Alexander Ovechkin scored his 14th goal of the season and Jose Theodore made 26 saves, but the scrappy New York Islanders were able to keep the rest of the Caps’ offense in check long enough to force overtime on Friday night, when Mark Streit scored his second goal of the season to give the Isles their 4th win of the season.
Ovechkin got things started in the 1st, scoring on a slap shot from the point on a Washington powerplay. Kyle Okposo, who was in the box with a double minor for high sticking when Ovechkin scored, evened the game at 1-1 when he scored his 3rd goal of the year.
In the second period, unheralded role players Tomas Fleischmann and Franz Nielsen both scored their first two goals of the year, tying the game at 3. Nielsen scored his first goal, unassisted, about seven minutes into the period. Fleischmann evened the game at 2-2 less than two minutes later, and gave the Caps a one goal lead with about three minutes left in the game. However, Nielsen scored his second goal of the game just over 60 seconds later, tying the game and putting the game in the hands of keeper Dwayne Roloson.
Roloson, vying for the starting job with Martin Biron, turned in a solid effort, making 37 saves for the Isles, an impressive number considering the list of top-tier scorers on Washington’s bench, and the fact that the Islanders took twice as many penalties as the Caps. Roloson was up to the task, however, and gave the Isles enough of a chance to win. High-scoring defenseman Mark Streit won the game for the Islanders with a blast from the high slot that beat Theodore on the glove side.
The Islanders improved their record to 4-4-5, while Roloson continues to impress. The veteran netminder has lost only once in regulation, compiling 3 wins and 3 overtime losses so far. If his play continues, he may be playing his way into a regular starting job on Long Island.