At the time, Barry Trotz and the Islanders certainly would have wished to see Mathew Barzal’s breakaway backhand shot during the second period four-on-four in Game 2 of their second round playoff series against the Boston Bruins on Monday go in. That would have made it 3-1, Islanders, and given the visiting team a firmer grasp on the game.
Barzal’s shot missed, but it all worked out just fine in the end. The Islanders did build a 3-1 lead anyway before allowing two third-period goals that tied the score and forced overtime. There, Casey Cizikas’ breakaway goal at 14:48 of sudden-death extra period gave the Islanders a 4-3 win that tied their best-of-seven series with the Bruins, 1-1.