SAN JOSE, Calif. — The Islanders’ first game without Brock Nelson proved just how pivotal Ilya Sorokin will be for their playoff push.
The Islanders got out of San Jose alive, beating the Sharks 4-2, but it was not the prettiest of performances from a group that had a hole punched into its lineup with the deal that sent Nelson to Colorado on Friday.
The Sharks dominated the early goings, and it was largely Sorokin’s 20 first-period saves that gave the Islanders the ability to take an early lead before blowing the game open in the third.
Goals from Anthony Duclair and J-G Pageau in the first gave the Islanders an early lead, while Anders Lee’s third-period tally gave them some insurance after Nikolai Kovalenko had pulled San Jose back within 2-1.
Adam Boqvist’s power play goal — the second of the night for the Islanders after Duclair’s — put a bow on things early in the third period in giving the Isles a 4-1 lead.
With the win, the Islanders moved three points back of the Blue Jackets for the final playoff spot in the East.
