ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Islanders had to play well defensively. The Wild controlled much of the five-on-five play and some questionable calls left the Islanders on the penalty kill six times.
But that defensive effort keyed a 3-2 overtime win on Sunday at Xcel Energy Center as the Islanders pulled even with the Capitals for first place in the Metropolitan Division with 91 points each.
Brock Nelson, taking a feed from Mathew Barzal, scored the winner at 1:04 of the extra period.
The Islanders (42-23-7) blocked 22 shots and got 22 saves from Thomas Greiss.