Recap: Isles Rally For 4-3 Win Over Blues

The New York Islanders had to dig deep to keep their winning streak alive on Saturday night.
Jordan Eberle, Johnny Boychuk and Anders Lee scored in the third period to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 4-3 win over the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center. The win was the Islanders sixth straight and ninth in their last 10 games.
"I felt we stole this one a little bit," Head Coach Barry Trotz said. "Tonight we won with good goaltending, we won with playing one period and we were led by the Cizikas line. When it came down to crunch time, our leaders stepped up."

ISLES RALLY IN THE THIRD PERIOD:

The Islanders were a lot happier with the result than their overall game on Saturday night.
They trailed 2-1 after 40 minutes, managing just eight shots through the first two periods. The Isles were frustrated by a tight-checking and desperate Blues team, but recognized that they were in a relatively fortunate position to only be down a goal.
"It wasn't our best game as a team. We struggled forsure in the first 40 minutes," Eberle said. "The third period was better. Sometimes when you're off and not playing well, it's nice to find ways to win and we definitely did that tonight. You don't want to do that on a nightly basis, but we'll take the two points."
While Trotz was ultimately pleased to take home two points, he doesn't want to see his team rely on nights like Saturday or think they'll come easy. He called it a red flag and hopes it's a wake-up call for his squad.
"We found a way to win by playing a period. That's not going to work for the New York Islanders," Trotz said. "We have to be a three period team and that's what we've done all year. Be realistic about everything. We'll take the two points, they can't give them back. At the end of the year it'll look like a 1-0 win."

ISLES SCORE TWO IN 11 SECONDS TO START RALLY:

The Islanders turned Saturday's game on its head in the third period, with Eberle and Boychuk scoring goals 11 seconds apart to give the Isles a 3-2 lead.
Eberle, who was returning to the lineup after missing four games, got the game tied, scooping the puck, circling the net and beating Jake Allen at 8:27. Boychuk followed it up with a point shot through traffic at 8:38, beating Allen through a Matt Martin screen.
"Those are momentum shifts, [they] go from winning a game to being down a goal in a matter of seconds," Head Coach Barry Trotz said.
The two goals was the jolt the Islanders needed, but they caught a break soon after, as Valdimir Tarasenko's would-be tying goal was waved off due to a kicking motion.
Lee put the Isles up 4-2, collecting his own rebound and potting a backhand behind Allen at 15:04. That goal proved crucial, as Ryan O'Reilly added some tension by making it 4-3 with 1:33 to play in the third.

LEHNER WINS SEVENTH STRAIGHT:

Robin Lehner stopped 29 of 32 shots on Saturday night, picking up his seventh straight win in the process. He was by far the busier goalie, as the Isles were outshot 32-14 in the contest, but was unflappable, even as Brayden Schenn and Zach Sanford scored first period goals.
"That was a big win for us, it really was," Lehner said. "We didn't have a great game today, but we stuck with it and battled through it together. We scrambled together. We just found a way to win. This one felt really good."

FOURTH LINE PLAYS BIG ROLE:

Trotz credited his fourth line with helping keep the Islanders in the game on Saturday night, as the checking line was involved on two of the Isles four goals. Matt Martin netted his fifth of the year at 2:25 of the second period to make it 2-1 in the second period to keep the Isles within range and later set up a screen on Boychuk's point shot. Casey Cizikas picked up assists on both Martin and Boychuk's goals.

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders take on the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night at NYCB Live. Puck drop is at 7 p.m.