Islanders Outlast Blues in OT – Filppula Gets Winner

NEW YORK — Valtteri Filppula scored 1:37 into overtime and the New York Islanders beat the St. Louis Blues 2-1 Tuesday night for their 12th win in 15 games.

Jordan Eberle had a goal in the first period for New York, and Robin Lehner stopped 30 shots.

New York Islanders Jordan Eberle
New York Islanders Jordan Eberle (AP Photo/Kevin Hagen)

David Perron scored the tying goal in the third period for the Blues, and Jordan Binnington — making his fourth straight start and fourth of his career — finished with 23 saves. St. Louis had won three straight and five of its previous seven.

On the winner, Filppula jumped on the ice, got a pass from Mathew Barzal and skated in on Binnington before beating him from the right side for his 10th.

Perron tied it at 6:07 of the third as he got a pass from Ryan O’Reilly from behind the net, and put it past Lehner for his team-leading 17th. It extended Perron’s career-high point streak to 12 games, giving him six goals and 15 assists in the stretch.

Trailing 1-0, the Blues picked up their intensity in the second period, outshooting the Islanders 18-7.

Lehner, who had won a career-best eight straight before taking the loss in a 2-1 defeat to the New York Rangers on Saturday, was stellar in keeping St. Louis off the scoreboard. He stopped an attempt by O’Reilly from the left side 1 1/2 minutes in and denied Jaden Schwartz in front four minutes later. Lehner then gloved Oskar Sundqvist’s shot from the left circle three minutes later and a tip by Schwartz shortly after.

Sundqvist was thwarted on consecutive attempts in front with just over eight minutes remaining, and Lehner gloved a shot by Vladimir Tarasenko from between the circles 30 seconds later.

Binnington stopped a tip by Islanders rookie Devon Toews with a little more than two minutes to go in the second to keep it a one-goal game.

Related: Blues Need Binnington Between the Pipes

St. Louis, outshot 11-5 in the first period, didn’t get its first shot on goal until 7:47 in, when Lehner stopped a tip try by Zach Sanford from between the circles.

The Islanders got on the scoreboard about a minute later, seconds after Anders Lee hit a goalpost and the puck ended up in the netting on the outside. After a faceoff to Binnington’s left, Eberle got the rebound of Lee’s attempt on the right doorstep and lifted it in up high for his 10th of the season and 200th of his career at 8:43.

St. Louis coach Craig Berube challenged for goalie interference on the play, but the goal stood after a video review.

NOTES: Sundqvist was helped off the ice less than three minutes into the game after he was accidentally hit in the head by an official’s elbow. He returned to the ice in the closing minutes of the opening period. … O’Reilly has 10 assists and 13 points in his last 11 games. … The Islanders are 6-1-1 in the last eight against the Blues, including a 4-3 win at St. Louis on Jan. 5. … New York improved to 19-1-3 when leading after two periods. … Eberle has three goals in his last six games. … Lee has six assists and eight points in his last seven games.

UP NEXT

Blues: At Boston on Thursday night to finish a four-game trip.

Islanders: Host New Jersey on Thursday night at the Nassau Coliseum.

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Vin A. Cherwoo, The Associated Press