3 Takeaways: Islanders Storm Past Kraken in 5-2 Win

Storming away from Seattle with a 'W.'
The New York Islanders beat the Seattle Kraken 5-2 in the teams' first-ever meeting at Climate Pledge Arena. With the win, the team extended its point streak to three games (2-0-1).
Zach Parise led the way with a three-point performance (2G, 1A), while Brock Nelson, Kyle Palmieri, and Casey Cizikas also found the back of the net. Ilya Sorokin made 23 saves on 25 shots in the victory.

Yanni Gourde and Riley Sheahan scored for the Kraken, while Philipp Grubauer made 31 saves on 35 shots in the loss.
The majority of the game featured an Islanders' style of play; tight checking, disciplined, stingy defense and balanced scoring. Their two-goal first period was a boost to morale and a positive adjustment as they didn't have to chase the game. It marked the first time in five games and just the second time in the last 13 games that the Islanders scored the game's opening goal.
"At the end of the day, you've got to find a way to score some goals and we did that," Islanders Head Coach Barry Trotz said. "You've got to find a way to have a good start and we did that and you've got to find a way to stay disciplined and we did that for the most part. When everything breaks down you need commitment and we had that. When we needed big saves and timely saves we got that. All that being said, that's the game of hockey."

ISLANDERS' FAST START AND STINGY DEFENSE POISES WIN

The Islanders' strong opening period featured a 13-4 shot-on-goal advantage and goals from Nelson and Parise. Nelson scored the game's icebreaker as he gathered a pass from Anthony Beauvillier in the slot and wired his team-leading 18th goal of the season top shelf over the glove of Seattle netminder at 8:53. In the process Nelson extended his goal streak to three games, his first three-game streak since scoring in four straight from March 6-11, 2021.

Parise doubled the Islanders' lead in the waning minutes of the period. A point shot from Noah Dobson redirected off Parise's skate and past Grubauer. The goal was immediately waved off for goaltender interference, but Trotz opted to challenge it and upon review, the goal was confirmed valid.
In the second period, the Islanders padded their lead 3-0 at 5:34 on a complete effort from the Parise, Mathew Barzal and Palmieri line. Barzal forechecked his own pass to recover the puck from below the goal line. Parise gathered the popped-out puck and fed Palmieri at the doorstep for the easy tap-in.
The Islanders continued their dominant effort as Cizikas scored his fifth goal of the season and extended the Islanders' lead 4-0 as he tapped in a point shot from Scott Mayfield - who posted a game-high of five shots - that vaulted off the end boards at 10:33.
"I thought our first 30 minutes were really good," Trotz said. "That's something more like when we're right on our game. Once we scored the fourth goal we got a little bit loose. We didn't put the puck in the places that we needed to, instead of being on our toes we ended up being a little more on our heels and that's because of our decisions."

Despite the Islanders' strong start and stingy defense, a defensive breakdown resulted in Seattle's first goal of the game. As a loose puck popped out from the Kraken's offensive zone faceoff, Gourde quickly ripped his shot from the high slot over Sorokin's glove to put Seattle on the board at 11:18.
Following their goal, the Kraken revved off the momentum from the goal and despite being outshot 11-2 through midway of the second period, finished the frame off with 11 shots compared to the Islanders' 14.
Seattle carried over that momentum into the final frame of play as they cut their deficit down 4-2 just 1:35 into the frame. Dobson's attempt to rim the puck around the boards took an unfortunate turn and deflected into the goal's netting where Sheahan circled in and put in the puck past the post.
ISLES 5, KRAKEN 2
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Full Highlights

KINGER'S CALLS
Nelson's Icebreaker
Parise's Deflection
Palmieri Pads Lead
Cizikas Puts In Rebound
Despite Seattle's push in the final frame - where they didn't show fatigue even after being the second leg of a back-to-back and controlled a 10-9 shot advantage - the Islanders came out with the win. They extended their lead 5-2 as Parise buried his second goal of the game on Seattle's empty net at 18:02 by chasing down Zdeno Chara's shot from distance that ricocheted off the boards.

SOROKIN SHINES IN VICTORY

Sorokin was strong in his 23-save performance and seventh-straight start.
"It was probably a difficult game for him because he didn't have a lot of work through the first 30 minutes," Trotz said. "Then, the last 20 or so we gave him a lot of work. Goaltending is all about key saves at key times and we got that tonight."
While Sorokin didn't face much action early in the game - just six shots total through the first 30 minutes of play - the netminder came up with timely stops in the action he did endure.
In the first period, Sorokin robbed Seattle's leading scorer Jared McCann with a full-pad save. In the latter half of the second period, where his workload picked up to 15 shots against through two-thirds of the game, he denied Ryan Donato with his blocker just before Cizikas converted at the other end of the ice.
Sorokin got some help from Adam Pelech late in the second period, as former Islander Jordan Eberle nearly cashed in a shot that flew off the lively end boards and right to him on the backdoor, but a diving Pelech kept it off the goal line.

As the Kraken increased the intensity during the third period and had cut their deficit down 4-2, Sorokin came up big and weathered Seattle's storm. The Russian netminder sprawled out to deny a backdoor chance on Morgan Geekie five minutes into the period and then seconds later turned aside Vince Dunn's point-blank shot from the slot. He also came up with multiple stops on an odd-man rush by Jamie Olekskiak and Adam Larsson as both teams skated four-on-four.
With the win, Sorokin improved his record to 16-11-6.

PRODUCTIVE NIGHT FOR THE PARISE-BAZAL-PALMIERI LINE

The new-look line of Parise, Barzal and Palmieri combined for five points (3G, 2A) and 12 shots as they displayed a solid effort as a trio. They executed strong passing sequences and showcased some creative looks on net.
Barzal collected an assist on Parise's first period goal and was a factor in Palmieri's goal with his tenacious defensive effort to force an offensive-zone turnover. After only having one goal through his first 29 games, Palmieri scored his fourth goal in as many games. Parise completed his first two-goal game since Jan. 14, 2020.

The game was a bit of a hockey homecoming for Barzal, who spent the entirety of his junior career with the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League. He was warmly welcomed back by fans, some of whom were even sporting his navy, emerald and white T-Birds jersey. The current Thunderbirds squad was even in attendance to watch their renowned alum in NHL action.
"It seemed like he was excited to be back here in Seattle," Parise said of Barzal. "A lot of Thunderbirds jerseys with Barzal on it. He was flying right from the beginning. When you're playing with him - and I've said it before he's got that ability to skate through the neutral zone and enter with puck possession. As wingers it's your responsibility because he can get all the eyes on him, so you have to find some open ice and get yourself available for a pass, but I mean with how dynamic he is, he's a really fun guy to play with."

BONUS TAKE: CHARA'S ASCENT TO MOST GAMES PLAYED

Zdeno Chara officially tied Chis Chelios for the most games played by an NHL defenseman with 1,651 and earned an assist on Parise's empty-net goal.

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders continue their road trip as they travel to San Jose to take on the Sharks on Thursday night. Puck drop is scheduled for 10:30 p.m. ET.