Brock Nelson's determined play for the Islanders is not going unnoticed
Brock Nelson and Oliver Wahlstrom of the Islanders celebrates Wahlstrom's third-period goal against the Penguins in Game 4 of the first round of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs with teammate Brock Nelson at Nassau Coliseum on Saturday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Sidney Crosby and Brock Nelson headed into a corner together at Nassau Coliseum on Saturday, an all-time great against an all-time, under-the-radar Islanders stalwart.
By now you know how that battle turned out. Nelson fashioned a nifty-but-subtle move to block Crosby’s stick, regained control of the puck and found Josh Bailey in the left circle for the first goal of the game.
That score jumpstarted a 4-1 victory for the Islanders in Game 4 of the teams’ first-round NHL playoff series, and it served as the latest evidence Nelson can be a pain in the neck for opponents come playoff time.
"Just tried to pick his stick a little bit to get the puck back there in retrieval and get some space," Nelson said after practice on Sunday. "There’s probably a lot of guys who can make that play and maybe it goes unnoticed."
The play did not go unnoticed by NBC’s cameras and analysts, who praised Nelson’s pluck. For coach Barry Trotz, it illustrated the completeness of Nelson’s game.
"There was determination on the puck," Trotz said. "There was a skill set that was needed for him to execute that, but it was the competitive nature.
"That play could have been killed in the corner and he kept it alive, and he was able to get it over to ‘Bails’. All those elements that he possesses, they were on display in that one goal."
The pass was one of several sweet ones by Nelson. He also nearly tipped in a puck that squirted past Penguins goalie Tristan Jarry and just wide of the post.
He also was standing alongside Teddy Blueger when the Penguins player put in a crushing own goal in the third period.
He also was captured by NBC in an isolation sequence with Crosby, trying to annoy him to distraction with a series of small blows with his stick.
Asked about his penchant for being a thorn in the side of playoff opponents, he said, "You can impact a game in a lot of different ways, but whatever the game presents, you try to out there, be hard to play against, make it tough on them."
Nelson has been an Islander since 2013-14 and turns 30 this autumn, but he often is overlooked by hockey fans who are not Islanders fans. He is a quiet northern Minnesotan who usually wears an impassive expression.
That is what makes his peskiness even more interesting to his coach.
"I didn’t know that about him when I got here (three years ago)," Trotz said. "But for whatever reason, either he gets under their skin or they go after him a little bit. So it’s funny, because Brock is a fairly quiet guy.
"He’s got a great, dry sense of humor that you have to catch as he’s giving you a fly-by, and when it comes to the playoffs, the playoffs that I’ve been here, he’s been a big part of our success. I rely on him in a lot of situations."
Nelson, the 30th overall pick in the 2010 draft, signed a six-year contract worth $36 million before last season.
"He’s the guy that when the level of the game gets higher, he elevates in those games," J-G Pageau said. "So we’re lucky to have him, and for him to play like this, it’s huge for us."
Where does that elevated level come from?
"I think it’s just trying to find a combo of getting fired up but also staying levelheaded and knowing it’s the same game and not trying to force anything or change too much," Nelson said.
The stakes will be elevated again in Game 5 on Monday. The Islanders need more of the same from Nelson.
Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.
