Thursday, March 28, 2019 08:00 PM (ET)

Islanders rally to edge Jets, near playoff berth

Field Level Media
Mar 28, 2019

Casey Cizikas scored the tying goal with 1:46 left Thursday night and Jordan Eberle scored the winning goal just 33 seconds later as the visiting New York Islanders stormed back to stun the Winnipeg Jets 5-4.

The Islanders trailed 2-0 less than seven minutes into the game and were down 3-1 in the second and 4-2 in the third before mounting an unlikely comeback. New York, which scored just six goals in its previous five games, pulled within 4-3 on Eberle's first goal 7:49 into the third. Cizikas swooped into the crease behind Jets right winger Patrik Laine to put back the rebound of a shot by Anthony Beauvillier before Eberle took a no-look pass from behind the net by Mathew Barzal and scored from point-blank range to complete his second two-goal game of the season.

The victory marked just the third time this year the Islanders, who have allowed the second-fewest goals in the NHL, won a game in which they surrendered at least four goals.

Barzal scored in the first period and Anders Lee scored in the second as the Islanders (45-26-7) moved ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins into sole possession of second place in the Metropolitan Division and reduced their magic number for clinching a playoff spot to two points. New York is three points behind the first-place Washington Capitals, who beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 on Thursday.

Islanders goalie Robin Lehner made 33 saves.

Adam Lowry scored twice in the first period, including just 13 seconds after the opening faceoff, for the Central Division-leading Jets (45-28-4), who missed a chance to move four points ahead of the second-place Nashville Predators and six points ahead of the third-place St. Louis Blues. The two-goal game was the second of the season for Lowry and the fifth of his career.

Brandon Tanev scored in the second period and Mark Scheifele added a third-period goal for the Jets. Goalie Connor Hellebuyck recorded 39 saves.

--Field Level Media

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