Matthew Schaefer scored the game-winning goal and added an assist while Ilya Sorokin made 33 saves for his second straight win as the Isles earned their third straight win by defeating the San Jose Sharks 4-3 before a crowd of 15,832 at UBS Arena.
The Isles allowed an early shorthanded goal but scored on the same power play as part of a three-goal first period outburst; Schaefer’s tally was the only one in the second period and it became the game-winner when fellow first overall pick Macklin Celebrini scored midway through the third period.
The Isles improve to 3-3-0 with their third straight win; they host Detroit on Thursday.
The Scoring:
1st Period
Collin Graf (1) Ty Dellandrea (3) 08:29 SJS 1,NYI 0 SHG
Bo Horvat (5) Mathew Barzal (4), Matthew Schaefer (5) 09:26 SJS 1,NYI 1 PPG
Casey Cizikas (1) Simon Holmstrom (2) 10:30 SJS 1,NYI 2
Adam Gaudette (2) Michael Misa (1), Collin Graf (1) 14:16 SJS 2,NYI 2
Emil Heineman (3) Anders Lee (2), Max Shabanov (2) 19:28 SJS 2,NYI 3 PPG
2nd Period
Matthew Schaefer (2) Anthony Duclair (1), Kyle Palmieri (3) 06:38 SJS 2,NYI 4
3rd Period
Macklin Celebrini (2) Dmitry Orlov (5), Mario Ferraro (1) 10:16 SJS 3,NYI 4
The Skinny
Bo Horvat became the first Islander since Jean-Gabriel Pageau in April 2022 to score five goals in a three-game span; the three-game streak is one shy of his career high (March 20-26, 2022)… Matthew Schaefer extended his point streak to six games, becoming both the first rookie and first defenseman to do so this season… The Isles scored twice on the power play in the first period giving them five power play goals in their last five games…The Isles had been outscored 8-2 in the first period prior to their three goals in the final 10:34 of the first period tonight…Emil Heineman scored his third goal, extending his point streak to four games, and added six hits; he leads the team with 27 hits… The Isles have come-from-behind to win all three of their wins; this was the first time that they led after one period…The Isles did not win three straight games last season until January 5-11…Both Horvat and Schaefer have been on-ice for eleven of the club’s 20 goals this season…The Isles have scored multiple power plays twice this season, after doing so only five times all last season
First Times in a Long Time
• The Isles scored two power play goals in the first period for the first time since doing so November 15, 2023, in Vancouver.
• The Isles have scored five power play goals in the first three home games for the first time since 2010-11, and for the first time in any three consecutive home games since December 13-19, 2023.
• The Isles have been outscored 22-20 through six games. The 42 combined goals are the highest since 2014-15 (also 42), while the 20 goals scored are the highest since 2015-16 (21).
• Michael Misa recorded his first career point, making this game the first time since October 15, 1986 (DET/LA), that the top two picks had points in their first head-to-head meeting (Joe Murphy and Jimmy Carson).
Record Seeker/Breaker
With points in his first six games, Matthew Schaefer is:
• Now tied with Marek Zidlicky’s defense record (points in six straight with Nashville in 2003-04) to start a career
• One game shy of Alexander Daigle’s expansion era record (7) to start a career at 18 or younger; he joins Sidney Crosby and Wayne Gretzky as players with six-game streaks.
• Now tied with Bob Bourne (6 games in 1974) for the longest career-opening streak in club history.
• One game shy of Stefan Persson’s club defense record for a rookie (1/28-2/11/1978; 7 games)
• The first NHL player since Jonathan Toews (10 games in 2007) to have a point in his first six games.
• The first 18-year-old defenseman in NHL history to record a point in his first six games.
• The first defenseman selected first overall to earn a point in his first six games.
Wait, There’s More!
• Schaefer is the second-youngest defenseman (Chris Joseph was two days younger) and youngest Islander, regardless of position to record a multiple-point game.
• Schaefer also is the youngest defenseman in NHL history to record a game-winning goal.
Most Games Played as an 18-Year-Old (Isles history)
Tim Connolly 81
Dave Chyzowski 34
Nino Niederreiter 9
Mathew Schaefer 6
Brent Sutter 3
Brad Dalgarno 2
Paul Boutilier 1
Did Somebody Say Comeback?
The Isles have three come-from behind wins this season, including one when they trailed in the third period. The opponents have come-from-behind to win one time this season, including once in the third period.
Overtime
The Isles are 0-0 in games decided by an overtime goal, and they are 0-0 in shootouts.
Empty Netters
The Isles have scored 1 empty-net goal and allowed 1.
Building on a Lead
The Islanders have had a two-goal lead 2 times this season:
• Score the next goal: 0 times
• Allowed the next goal: 1 time
• Game ended with 2-goal difference: 1 time
Last Year vs. This Year
• 2025-26 3-3-0 for 6 points in 6 games
• 2024-25 2-2-2 for 6 points in 6 games
Offense from Defense
• Today: 1-1-2
• Season: 2-11-13
• Last Season (Final) 32-129-161
Home and Road
The Isles are 3-3-0 overall; they are 2-2-0 at home and 1-1-0 on the road.
