Rapid Recap: Islanders 5, Capitals 1

The New York Islanders beat the Washington Capitals 5-1 on Thursday at UBS Arena, in their fourth and final meeting of the season.
Brock Nelson and Anders Lee got the Islanders on the board in the first period, and the Islanders had an explosive third frame for the second consecutive game, as JG Pageau, Kyle Palmieri and Josh Bailey all put up goals to ice the game. Axel Jonsson-Fjallby found the back of the net for the Capitals, preventing the shutout in the final minute. The Islanders were able to score nine straight goals in the home-and-home series against the Capitals, as Washington scored the first and final goal of the series.
Semyon Varlamov made 26 saves in the victory, picking up his 10th win of the season.

THE SCORING:

1st Period:
10:48 - NYI 1, TBL 0 PPG - Brock Nelson netted his team-leading 37th goal of the season with a one-timer blasting through Vitek Vanecek. Mat Barzal and Noah Dobson tally assists in the play.
15:34 - NYI 2, TBL 0 PPG - Anders Lee extends the Islanders lead with a deflection in front of the net to beat Vanecek. Barzal picked up his second consecutive primary assist on the night, as Dobson reached 50 points on the season with the secondary assist.
2nd Period:
No scoring.
3rd Period:
3:44 - NYI 3, WSH 0 - As a double minor penalty expires, JG Pageau rushes down the ice, cuts to the front of the net, burying the puck to beat Vanecek glove-side. Pageau's 17th goal of the season is a career-high in his two and a half seasons with the Islanders.
6:23 - NYI 4, WSH 0 PPG - Josh Bailey keeps, holds, and looks to find Kyle Palmieri, who blasts one from the slot to score his 200th career goal. Robin Salo picked up the secondary assist.
13:37 - NYI 5, WSH 0 - Josh Bailey sneaks through traffic to tap in the Islanders fifth goal of the game, extending his point streak to three games (1G, 3A). Mat Barzal picks up the assist, recording his second three-point game of the season.
19:18 - NYI 5, WSH 1- Axel Jonsson-Fjallby finds the back of the net to get Washington on the board late in the third frame.

NOTEBOOK:

Anders Lee scored his 212th career goal on Thursday, passing Derek King (211) for 10th all-time in goals in franchise history. Brock Nelson netted his 205th career goal on Thursday, just one goal away from tying John Tonelli (206), who ranks 12th on that list… Noah Dobson became the 19th defenseman in the NHL to reach the 50-point mark this season… With a three-point performance, Mat Barzal now has 10 points in his last nine games (1G, 9A). JG Pageau won 13-of-19 draws in the faceoff circle… Robin Salo remained in the lineup for a second straight game, playing in his 19th career NHL game (1G, 4A)… Ryan Pulock missed the game due to illness... Zdeno Chara rejoined the lineup and recorded one hit and one shot in 20:58 of ice time… Anthony Beauvillier also rejoined the lineup after missing four straight games with an upper-body injury. He had one shot attempt in 15:27 of ice time... The Capitals remain in the second wild card spot with 100 points... The Capitals were without Alex Ovechkin for the second straight game, marking the 26th game he's missed due to injury in his 17 year long career.

GOALTENDING MATCHUP:

Semyon Varlamov stopped 26-of-27 in the win.
Vitek Vanecek stopped 21-of-26 in the loss.

SPECIAL TEAMS:

The Islanders penalty kill went 6-for-6, including two double minors. The Islanders went 3-for-5 on the power play, marking the first time this season they were able to put up three power-play goals in a single game. The Capitals went 0-for-6 on the power play; they are now 0-for-18 in their last five games with a man advantage.

IMAGE OF THE GAME:

HIGHLIGHT OF THE NIGHT:

Video: WSH@NYI: Pageau wires home quick shot into twine

NEXT GAME:

The Islanders host the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday at UBS Arena to wrap up the season. Puck drop is set for 7:30 p.m.