Islanders vs. Maple Leafs: Bo Horvat and Simon Holmstrom Carry a Banged-Up New York Past Toronto 4-1

The New York Islanders lost two forwards in the first period, got outshot by nine and spent long stretches of the third period pinned in their own end. They also left Scotiabank Arena with what their coach called their most complete game of the season.

Bo Horvat scored the winner and added an assist, Simon Holmstrom scored twice and Ilya Sorokin made 28 saves as the Islanders beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-1 on Saturday night. It was the kind of road win that coaches put on the projector: patient, opportunistic and stubborn when the other team finally showed up.

Early Lead, Early Losses

Anthony Duclair opened the scoring at 8:18 of the first period. Jean-Gabriel Pageau, working along the right boards, slid a backhand pass into the slot, and Duclair walked around Nick Paul, changed the angle and beat Sergei Bobrovsky low on the glove side.

The good news ended there for a while. Calum Ritchie lasted one shift before leaving with what NHL.com described as a lower-body injury. Later in the period, Matias Maccelli stepped on Darren Raddysh's stick and fell awkwardly, in what the AP called an apparent lower-body injury. Maccelli was helped off by two teammates and did not return. Islanders coach Peter DeBoer had no update on either player afterward.

Playing most of the night two forwards down against a lineup built around Auston Matthews is not usually a recipe for success. Horvat, the Islanders captain, saw it as a test the group passed. "For guys to step up the way they did tonight with two guys going down early, it shows a lot about our group," he said.

The Turning Point: McKenna Misses, Horvat Doesn't

The second period was a staring contest. Kirill Marchenko, two days removed from a hat trick against Buffalo, got a couple of looks that Sorokin turned aside. Then came the sequence that decided the night.

Late in the period, No. 1 overall pick Gavin McKenna got loose on a partial breakaway and sent his shot high and wide. The Islanders immediately went the other way. Holmstrom and Horvat won the forecheck battle, Kyle Palmieri threw a puck toward the net, Bobrovsky kicked it out with his right pad, and Horvat buried the rebound in the slot at 18:33.

That is a two-goal swing on one sequence: a chance to tie it at 1-1 turned into a 2-0 deficit.

"Just a great forecheck from everybody," Horvat said. "Palmieri just threw it in front and I just had to follow up the rebound."

Toronto Pushes, Sorokin Shoves Back

The Maple Leafs came out for the third like a team with something to prove, and they had a window to do it. New York took penalties on either side of the break, with Adam Pelech going off for interference at 19:21 of the second and Emil Heineman for tripping at 1:23 of the third. The Islanders killed both.

Toronto still got one back at 3:54 when Colton Sissons redirected a Troy Stecher one-timer from the right point through traffic. Suddenly it was 2-1, the building was loud, and the Leafs would outshoot the Islanders 13-3 in the period.

But Sorokin never cracked again, and New York's response came with 5:52 to go. Horvat fed Holmstrom in the slot, and Holmstrom ripped a shot past Bobrovsky's glove for a 3-1 lead. With Bobrovsky pulled, Holmstrom added an empty-netter at 17:55 to close it out.

"I thought we got better and better and kind of killed their momentum, and then we were able to get one late as well," Holmstrom said.

Who Stood Out

Bo Horvat: A goal, an assist and 24:21 of ice time. The goal was his fifth of the season, and his setup on Holmstrom's insurance goal was a beauty. "Everybody stepped up in a different way tonight," he said.

Simon Holmstrom: Two goals in 20:01, a plus-3 and the dagger. "We were fighting for each other and we were able to get the two points," he said.

Ilya Sorokin: 28 saves on 29 shots, a .966 save percentage, with the busiest stretch arriving in a third period in which Toronto put 13 shots on him.

Matthew Schaefer: An assist on Holmstrom's first goal and 24:21 of ice time on the back end.

Colton Sissons: Toronto's lone scorer, and the only Leaf to solve Sorokin.

Stats That Matter

• 3 for 3: The Islanders' penalty kill. NHL.com noted New York ranks eighth in the league on the kill at 86.7 percent (26-for-30).
• 29-18: New York's advantage in hits. The Islanders made Toronto pay a toll on every board battle.
• 18: Shots the Maple Leafs blocked, which helps explain why New York managed only 20 on goal and still scored three times on Bobrovsky.
• 16 of 19: Bobrovsky's saves, an .842 night.
• 13-3: Toronto's shot advantage in the third period, a push that produced exactly one goal.

What It Means

The Islanders improve to 4-3-1 with nine points and continue a strange pattern: they have alternated wins and losses through all eight games. They also picked up their first road win of the season, moving to 1-2-1 away from home. DeBoer called it "probably our most complete game of the year and our smartest game of the year," and credited Bob Boughner for the work on the penalty kill. The Islanders host Anaheim on Tuesday, though the health of Ritchie and Maccelli is the bigger question.

For Toronto, the slide is real. The Maple Leafs fall to 3-4-2 with eight points, have dropped three straight and are 1-2-2 in their past five. They also played without John Tavares, who is week to week with a lower-body injury from Thursday's 5-4 overtime loss to Buffalo, per NHL.com. Matthews and Marchenko each had six-game point streaks end, and coach Jim Hiller's message was simple. "You are not going to score on the perimeter with this team," he said. Matthews agreed: "They played really well, they played hard, but I thought too much on the perimeter." Toronto hosts San Jose on Monday.

Closing Take

Toronto entered with more skill on paper and left with a lecture about real estate. The Islanders owned the middle of the ice, made the Leafs take the scenic route, and cashed in on the one mistake that mattered. It was less Fast and Furious, more Moneyball: no flash, just the math, and the math said 4-1.

Stats from the official box score via ESPN. Game details from the Associated Press; postgame quotes and notes as reported by NHL.com.