San Jose is 0-4-2 overall; they are 0-2-2 at home and 0-1-1 on the road.
East and West
The Isles are 1-2-0 against the East (0-2-0 vs. Metropolitan and 1-0-0 vs. Atlantic) and 2-1-0 against the West (0-1-0 vs. Central and 2-0-0 vs. Pacific).
First Things First
The Isles are 1-0-0 when scoring first and are 2-3-0 when allowing the opening goal.
The Shots
Isles 8-12-7=27
San Jose 16-13-7=36
The Isles are 0-3-0 when they outshoot their opponents, 0-0-0 when the shots are even and 3-0-0 when the opposition has more shots.
In the Nets
Ilya Sorokin made 33 saves; he is 2-3-0 this season and 4-0-3 vs. San Jose.
Yaroslav Askarov made 23 saves; he is 0-2-1 this season and 0-1-0 vs. the Isles.
Special Teams
The Isles were 2-3 (4:44, but allowed a shorthanded goal); San Jose was 0-3 (5:58),
The Isles are 2-1-0 when they score at least one power play goal and 1-2-0 when they do not. The Isles are 2-2-0 when they allow at least one power play goal and 1-1-0 when they do not.
The Isles are 2-1-0 when they outscore the opposition on special teams, 1-2-0 when they are outscored, and 0-0-0 when special team goals are equal.
Three is a Magic Number
The Isles are 3-1-0 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 0-2-0 when they do not.
One-Goal Games
The Isles are 2-1-0 in games decided by a single goal including 2-1 in regulation. They are 0-0 in games decided in overtime and are 0-0 in shootouts. The Isles are 1-0 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game.
Back-to-Backs
The Isles are 0-0-0 on the front end and 0-0-0 on the back end this season. The first back-to-back is October 30-31 at Carolina and Washington.
The Isles are 0-0-0 when the opponent is on the back end, including 0-0-0 when the Isles also played the previous day.
Ice-time Leaders
Isles: Ryan Pulock (24:20); San Jose: Dmitry Orlov (23:54)
Kyle Palmieri led Isles forwards (21:29).
Face-offs
Isles 27, San Jose 39 (41%)
Jean-Gabriel Pageau won 9 of 17 for the Isles. Michael Misa won 5 of 6 for San Jose.
Hit Count
Isles 18 (Emil Heineman -6)
San Jose 22 (Ryan Reaves -5)
Fights
None. Season total: 0
Blocked Shots
Isles 19 (Three with 3)
San Jose 6 (Mario Ferraro -3)
For the Analytics Crowd
Corsi: All situations: Isles 52, San Jose 68
Corsi: 5-on-5: Isles 34, San Jose 52
5-on-5 leaders:
Isles: Jean-Gabriel Pageau +5
San Jose: Two with +12
High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)
All situations: Isles 16, San Jose 19
5-on-5: Isles 7, San Jose 18
Scratches
(Semyon Varlamov-IR), (Ethan Bear – IR), (Alex Romanov -INJ), Kyle MacLean, Marc Gatcomb
Games Lost to injury: 14. (Last season’s total: 304)
The Ironmen
Kyle Palmieri is the Islanders’ ironman, having played 204 consecutive games. Casey Cizikas (114) and Anders Lee (97) are the only other Isles to have also played every game since the start of last season.
National TV Games
Including tonight, the Isles are 1-0-0 in games that air on one of the NHL’s US national broadcast partners. Their next appearance will be on October 30th in Carolina.
Matinee Isles
The Isles are 1-1-0 in matinee games this season; the next matinee will be at 12:30pm Saturday in Philadelphia. The NHL considers games that start before 5:00 local time to be afternoon contests. Since the start of the 2019-20 season, the Isles are 16-18-13 in matinees.
