The teams opened with a fast-paced but low-event first period. The Blues had one sustained shift in the Islanders’ zone but Oliver Wahlstrom, then Cizikas blocked shots from defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Sorokin blockered away defenseman Matthew Kessel’s hard blast and then smothered Kasperi Kapanen’s shot at 16:12.

Sorokin, for all the worry about his physical health and how the way last season ended might have affected him mentally, looked just fine from the first shot of the night — a Nathan MacKinnon

Jake Neighbours scored the game-winning goal for St. Louis with 2:56 remaining in overtime, securing a 1-0 win for the Blues on a feed from Philip Broberg.

The St. Louis Blues defeated the New York Islanders 1-0 in overtime on Thursday night. Forward Jake Neighbours netted the lone goal 2:04 into the extra period, while Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin stopped 29 of 30 shots.

Blues winger Jake Neighbors scored 2:04 into overtime to hand the New York Islanders a 1-0 loss in St. Louis, concluding the Isles’ road trip at 1-1-1. The 0-0 regulation score masks what was actually a scoring chance-heavy game with Ilya Sorokin (29 saves) and Joel Hofer (34 saves) each shining in their creases.