comebacks because, we fought through a lot of adversity."
The Islanders also improved to 12-2-0 in their last 14 games against Ottawa, including 6-1-0 at Canadian Tire Centre. Drake Batherson (PPG) and Claude Giroux scord for the Senators.

POWER PLAY SCORES A PAIR:

Special teams played an outsized role in Monday's win.
The Islanders got a pair of goals from their power play as Oliver Wahlstrom and Ottawa native JG Pageau each scored on the man advantage.
Wahlstrom opened the scoring for the Islanders at 11:53 of the first period, beating goalie Cam Talbot with a heavy wrister stick side from the top of the circle at 11:53. Wahlstrom found himself out on the man advantage filling in for Josh Bailey, who did not dress. Wahlstrom's tally snapped an eight-game goalless drought on Monday.
The power play came through again in the third period, putting the Islanders ahead 3-1. Noah Dobson's point shot produced a rebound that Pageau pounced on, backhanding the eventual winner past Talbot at 8:21.
The Islanders power play scored two goals for a third time this season and now has seven goals in the past eight games (7-for-22).
"The puck movement has been really good," Wahlstrom said of the power play. "Obviously the top unit has been ripping it around and Nelson's been hot too, so it's good to see and it gives us confidence too when the power play is going."

PK KILLS FIVE OF SIX:

The Islanders penalty kill saw plenty of work on Monday night, killing off five-of-six penalties against a pretty potent Senators' power play.
The bulk of that came in the second period, as the Islanders spent over nine minutes shorthanded.
The lone goal came on a five-on-three portion of the penalty, as the Sens quickly worked the puck around the zone and over to Drake Batherson, who one-timed a shot high past a sliding Varlamov, briefly tying the game at 8:48.
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KINGER'S CALLS
Wahlstrom's PPG
Dobson Scores 5th
Pageau's PPG
Nelson's Empty-Netter
The shorthanded unit stepped up immediately after Batherson's goal, as they still had to kill off the bulk of Scott Mayfield's double-minor. Varlamov had the biggest moment, getting across his net to deny Mathieu Joseph on a similar setup to Batherson.
In total, the Senators had 11 shots on the power play, so it was a bend, don't break moment for the PK, and took some of the sting out of the Islanders allowing a ninth power play goal in their last nine games.
"They have a good power play, but we were well prepared," Pageau said. "The guys battled hard, a lot of sacrifice, a lot of blocked shots and battles that we won. Varly in net was outstanding."

JOHNSTON IN FOR BAILEY:

Ross Johnston drew into the lineup for the first time since Nov. 1, replacing Josh Bailey on Monday night, as Bailey was deemed a healthy scratch by Lambert. Johnston played 8:40 on a line with Pageau and Kyle Palmieri, recording two shots and three hits, while also getting a fighting major after a short bout with Austin Watson, and a roughing minor that led to the five-on-three.

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders head to Nashville to take on the Predators on Thursday night. Puck drop is at 8 p.m. eastern.