Josh Bailey celebrates his winning goal against the Pens.
AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar

There are shifts you remember. For Islanders forward Josh Bailey, that shift came late in regulation in Pittsburgh. Facing the team that eliminated them from the playoffs, the Islanders showed the same resiliency that pushed the Pens to the limit. A huge third period resulted in their best win of the season. A come from behind 4-3 win in regulation that stunned the Pens.

Out for a long shift after Pierre-Marc Bouchard tied it, a sliding Bailey broke his stick after trying to block a shot. With the short change, he sprinted towards the bench and got new lumber sneaking back into play. As the Islanders were clearing the zone, Bailey started a rush the other way. With Kris Letang scrambling around, Frans Nielsen retrieved a loose puck and chipped it to Bailey, who got just enough of it to tuck it past Pens backup Jeff Zatkoff. The conclusion of a wild sequence put the Isles ahead with 1:40 left. Kyle Okposo added the other helper.

Much as they had last Spring, the Isles exposed the Pens. If last year it was Marc-Andre Fleury’s inability to stop the puck, this time it was the Pens’ defense which imploded. They blew two one-goal leads in the third. After the old Patrick rivals exchanged goals 3:11 apart in the first, league leading scorer Sidney Crosby scored the lone goal in a dominant second that saw the hosts outshoot the Isles 20-10. Evgeni Nabokov stopped 19 of 20 to give his team a chance. He finished with 39 saves.

In a striking similarity to last May, an unpredictable third saw a pesky Islander effort get rewarded. Nielsen has been the best Islander so far. His consistency has given the club a second scoring line that’s taken pressure off new captain John Tavares. Nielsen and Tavares combined to set up Matt Moulson on the power play for the game’s first goal in the first. But Jussi Jokinen tied it. The Pens brought a 2-1 lead into the final stanza thanks to Crosby beating Nabokov on a mini-break for his eighth.

Nielsen wasn’t done. On a good fore-check, he neatly redirected a Thomas Hickey shot pass just out of Zatkoff’s reach. Radek Martinek picked up a secondary assist. But on the next shift, an unlikely source put the Pens back ahead. Off a nice rush by Joe Vitale, he centered for a cutting Deryk Engelland, who buried his first past Nabokov. Pretty cool when a noted tough guy scores. Engelland was playing forward due to injuries. The goal came 16 seconds later giving Pittsburgh a 3-2 lead. Before you could blink, the Islanders came right back. With the Pens leaving the zone early, a great keep by Martinek allowed Bouchard to pick up his first as an Islander. He took a Martinek feed and slipped a backhand past Zatkoff once again tying it 53 seconds later.

As time wound down, a strong shift by the Pens had the Isles pinned in their zone. That’s when Bailey broke his stick leaving the Isles a man short to defend. Able to keep their dangerous opponent to the outside, they got out of it unscathed. A scrambling Bailey got back in time to start the winning rush. It was kind of an innocent play with him getting the puck to Okposo at the side of the net. With no angle, he centered for Nielsen who was in great shooting position. Instead of taking the shot with Zatkoff down, he passed for Bailey, who was isolated. He was able to tuck one in for the game-winner. His fourth from Nielsen and Okposo.

It didn’t take long for some Pen fans to hit the exits. I’ll never understand why fans do that. You’re only down a goal with two of the game’s best. Crosby has been remarkable while Evgeni Malkin has yet to get going. He still has nine points. Even with them pulling Zatkoff for the extra, the Islanders did an excellent job in front of Nabokov not allowing anything to get through. One final clear allowed them to celebrate a well earned win.

Notes: With an assist on Bailey’s winner, Nielsen led all skaters with three points (1-2-3). His second straight three-point effort raised his season total to six goals and eight assists for a team-leading 14 points. Two better than Tavares (assist) who is second with 12. With a helper, Okposo is up to 11 points (3-8-11). … Pens outshot the Isles 42-25. However, shots were 8-7 Pittsburgh in the third. … Isles converted on their only power play (Moulson) while holding the Pens powerless in five chances. … Pens killed the Isles in face-offs winning 48 of 75. Crosby went 18-for-26 and Malking was 12-for-18. Casey Cizikas was the Isles’ best winning 8-of-18. Tavares went 10-of-23. Bailey lost 12 of 15. Peter Regin lost 13 of 18. Okposo won his only draw. … The win improved NYI to 4-3-3 with their 11 points tied with Carolina for second. At last check, the Canes trailed the Avs 4-2 late in the third.

METRO DIVISION

GP   Record  Pts

1.Penguins   10   7-3-0     14

2.Islanders   10   4-3-3     11

3.Canes        10   4-3-3      11

4.Jackets       10   5-5-0      10

5.Capitals      10  5-5-0       10

6.Devils          10  1-5-4       6

7.Rangers       8    2-6-0      4

8.Flyers           9    2-7-0      4