The newly-introduced sound of cheers was warranted.
The East Division-leading Islanders spent the first two periods thoroughly outplaying the Devils and won, 5-3, on Thursday night in front of 1,000 Northwell Health front-line workers and their families, the first fans at Nassau Coliseum since March 7, 2020.
The only downer was the potential long-term loss of ironman captain Anders Lee, who suffered an apparent right-leg injury in the first period.
Rookie Ilya Sorokin faced just 12 shots through the first two periods before yielding goals within 40 seconds early in the third period.