The Islanders finally got the all-around performance they’ve been looking for and the result was their best game of the season.

A 60-minute effort buoyed by a lockdown defensive game led to the Islanders closing out their homestand with a 7-2 rout of the Red Wings on Thursday night, their fourth straight victory.

Until now, the wins had felt a little bit hollow.

The Islanders, though happy to be getting results, were far too open defensively, ranking last in the league in expected goals allowed and allowing games to turn into track meets. They knew they would need to tighten things up in their own zone to create anything sustainable, and the firing of goalie coach Piero Greco on Wednesday was a blaring signal that management was not happy with the state of things either. 4

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