Good Morning, Islanders Country.
On Tuesday in Nashville, Matthew Schaefer played all five minutes of overtime, something no skater had done since the NHL started tracking it.
On Thursday in Minnesota, he didn’t have to.
He made sure of that.
33 seconds into the extra session, Schaefer took off on a break and snapped a wrist shot from the right circle past Jesper Wallstedt. It was his second goal of the night, and it gave the Islanders a 4-3 win over a Wild team that came in first in the Central and was riding a three-game winning streak.
It might have been the Islanders’ most complete game of the season. Against one of the league’s best teams, too. And it didn’t start that way.
Minnesota scored in the opening minute, the kind of start that could have made a tired team on the last night of a road trip fold. Minutes later, the Isles lost Ryan Pulock for the rest of the night and had to play on with five defensemen.
They didn’t fold. Schaefer scored twice and added an assist, Bo Horvat scored on the power play, and Adam Pelech chipped in a rare goal. They kept coming.
That’s what Pete DeBoer is building here.
After Dallas, he told his team it couldn’t play that way against good teams. Three days later, after a shootout win in Nashville, the Islanders went to Minnesota and showed they can play better against good teams. They’re committed to the details, connected as a five-man unit, and hard to play against. More importantly, they’re trying to bring that every night, not just when the opponent gets their attention.
It helps when you have Schaefer.
There’s an edge to his game. He wants the puck in big moments, he wants the hard minutes, and he wants to be the guy who ends it. But watch him for five minutes and the other thing jumps out: he’s having the time of his life.
The celebrations, the extra hugs for the goalie, the grin after every big shift. He plays like a kid who can’t believe he gets to do this, and he plays like he expects to win. No player this century has done what Schaefer did last night. A multi-goal game, including an OT winner, and an assist while playing over 30 minutes TOI.
That’s Wild. What we are watching is rare, and it’s contagious.
The road trip ends 2-1. Two straight unexpected wins.
And a whole lot of fun.