Travis Zajac made the most of his ice time in Game 6 for the Islanders

At his pregame media briefing before Game 5 of their first-round playoff series against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Islanders coach Barry Trotz said veteran forward Travis Zajac would be the logical choice to enter the lineup if the Islanders lost a centerman to injury, but if it was a winger who went down, well, he’d have a few options.

But when rookie right wing Oliver Wahlstrom was checked heavily and awkwardly into the wall by Pittsburgh defenseman Mike Matheson in Game 5 and then couldn’t play in Game 6, Trotz decided Zajac was the best of his options to enter the lineup in Wahlstrom’s place.

Zajac played his best game as an Islander, saving a Penguins goal by sweeping the puck off the goal line after Ilya Sorokin was beaten by a shot from Kasperi Kapanen, and earning an assist on Ryan Pulock’s game-winner in the Isles’ 5-3 series-clinching win that put them into the second round against the Boston Bruins.

"We've had a couple [extra] guys that have been practicing and, honestly, one of the guys who would have been an option, [Michael] Dal Colle, tweaked something the other day, so he wasn't really an option,’’ Trotz said. "Travis, you know he's got 1,000 games [1,037] under his belt, he's played against top people, in a big moment. And I knew that that's just the right choice.’’

Zajac, the longtime former Devil who came over along with Kyle Palmieri in the April 7 trade that cost the Islanders a first-round pick, a fourth-rounder and two minor leaguers, had struggled to fit in. He appeared in 13 games for the Islanders, playing all three forward positions, and on all four lines. But he managed just one goal and one assist and started the playoffs as a healthy scratch.

It was the first time in his 15-year career that Zajac, who turned 36 on May 13, was relegated to the role of extra.

"It's difficult,’’ Zajac said of being left out of the lineup. "You want to be out there on the frontlines with your teammates . . . and being part of the wins, and the losses, and the ups and downs. But, like I told Barry, I'm here for the long haul. I'm here to help any way I can, be a part of it any way I can. And like everyone else, when my name's called, you got to go in and do the right things and play winning hockey and control what you can control.’’

Trotz had been asked, several times, about the difficulty in keeping Zajac out of the lineup. Every time, he praised Zajac for his great attitude, and suggested that if the Islanders were going to go far, Zajac was sure to get a turn at some point.

"No different than the playoffs last year,’’ Trotz said. "We had some good options on defense when we got Greeny [Andy Greene], and I started the playoffs with Johnny Boychuk on our defense, who had grinded all year. And then Johnny got hurt and Greeny came in and Johnny wasn't able to play for the [most of the] rest of the playoffs.’’

Zajac played 11:55 in his Islanders playoff debut, had one shot on goal, one blocked shot, one hit, one takeaway and one faceoff won in two attempts. He was part of a strong third line with Palmieri and Jean-Gabriel Pageau, and finished a plus-2 on the night.

The faceoff win, a clean win over Evgeni Malkin, was moved along by Pageau to Pulock, who hammered home a slap shot to put the Isles up 4-3 at 8:48 of the second period. The goal came 13 seconds after Brock Nelson had tied the score with the first of his two goals in the game.

For Zajac, it was a satisfying night.

"It was a lot of fun, I think, watching from up top,’’ he said of his time in the press box. "You just saw how hard the guys battle, the commitment. And you know you want to be part of it. So, it was pretty sweet to come in and be part of that win, and the series-clinching win. And we’ve just got to keep it going.’’

By Colin Stephenson

colin.stephenson@newsday.comColinSNewsday

Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.