Kieffer Bellows scored his first two goals of the season early in the third period and the New York Islanders rallied to beat the New Jersey Devils 3-2 on Saturday for their eighth straight victory.
Oliver Walhstrom also scored and Semyon Varlamov made 26 saves to help the East-leading Islanders extend their points streak to 11 games (10-0-1).
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Kieffer Bellows scored his first two goals of the season early in the third period and the New York Islanders rallied to beat the New Jersey Devils 3-2 on Saturday for their eighth straight victory.
Pavel Zacha and Janne Kuokkanen scored for the Devils, who have lost 10 straight at home. Mackenzie Blackwood made 26 saves for New Jersey.
Bellows got in the lineup because of a lower-body injury to Islanders' captain Anders Lee. Coach Barry Trotz placed the former first-round pick on his top line with Barzal and Jordan Eberle and it paid off.
DOWN A REFEREE:
CAPTAINS OUT
The winning streak is the longest for the Islanders since they won 10 in a row last season. The team record is 15 in early 1982.
New York Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov (40) gloves the puck as New Jersey Devils center Janne Kuokkanen (59) watches during the second period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, March 13, 2021, in Newark, N.J. (AP PhotoBill Kostroun)
Pavel Zacha and Janne Kuokkanen scored for the Devils, who have lost 10 straight at home. Mackenzie Blackwood made 26 saves for New Jersey.
With New York down 2-1 entering the third period, Bellows tied it at 1:59, taking a pass from Mathew Barzal and beating Blackwood from between the circles.
Bellows, who was playing in his first NHL game since Feb. 18 and only his ninth of the season, put New York ahead at 5:10 with a power move cutting in from the right circle and beating Blackwood in close.
New York Islanders right wing Oliver Wahlstrom (26) celebrates his goal with center Brock Nelson (29) during the first period of the team's NHL hockey game against the New Jersey Devils on Saturday, March 13, 2021, in Newark, N.J. (AP PhotoBill Kostroun)
Bellows got in the lineup because of a lower-body injury to Islanders' captain Anders Lee. Coach Barry Trotz placed the former first-round pick on his top line with Barzal and Jordan Eberle and it paid off.
Zacha gave the Devils the lead early in the first period and Walhstrom tied it later in the period with a blistering shot on a rush.
Kuokkanen gave New Jersey the lead at 1:04 of the second period, diving to poke a rebound into an open net. He has goals in three straight.
New York Islanders center Casey Cizikas (53) slides against New Jersey Devils goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood (29) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, March 13, 2021, in Newark, N.J. (AP PhotoBill Kostroun)
DOWN A REFEREE:
Referee Justin St. Pierre sustained an upper-body injury in a first-period collision and did not return for the final 40 minutes. Referee Pierre Lambert worked the final two periods with linesmen Vaughan Rody and Libor Suchanek.
NOTES: Islanders F Josh Bailey left the ice for part of the second period after being cut in the face by a diving Kuokkanen on his goal. ... Devils D Dmitry Kuliov played in his 700th NHL game. ... New York's Brock Nelson had his four-game goals streak broken.
New York Islanders defenseman Nick Leddy (2) skates with the puck as he is pursued by New Jersey Devils right wing Kyle Palmieri (21) during the first period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, March 13, 2021, in Newark, N.J. (AP PhotoBill Kostroun)
CAPTAINS OUT
Lee had his streak of playing in 295 consecutive games snapped. He is going to be out indefinitely after injuring his right leg in Thursday night's win over New Jersey. He led New York with 12 goals. The streak was the third longest in Islanders' history. Devils captain Nico Hischier missed his eighth straight game with a concussion and broken nose. ...
UP NEXT:
New Jersey Devils goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood (29) protects the net, while New York Islanders center Casey Cizikas (53) loses control of the puck as he is checked by Devils center Jack Hughes (86) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, March 13, 2021, in Newark, N.J. (AP PhotoBill Kostroun)
The teams are back at the Prudential Center late Sunday afternoon for their third straight game against each other.
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