Islanders News: Banking points is always important

So the New York Islanders did not put forth their best 60-minute effort again. But they did put in a pretty good effort for 40 minutes, even though the second period, while energetic, was not very crisp.

Happily for us, they came away with two points from the Columbus Blue Jackets. They are fifth in the NHL in points and were the fourth team to hit double-digit wins (the Los Angeles Kings hit ten wins later in the night). They’re also seventh in points percentage. Even if they have warts, they’re banking points.

Since they didn’t look their best, they had to work today.

Islanders News

About last night:

• Zach Parise got the overtime winner as Brock Nelson, Scott Mayfield, and Sebastian Aho have big nights. [LHH]
• Nelson had two more goals as the Islanders played catchup. [3 Takeaways]
• Nelson also fired a career-high ten shots on goal. [Newsday]
• The final shot counter read 46-29 for the Islanders. [Rapid Recap]
• The Islanders have ten wins, which they did not achieve last season until January 1. [NYI Skinny]

Other bits:

• After not scoring goals in the first couple of weeks of the season, Nelson hasn’t stopped scoring in his effort to repeat or best his career-best 37-goal season last year. [NY Post]
• Aho took Robin Salo’s spot in the fifth game of the season and hasn’t left the lineup since. He has looked good playing a steady, simple game. [Newsday] And he was rewarded for it last night with one assist, and he made another goal happen with a keep-in (even if he didn’t get a point for it). [The Athletic]
• Since it was Hockey Fights Cancer Night, the Islanders honored Jean Potvin, Clark Gillies, and Mike Bossy, all of whom succumbed to the disease. [Newsday] And Bryan Trottier honored their memories. [NHL]
• An Australian Isles fan comes to UBS Arena. [Islanders]

Elsewhere

Last night’s NHL scores include the Penguins losing in OT to the Canadiens, the Rangers falling in regulation to the Predators, the Hurricanes dropping a regulation game to the Avalanche, and the Devils dispatching the Coyotes for their ninth straight victory.

• However, despite the Devils extending their streak, we saw the end of most of the other long strings. Claude Giroux helped the Senators end their seven-game skid in his return to Philadelphia; the Blues, recovering from an eight-game losing streak, put an end to the Golden Knights’ nine-game winning streak; and the Flames knocked off the Jets to end their seven-game slide.
• Daniel and Henrik Sedin will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame tomorrow. They discussed the careers that put them there. [NHL]
• Nicolas Aube-Kubel, recently picked up on waivers by the Capitals from the Maple Leafs, had a hearing for a head hit on Cal Foote that had already earned him a match penalty. [NHL] He was suspended for three games. [NHL]
• Aaron Ekblad returned to the lineup in the Panthers’ loss to the Oilers yesterday afternoon. [NHL]
• Borje Salming, the first Swedish superstar in the NHL, is suffering from ALS but joined fellow Leafs legends on the ice ahead of the Hall of Fame game. [NHL]
• On HNIC’s 32 Thoughts segment, Elliotte Friedman and Jeff Marek reported that folks are looking for a little more clarity on the Canucks’ coaching situation. [Sportsnet]