The New York Islanders did something Thursday night they hadn’t accomplished during their first 24 games.
Now, the Islanders will try to do something no one’s done in the NHL this season.
The Los Angeles Kings will look to continue their historic unbeaten road streak Saturday night when they visit the Islanders in their lone trip this season to Elmont, N.Y.
Both teams were off Friday after pivotal wins Thursday night. The Kings remained perfect on the road this season by blanking the Montreal Canadiens 4-0. The Islanders finally pulled away from an opponent in the third period by scoring the final three goals in a 7-3 win over the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets.
The road win was the 11th straight for the Kings, who snapped a tie with the 2006-07 Buffalo Sabres for the most consecutive road victories to start a season.
But the Kings’ streak has been far more dominant than the one authored by the Sabres, who advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals the following spring. Buffalo outscored its opponents 44-25 during its season-opening run and recorded six one-goal wins, including five in overtime or the shootout.
The Kings have outscored their opponents 50-18 while winning eight games by two or more goals. They recorded three-goal comebacks in two of their one-goal wins, including Tuesday when Los Angeles overcame a three-goal third-period deficit to beat the Blue Jackets, 4-3, for its lone road win decided after regulation thus far.
“Normally we’re downplaying achievements, talking about getting to the next game, but I think we have to acknowledge the group has played really well,” Kings head coach Todd McLellan said. “And how they did it on the road — twice we’ve had to come back from three-goal deficits.”
Kings goalie Cam Talbot also moved into the record books Thursday when he improved to 9-0-0 on the road and tied Glenn Hall of the 1965-66 Chicago Blackhawks for the most consecutive road wins to start a season by a goalie.
“It’s a special group,” Talbot said of the Kings. “So I’m happy to be part of that record for sure.”
The Islanders were happy to exorcise at least some of their third-period demons Thursday night. New York was outscored 39-18 in the third period and overtime of its first 24 games and had squandered a third-period lead in five of its previous 10 games.
History seemed on the verge of repeating itself when Adam Fantilli scored 1:28 into the third to pull the Blue Jackets within 4-3. But Mathew Barzal scored at the 5:33 mark, and Bo Horvat scored twice in 20 seconds shortly beyond the midway point of the period as the Islanders finished with seven goals for the first time since a 7-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 21, 2023.
“When they scored early in the third, we kept pushing,” Islanders head coach Lane Lambert said. “We figured (they would) probably (be) in that position again tonight. And our guys did a great job of responding and doing what they needed to do by staying aggressive.”
The win marked the first time the Islanders scored multiple goals in the third period of a regulation victory this season. New York scored two third-period goals in a 4-3 overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Oct. 30 and scored twice in the third period of Tuesday’s 5-4 overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks.
“We know exactly what’s being said about us blowing leads and whatnot,” Barzal said. “So we’re just trying to prove people wrong. That’s not who we are.”
–Field Level Media
