NY Islanders F Pierre Engvall was outstanding in his best performance of the season

When New York Islanders forward Pierre Engvall was put on waivers and assigned to Bridgeport to start the season it was meant to serve as a wake-up call.

Early injuries led to his brief AHL stay, but the intended effect of shocking Engvall with a demotion didn't lead to more production when given another opportunity. The 28-year-old had only one point in his first six NHL games, and head coach Patrick Roy struggled to find complimentary things to say about his performance and effort when asked.

However, things might start turning around.

On Thursday night, Engvall looked every bit the player that GM Lou Lamoriello hoped he would be most nights when he handed him a seven-year contract extension. Engvall used his speed effectively and pushed toward the net, once creating a great scoring chance. Earlier, Engvall used his size to be in a position to knock home Simon Holmstrom's rebound to give the Islanders a 3-1 lead in a dominant second period.

“I'm just trying to do my best every game and every practice,” Engvall said after the game. “And I think our line is getting better and better.” The strong performance earned an "Outstanding" response from Roy when asked about his player after the 5-2 win.

Thursday night's win was a potential sign that the Islanders are putting it all together and starting to get more points that they deserve. If Engvall can individually put things together for himself, the Islanders forward depth will look a lot different when Mathew Barzal and Anthony Duclair return from injuries and may not mean that Engvall loses ice-time as a result.