ST. LOUIS _ New night, new Islanders.
Shaking off their worst performance of the season less than 24 hours earlier, the Islanders started strong against the top team in the West and held off the Blues, 5-2, on Saturday night with some timely scoring and even timelier goaltending.
Thomas Greiss was the star, making 34 saves, half a dozen of the eye-popping variety as the Isles erased the bad taste from Friday's 5-0 shelling in Dallas.
Anders Lee had a key third-period deflection goal and an assist, John Tavares scored early and Josh Ho-Sang scored in his return from the minors.
Even with a three-goal lead entering the third, the Islanders had to know this would be far from easy to close out. Playing the second night of a back-to-back against a rested, powerful Blues team that pushed through much of the second period as well, the third-period surge wasn't a surprise.
Scottie Upshall jammed home a loose puck that Brock Nelson couldn't clear from the crease at 6:41 to cut the Isles' lead to 4-2. Dmitrij Jaskin rang one off the post with five minutes left in the third, but the Islanders got the insurance marker they needed when Lee deflected Adam Pelech's shot home with 4:27 to go.
Doug Weight was furious after Friday's game and he let his players know it.
"It wasn't acceptable yesterday and they have to hear it," he said. "It doesn't have to be a crazy, throwing-chairs message, but it has to be said."
Message received in the first period on Saturday. The Islanders came out with some fire against a Blues team that leads the Western Conference and were on a 9-1-1 run.
Tavares led the way and put the Isles in front. He charged behind the net to do battle with big Blues defenseman Colton Parayko and came away with the puck. Tavares circled the net, waited for Joel Edmundson to come by and screen Blues goaltender Jake Allen and Tavares snapped one home at 3:21 for his 13th of the year.
It also marked just the fifth time in 17 games this season that the Islanders scored first.
Two enormous Greiss stops, both on Paul Stastny, helped change the course of the game and led immediately to Islanders goals. After the first stop Nick Leddy raced down as the Isles changed and threw a harmless shot on Allen. Casey Cizikas barreled through two Blues to flip home the rebound at 10:07.
The next stop, with Greiss kicking his legs up to deny Stastny, popped the puck out near the blue line and sent the Isles off two on one. Andrew Ladd fed Jordan Eberle for a 3-0 lead at 13:18, prompting Blues coach Mike Yeo to call time out and remind his players how it was going.
The Blues applied plenty of pressure through the end of the first but the Islanders were the aggressors coming out of the dressing room to start the second. And Alan Quine's backhand feed from behind the Blues net caromed out and Ho-Sang flew in to snap one by Allen at 3:35, a nice bonus in Ho-Sang's return from the AHL.
That one also sent Allen to the Blues bench. Replacing their starter seemed to push the Blues to a higher level, as likely did the Islanders' legs finally realizing they did play a night earlier, even if it was the horrible effort they had in Dallas.
Brayden Schenn snapped Greiss' shutout at 11:31 but the Islanders goaltender stayed sharp and made yet another wild save, flailing without his stick to deny Vince Dunn during a Blues power play late in the second.