Challenges
Isles: 0 successful, 0 failures
Opponents: 0 successful, 1 failure (No hand pass – WAS 10/11)
Hockey Opps: 0 favorable, 0 unfavorable
Quickies (Two goals in under a minute)
For (0):
Vs (0):
Quick Responses (One team scoring within a minute of other team)
Isles responses (2): OTT 10/18, SJS 10/21
Opponent responses (1): WPG 10/13
Multi-Goal 3rd Period Comeback Wins
For (0):
Vs (0):
Last Minute Heroes (Tying or go-ahead goals in the final three minutes of the third period):
For (1): Anders Lee, GWG, 10/18 OTT (18:57)
Vs (0):
OT Winners
For (0):
Vs (0):
Shootout Winners
For (0):
Vs (0):
All-time Islander Leader Boards:
Games Played (skaters)
1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 * 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 3. Josh Bailey 1,057 **
4. Casey Cizikas 903 * 5. Brock Nelson 901 6. Bobby Nystrom 900 7. Clark Gillies 872 8. Matt Martin 855 ** 9. Anders Lee 847 …
22. John Tonelli 594 * 23. Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock 566 25. Ken Morrow 550 26. Duane Sutter 547 27. Lorne Henning 543 28. Scott Mayfield 541 * 29. Mathew Barzal 536
Goals
1. Mike Bossy 573 * 2. Bryan Trottier 500 * 3. Denis Potvin 310 …
5. Brock Nelson 295 * 6. Anders Lee 291 …
20. Kyle Okposo 139 * 21. Mathew Barzal 135…
29. Ray Ferraro 116 * 30. Casey Cizikas 115
Assists
1. Bryan Trottier 853 * 2. Denis Potvin 742 * 3. Mike Bossy 553 …
7. John Tonelli 338 * 8. Mathew Barzal 332…
19. Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo 230 * 21. Anders Lee 220…
27. Alexei Yashin and Duane Sutter 171 * 29. Jean Potvin 167 30. Jeff Norton 166 31. Ziggy Palffy 163 * 32. Ryan Pulock 163…
34. Mariusz Czerkawski 150 * 35. Casey Cizikas 148
Points
1. Bryan Trottier 1,353 * 2. Mike Bossy 1,126 * 3. Denis Potvin 1,052…
12. Bob Bourne 542 * 13. Anders Lee 511…
15. Patrick Flatley 488 * 16. Mathew Barzal 467…
27. Ed Westfall 286 * 28. Casey Cizikas 263
+/-
1. Bryan Trottier +467 \\\2. Denis Potvin +456 \\\ 3. Mike Bossy +380
15. Bob Lorimer +105 * 16. Adam Pelech +82 17. Tomas Jonsson +76 18. Garry Howatt +75 19. Pat Price +70 20. JP Parise +67 21. Ryan Pulock +59 22. Jude Drouin +58 23. Patrick Flatley +57 ** 24. Greg Gilbert +54
Defense Goals
1. Denis Potvin 310 * 2. Tomas Jonsson 84 3. Kenny Jonsson 57 **
4. Ryan Pulock 53…
13. Bryan Berard 31 * 14. Scott Mayfield 28 15. Vladimir Malakhov 27 ** 16. Adam Pelech and four others 26
Defense Assists
1. Denis Potvin 742* 2. Stefan Persson 317 3. Tomas Jonsson 249 **
7. Jean Potvin 167 * 8. Jeff Norton 166 9. Ryan Pulock 163 \\\10. Mark Streit 139 \\* 11. Adam Pelech 136…
17. Bryan Berard 100 * 18. Scott Mayfield 99
Defense Points
1. Denis Potvin 1,052 * 2. Stefan Persson 369 * 3. Tomas Jonsson 333…
5. Kenny Jonsson 232 * 6. Noah Dobson 230 * 7. Ryan Pulock 216…
10. Mark Streit 179 * 11. Adam Pelech 162…
18. Gerry Hart 128 * 19. Scott Mayfield 127
Goalie Games
1. Billy Smith 674 * 2. Rick DiPietro 318 3. Glenn Resch 282 **
4. Ilya Sorokin 258 …
8. Jaroslav Halak 177* 9. Glenn Healy 176 * 10. Semyon Varlamov 173
Wins
1. Billy Smith 304 * 2. Glenn Resch 157 3. Rick DiPietro 130 **
4. Ilya Sorokin 127 …
7. Jaroslav Halak 88 * 8. Roland Melanson 77 * 9. Semyon Varlamov 76
Shutouts
1. Glenn Resch 25 * 2. Billy Smith and Ilya Sorokin 22 *
4. Rick DiPietro and Semyon Varlamov 16
On the Farm
Bridgeport fell to 1-2-1-0 with a 6-3 loss to Wilkes Barre-Scranton on Saturday.
The Baby Isles head to Hartford on Friday night and Providence on Sunday afternoon.
Season Series Stats
The Isles lead the season series, 1 game to 0 (and 2 points to 0). The teams will meet next on March 7th in San Jose.
The Isles are 3-0-2 against the Sharks at UBS Arena and are 6-0-2 in the last eight home games with the Sharks, dating back to a 3-2 loss in Brooklyn on October 18, 2016.
UP NEXT
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23rd —DETROIT AT ISLANDERS 7:00pm
[MSGSN (pre-game at 6:30), WRHU 88.7 FM, WRCN 103.9FM, Isles + UBS Arena App]
The Isles look to extend the winning streak to four games as they welcome the Red Wings to UBS Arena on Thursday. Detroit swept the season series last season and have won four straight over the Isles.
Last season, the Isles dropped three close games to Detroit, being outscored 7-3 in a season series that was completed before Thanksgiving.
The Isles’ last win over the Red Wings was on Leap Day, 2024 (5-3 in Detroit).
Eric Hornick has been the statistician on Islander home game telecasts since January 21, 1982. Information contained in “The Skinny” has been gathered from various sources. Follow Eric @ehornick on Twitter & on his blog www.nyiskinny.com