Islanders rout Flyers after Barry Trotz shuffles lineup
Casey Cizikas of the Islanders celebrates the first of two goals scored in the first period against the Flyers during their game at Nassau Coliseum on Saturday. Credit: Getty Images/Al Bello
The lineup was different for the Islanders.
More importantly, the effort was, too, in a 6-1 rout of the Flyers on Saturday night at Nassau Coliseum before a sellout crowd of 1,400.
"We wanted to get to our game right away," said Casey Cizikas, who scored twice for his first goals in seven games as the Islanders raced to a 4-0 lead in the opening 15:25. "That’s getting pucks in behind. That’s getting down low, working below the goal line where we play our best hockey. We did that for the entire game, not just for a shift. Each line went out there with a purpose. That’s the way we’ve got to play from here on out."
Ilya Sorokin made 23 saves for the Islanders (20-8-4), who snapped a two-game losing streak and matched the East Division-leading Capitals’ 44 points. Sorokin won his seventh straight, extending his franchise-record winning streak for a rookie goalie.
"The team, of course, helps a lot," the Russian said through an interpreter. "Every time [I am] on the ice, the team is always in the regime of an attack."
The Islanders were listless during the first two periods of a 4-3 loss to the Flyers on Thursday night at the Coliseum before scoring three third-period goals. The teams will play again on Monday night in Philadelphia.
"We know what we had to do with these guys and we did it for 60 minutes and it paid off," said Anthony Beauvillier, who scored his first goal in nine games at 9:45 of the third period to make it 5-1 as Flyers defenseman Nate Prosser turned over the puck. "We didn’t really sit on our heels. We kept going at them in the third and got two goals out of it. It’s a pretty good bounce-back win for us today."
Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Jordan Eberle and Josh Bailey also snapped goal droughts as coach Barry Trotz shuffled his lineup to coax a more cohesive effort.
He inserted defenseman Thomas Hickey, who responded with two assists in his first NHL regular-season game since April 4, 2019, and placed Leo Komarov on the top line with center Mathew Barzal and Eberle.
Hickey was paired with Scott Mayfield and Trotz switched Andy Greene to work with Nick Leddy.
Trotz also flip-flopped left wings Michael Dal Colle and Beauvillier. He placed Dal Colle with Brock Nelson and Bailey and Beauvillier skated with Pageau and rookie Oliver Wahlstrom.
"It brings everyone together and everyone wants to do the job and everyone wants to get back to what we are," Beauvillier said of the lineup-shuffling.
The Islanders scored their first three first-period goals within 3 minutes, 52 seconds and had four goals on their first 12 shots against Carter Hart (22 saves).
It started with Pageau’s power-play goal at 6:11 as he snapped a nine-game goal drought. Then Eberle snapped an eight-game goal drought at 8:01 before Cizikas scored his two goals. Hart’s glove save at 5:16 of the third period denied Cizikas his first career hat trick.
Bailey’s first goal in five games and second in 12 games made it 6-1 at 15:46.
Joel Farabee’s goal from the right off a two-on-one rush had cut the Islanders’ lead to 4-1 at 17:52 of the first period.
That was the score when Sorokin made two shorthanded saves with Cal Clutterbuck off for tripping at 13:06 of the second period and three more as the Flyers continued to hem the Islanders in their own end.
"It was a pivotal point," Trotz said. "They score there, now they’re going, ‘Hey, you know, there’s lots of time left.’ "
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.
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