Islanders snag big win over Maple Leafs to boost playoff hopes in Pete DeBoers debut
This is what desperation looks like.It took being pushed to the brink, it took a coaching change and it didn’t hurt that they played a Maple Leafs roster that resembled an AHL side. Whatever caveats you want to throw at this, though, the Islanders finally played like a team with their backs against the wall, which is just what they are.That helped bring them a 5-3 win over Toronto in Pete DeBoer’s debut behind the bench, the first of four wins that are absolute necessities over the last four games of this season for the Islanders to make the playoffs.Since the Islanders tarted 15 minutes prior to their playoff opposition on Thursday, the picture had yet to become clear when their game ended.Suffice to say, though, that Saturday’s match at home against the Senators — the club that started the 3-7-0 tailspin that got Patrick Roy fired and the club the Islanders are chasing for the second wild-card spot — is do-or-die.If the Islanders can carry their effort from Thursday into the weekend, you have to like their chances.They threw pucks on net early and often, holding a Carolina-esque 24-3 edge in shots on net after just 20 minutes.
They broke out quickly and decisively.They played with a speed and purpose and, yes, an urgency that had been lacking for far too long.Brayden Schenn and JG Pageau both scored within five minutes, and when the Leafs fought back to tie, the Islanders had no panic at all.
They stuck to their game, kept tilting the ice and by the second intermission, held a two-goal lead again.Schaefer’s goal that made it 3-2 at 9:39 of the second marked his 23rd of the season, tying Brian Leetch’s rookie record for defensemen, and was also Schaefer’s first goal in seven games.This was not a night where Schaefer, Ilya Sorokin or anyone else put the Islanders on their backs though.Just like Saturday’s match in Carolina was on all 20 skaters, so too was the dominance with which the Islanders operated on Thursday.Ondrej Palat had his best game...