Islanders Beat Oilers 3-1 AMTRAK -- Some refer to him as "The Shorthanded King". Others refer to him as Holmer. The names may change, but not the production, as New York Islanders [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/.preview/cn02d137a950002643?auth=1703168889:8f6f015bffdaba212a8546fb0bc531548333a750&nonce=1703082489210] forward Simon Holmstrom [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/news/islanders-simon-holmstrom-goes-1-on-1-i-have-more-to-give] continues to be a lethal force on the penalty kill. With the Islanders up 2-1 over the Edmonton Oilers in the second period, head coach Lane Lambert called the names of his penalty-kill duo, Holmstrom and Jean-Gabriel Pageau, when Brock Nelson took a phantom tripping call at 13:41 of the second. All Holmstrom needed was 29 seconds to score his league-leading fifth shorthanded goal. After Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins tried to feed his point man on the power play, Pageau put on the jets to force Evan Bouchard to reassess and focus on defending what became a 2-on-1 with Holmstrom getting up the ice in a matter of seconds. Pageau saw that Holmstrom had slowed down a bit, which created a stronger passing option, and an on-the-money pass allowed No. 10 to rifle one five-hole on a sliding Stuart Skinner to give New York a 3-1 lead at 14:10 of the middle frame: "I saw a missed pass there, and I saw Pager taking off, so I thought, you know, why not join him," Holmstrom told The Hockey News. With the goal, Holmstrom tied Bob Bourne (1980-81) for the most shorthanded goals through the team's first 30 games of the season: The last Islanders player to score more in a season was Frans Nielsen with seven and Michael Grabner with six during the 2010-11 season. Holmstrom's goal was a critical part of the Islanders' win on Tuesday night because after he potted the goal, there was still a penalty to kill off, which turned into a 5-on-3 advantage for Edmonton. A goal for Edmonton, especially after Holmstrom's shorthanded tally, would have given Connor McDavid and his team tremendous confidence. Instead, Holmstrom and the rest of the penalty killers gave the Islanders momentum, as they killed off Edmonton's two-man advantage and went a perfect 4-for-4 on the night. "It was great from everyone, from the goalie to our defensemen," Pageau said. "Everyone chipped in. The power play scored two big goals. We did a great job to kill that 5-on-3. [Casey] Cizikas was outstanding. The goalie was great. I think that's a really great team effort." The Islanders penalty kill has cost them points and games this season, operating at just 72 percent, which is the worst in the NHL, allowing 26 goals on 93 opportunities. Holmstrom has been on the ice for eight of those 26 but has done what he can to counteract the goals against. Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAzMDQ0ODIyNjU3ODAzODQz/usatsi_21800818.jpg] "I think our first goal is to kill off the penalty, but it seems like we're having the bounces that kind of give us the opportunity to go and have chances," Pageau said. "We're both thinking the same way when we get the puck. Sometimes, on the power play, you have those little tendencies of slowly slowing things down, and that's when you can take advantage of it. "We try to keep things simple, and it all usually starts from a good stick or a blocked shot or a good clear from our defenseman, and that's what gave us a chance today." Holmstrom now has 10 goals on the season. While the five shorthanders lead the NHL, Holmstrom also leads in another offensive category. Out of his 10 tallies, the 23-year-old Swede has scored eight of them off the rush, tying him with Philadelphia Flyers forward Travis Konecny. Like most of Holmstrom's shorthanded chances, rush chances usually come off strong reads in the defensive zone. "Holmer, he's got good instincts," Lambert said. "He's got a good stick, and he's creating some of those opportunities [...] I think there's just a recognition from him in terms of creating offensively. That comes from what we've talked about with him all year long. He's a smart, smart hockey player." While Holmstrom doesn't lead the NHL in shooting percentage, Holmstrom ranks second in that category amongst forward to play in more than 15 games this season, as he's found the back of the net at a 31.3 percent clip, only trailing Detroit Red Wings forward Robby Fabbri (34.6 percent). Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAzMDQ0MDM5MzYzMTQyODM4/screenshot-2023-12-20-at-93127-am.png] Think smarter, not harder. In less than a year, Holmstrom went from a defensive-minded forward to a lethal two-way threat. Someone needed to fill the role Zach Parise [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/players/zach-parise-new-york-islanders-chris-johnston-report-barzal-lee-lamoriello] left behind, and while Holmstrom isn't the same player as Parise, he kills penalties, shuts down the opponent's best, and is on pace for 27 goals. LATEST STORIES You can watch Rosner talk Islanders hockey on Hockey Night in New York [https://www.youtube.com/@hockeynightny] with co-host Sean Cuthbert [https://twitter.com/seanyhockey] live Sunday nights at 8 PM ET during the season at twitch.tv/hockeynightny [https://www.twitch.tv/hockeynightny]. Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAyOTA3MTA5MzYzNDkxODUy/hockey-night.jpg]
