WASHINGTON — In the days leading up to the playoffs, Kyle Okposo was convinced this Islanders team wouldn’t face the same fate they met when their last playoff series began two years ago.
He was right.
Instead of being overwhelmed as they were against the Penguins in 2013, the Isles were the aggressors in their 4-1 win over the Capitals in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals at Verizon Center on Wednesday night.
And in a twist hardly anyone could have seen coming, the Isles’ youngest players did some of the most important work.
From Brock Nelson scoring the game’s first goal and then adding an empty-netter, to Ryan Strome putting the Islanders back on top in the second period, they proved the team is more than Okposo, John Tavares and some untested young forwards who wouldn’t be up to the test.
Coach Jack Capuano, who expressed optimism his inexperienced players would rise to the occasion, still came away impressed.
“Sometimes, you put a little bit of pressure as a young guy coming into a building like this and play against some veterans like they have in their lineup,” Capuano said. “But I liked their composure. Their emotion was in check. They skated and played with confidence and poise. They’ve done that all year and right into Game 1.”
The Islanders started strong, taking their first lead just 6:06 into the game, thanks to Nelson’s seemingly harmless wrister from inside the blue line that somehow got by Washington goalie Braden Holtby on the glove side to make it 1-0.
The goal showed the Isles were ready to put up a better fight than two years ago when they fell behind less than four minutes into Game 1 against the Penguins en route to a 5-0 loss.
Though the Islanders played a strong first period, a miscue by goalie Jaroslav Halak cost them in the final minute.
Halak ill-advisedly chased a puck behind the net and struggled to get control of it when he was rushed by Brooks Laich. The puck ended up getting tossed directly to Marcus Johansson, who beat Halak to tie the game at 1-1 at 19:03.
But the Islanders responded with level-headed play after the setback and quickly regained control.
Strome put the Islanders back on top 3:50 into the second with a lightning-quick wrister off a faceoff win by Tavares. The shot snuck in just under the crossbar and Holtby didn’t have a chance.
“It’s good to see they didn’t feel scared or uncomfortable,” Johnny Boychuk said of his young teammates.
The Isles added to their advantage at 10:36 when Josh Bailey batted his own rebound out of the air for a 3-1 lead. Okposo helped set up the goal by staying strong on the puck and Bailey finished the job.
Later in the period, Matt Martin helped preserve the two-goal lead by blocking a John Carlson shot with his stomach with Halak out of position midway through the second.
The Isles faced another test at 7:47 of the third, when Cal Clutterbuck was called for high-sticking and Washington’s ever-dangerous power play unit got another opportunity.
For the second time in the game, though, the Isles’ penalty-kill was up to the challenge.
A challenge that will continue on Friday in Game 2 in Washington.
“It’s no secret that teams like this respond after losses,” Tavares said. “We want to take advantage of what we did tonight and build on it.”