That is what the Islanders' future appears like.
Two targets from Matthew Schaefer, the second tying the sport at two with underneath a minute to go, helped the Islanders to a surprising 3-2 comeback win over the Blue Jackets on Sunday evening at UBS, as Simon Holmstrom potted the winner with 37 seconds to go.
For the primary time since Feb. 1 of final season, the evening Mat Barzal damage his kneecap, he began on the highest line alongside Bo Horvat, permitting Cal Ritchie to start out in his pure place at middle on the second line between Jonathan Drouin and Kyle Palmieri.
That configuration, since Ritchie started exhibiting out in coaching camp, is one that might give the Islanders their highest ceiling, however it's depending on the 21-year-old prospect — known as up for his Islanders debut Friday evening in Washington — with the ability to deal with it.
Ritchie, at the least to this point, is 2-for-2 on that rating, enjoying his finest interval in D.C. after being shifted to middle and searching proper at house on Lengthy Island in the identical position in opposition to Columbus.
The Islanders, because of this, performed with a balanced assault, as coach Patrick Roy rolled 4 strains for a lot of the sport.
That didn't, nonetheless, make it a straightforward evening.
Whereas the Isles dominated the shot rely and the sport early on, Schaefer's power-play aim was their solely breakthrough.
With the Blue Jackets sticking round, it felt solely a matter of time earlier than they tied it up, and certainly, Miles Wooden's redirection from Adam Fantilli made it a 1-1 sport at 15:21 of the second.
With 7:50 to go within the sport, Denton Mateychuk broke by means of, jamming in Kirill Marchenko's rebound that got here off him to make it 2-1 Blue Jackets. It was the twentieth shot of the evening for Columbus, and at that time, the Islanders had been sitting on 35.
Alexander Romanov and Tony DeAngelo, who've continued to look shaky since Romanov's return from harm in Carolina, had been the pair caught on protection for the aim.
Coach Patrick Roy has taken to enjoying Romanov with Scott Mayfield and Schaefer with DeAngelo at sure factors throughout video games — notably after penalty kills — and it wouldn't be a shock if the Islanders tried to take action extra usually.
That wasn't, nonetheless, the top of issues.
Skating at six-on-five, Schaefer's shot bought by means of visitors and off the stick of Anders Lee to tie the sport at two.
Seconds later, earlier than the Blue Jackets might earn some extent by attending to time beyond regulation, Holmstrom knocked the puck in on a scramble within the crease to win the sport.
For the second straight sport, the Isles' penalty kill was good, protecting the puck out on a trio of Columbus energy performs within the second interval that might have turned the sport, and a fourth within the third interval.
David Rittich, who surprisingly bought the beginning forward of Ilya Sorokin — set to return to the online Tuesday in opposition to the Bruins — was a lot improved from his final exhibiting at Carolina, stopping 20 pictures.
In the primary, although, this sport served as one other constructing block of proof that Ritchie may very well be a long-term choice to middle the second line.
The 21-year-old has but to get on the scoresheet by means of two video games, however has regarded strong in all phases, and notably harmful in transition. His line gave up subsequent to nothing defensively, a extremely encouraging growth for a trio centered by somebody enjoying his ninth NHL sport, and second with the Islanders.
Had the Islanders transformed their slew of early possibilities, this is able to have regarded much more encouraging on the scoreboard.
However, a second straight win since Ritchie has been known as up — and a second straight win through which the lineup regarded balanced and Ritchie regarded proper at house — is a fairly large constructing block all by itself.
