Islanders halt four-game losing streak by defeating Kings in Los Angeles for first time since 2018 on Thursday night at Crypto.com Arena, Newsday reported.
The 5-2 victory broke a skid for the Islanders and ended a long drought against Los Angeles. The Kings had not lost in regulation to the Islanders since Feb. 6, 2020, going 10-0-1 in the interim.
Matias Maccelli and Ryan Pulock Return to the Lineup
The Islanders welcomed back speedy forward Matias Maccelli and defensive stalwart Ryan Pulock to the lineup. Coach Pete DeBoer noted the positive impact of the returning players.
“We were more connected,” coach Pete DeBoer said. “We put two good players back in the lineup, which helps. Our goalie was great again and we cleaned up the things that we didn’t like about last game.”
Brayden Schenn emphasized the team’s foundational identity following the win. Schenn notched a goal and two assists, bringing his totals to two goals and five assists over a four-game point streak.
“We’re built on being defensively structured, playing hard, playing the right way and winning games from our goalies out,” said Brayden Schenn, who notched a goal with two assists to give him two goals and five assists in a four-game point streak. “We’ve scored goals. [We were] relying on maybe trying to do that a little too much.”
Ilya Sorokin Stops 26 Shots to Secure Win
Goalie Ilya Sorokin stopped 26 shots to secure his third straight strong outing for the Islanders. Captain Bo Horvat praised the goaltender’s recent performances after capping the scoring with an empty-net goal.
“He’s been so good for us,” captain Bo Horvat told Newsday about Sorokin after capping the scoring with an empty-net goal.
“I can’t stop talking about how good he is. For us to finally play a little bit better in front of him. There were still things we’ve got to work on. But, for the most part, we were solid and didn’t give up too many Grade-A [shots] for him.”
While Maccelli and Pulock returned, third-line center Jean-Gabriel Pageau remained unavailable due to a lower-body issue. DeBoer dressed 11 forwards and seven defensemen to manage ice time for Maccelli and Pulock, who logged 13:46 and 19:22 respectively.
Maccelli set up defenseman Matthew Schaefer for a power-play goal in the first period during Schaefer’s 100th NHL game. Pulock added two assists, contributing to goals by Schenn and rookie Victor Eklund.
“I started feeling good in the third period again,” speedy forward Matias Maccelli said after logging 13:46 of ice time.
