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With Brent Sutter in the house for his Isles Hall of Fame induction, the New York Islanders took care of business on Saturday night with a 4-1 win over the San Jose Sharks at UBS Arena.

It was an important response for the Islanders, who picked up their first win of their seven-game homestand after dropping the first two games.

“We needed it,” Captain Anders Lee said. “We had a great ceremony before the game started, honoring Brent and his career and the building had some extra juice from that. I thought the energy was there from the get-go, we played with our legs and played a good hockey game.”

Mathew Barzal (1G, 1A), Brock Nelson (GWG, 1A), Noah Dobson and Ryan Pulock scored for the Islanders, while Barclay Goodrow scored the lone goal for the Sharks. Marcus Hogberg turned aside 18 of 19 shots in his second win as an Islander and first win on home ice in his fourth start with the team, while Alexandar Georgiev stopped 27 of 31 shots in the loss.

“Obviously with him not being in the league for a few years, I’m sure a lot of people weren’t sure what to expect,” Pulock said. “But every single time he’s been in there he’s been great.”

Cinematic Recap: NYI 4, SJS 1

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Islanders came out of the gate with energy – up on shots 18-5 midway through the contest - before three goals were scored in quick succession to break open the game.

Simon Holmstrom, who returned after missing seven games, picked up where he left off with strong defensive play to fend off a Macklin Celebrini breakaway. Instead of being down 1-0, the Isles were the ones to break the ice shorty after. Barzal corralled the puck in the neutral zone and raced up ice through the Sharks zone, beating Georgiev on the backhand at 8:47 of the middle frame.

The Sharks found the equalizer 1:15 later, with Goodrow beating Hogberg from the top of the right circle at 10:02.

In a quick retaliation, Pulock and Adam Pelech gained possession of the puck in the Sharks zone, with Pelech sending a cross-ice feed to Palmieri along the boards, who sent a centering feed to Nelson in the slot, who swiftly shelfed it over the shoulder of Georgiev to regain the lead at 10:42.

Dobson, who had a disallowed goal in the first period, hit the scoresheet with a blast from the point that beat Georgiev cleanly in the final minute of the second.

The Islanders kept pressing in the third period. Pulock received an Anthony Duclair pass at the point for a blast that beat Georgiev at 1:03 of the period and they took the game home from there.

Islanders Hall of Fame Induction: Brent Sutter

BRENT SUTTER INDUCTED INTO ISLES HALL OF FAME

After honoring Brent Sutter with a ceremony and a plaque before the game, as the 16th member of the Islanders Hall of Fame, the Islanders honored Sutter with a win.

Sutter shook hands with the Isles as he walked by the bench, but that wasn’t the team’s only interaction with him throughout the night. With his 13th goal of the season, Nelson took sole possession of fifth on the all-time list with his 288th career goal, passing Sutter and Pat LaFontaine. Nelson resonated with the speech Sutter delivered pregame, where he spoke about meaningful relationships he’s built as an Islander.

“I’ve been fortunate to be here for a while and played with a lot of great players,” Nelson said. “Similar message that Brent had, the memories you make with the guys is the best thing.

Nelson’s goal also stood as the game-winner, his 44th of his career, which tied Denis Potvin for third on the franchise list.

“Nelson’s been part of a lot of big moments here, scored a lot of big goals. I think it’s kind of cool it all happened tonight,” Pulock said on Nelson making history on Sutter’s special evening.

Another Islander made history with a Sutter connection, as Barzal also passed Sutter on the franchise list in assists (324) for ninth place on the all-time list.

“It was a very special night for Brent, but at the end, a lot of our guys passed him,” Head Coach Patrick Roy said with a laugh. “Sorry, Brent.”

LINEUP CHANGES

Alexander Romanov and Simon Holmstrom drew back into the lineup, after missing three and seven games respectively.

Holmstrom played on a line with JG Pageau and Casey Cizikas. The Swedish winger recorded four shots (two on goal, one attempt blocked and one missed) in 14:01 TOI.

“You want to see how a player will react after an upper body injury and he did really well with awareness,” Roy said of Holmstrom. “I thought he played a strong game.”

Romanov skated on a pair with Noah Dobson. Romanov led the team with five blocked shots in 23:26 TOI.

Marc Gatcomb played his second NHL game and skated as Max Tysplakov served his first of a three-game suspension. Gatcomb played with Pierre Engvall and Kyle MacLean, recording seven hits, three shots on goal in 11:23 TOI.

ODDS AND ENDS

  • Casey Cizikas led the team with nine hits.
  • Nelson had a team high four shots.
  • Noah Dobson led the team with 24:30 TOI

Isles Plaque Series: Brent Sutter

NOTABLE QUOTE

Nelson on getting important wins on home ice:

“We always want to come out and play well in front of our fans at home. Having a night like tonight, where it’s a special night for the franchise, the legends that have been here for a while who live around here and still support the team, it was huge. For us it was important for us to give them something to be happy about.”

NEXT GAME

The Islanders continue their season-long, seven-game homestand with a matchup against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday night. Puck drop is set for 7:30 p.m.

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