Anders Lee and Mathew Barzal scored twice apiece Tuesday night for the New York Islanders, who rolled to a 5-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins in Elmont, N.Y.
The two-goal game was the second of the season for both Lee and Barzal.
Josh Bailey had a goal and an assist and Brock Nelson added two assists for the Islanders, who earned their most lopsided win over the Penguins since a 9-3 rout on Feb. 11, 2011.
Ilya Sorokin made 20 saves as the Islanders won their second straight — their first winning streak since a four-game run from Nov. 21-26.
Pierre-Olivier Joseph scored for the Penguins, who have lost three of four (1-2-1). Tristan Jarry recorded 37 saves.
A turnover by the Penguins led to Lee’s first goal just 63 seconds after the opening faceoff. Brian Dumoulin’s clearing pass was picked off by Nelson, who dished to Lee before the Islanders captain sent a shot beyond Jarry’s stick.
The Penguins tied the score a little more than 15 minutes later, when Joseph’s shot sailed beyond the stick of teammate Brock McGinn and Islanders defenseman Sebastian Aho and past Sorokin’s glove.
The Islanders took the lead for good with another early-period goal in the second. Barzal began the go-ahead sequence by winning a faceoff with Teddy Blueger deep in the New York zone. Barzal skated back in front of Jarry and was battling for position with Dumoulin when he got his stick on a shot by Hudson Fasching 50 seconds into the period.
A nifty pass by Noah Dobson set up Bailey’s goal shortly beyond the midway point of the second. Dobson, with McGinn in front of him, wound up as if he were going to shoot before dishing across the ice to a wide-open Bailey, who sent a shot beyond Jarry’s stick with 8:28 left in the period.
Barzal scored an unassisted goal with 3:18 left in the second following a lengthy battle for the puck between the teams near the Penguins’ net. Bailey lost the puck to Bryan Rust, but the puck then clipped off Pittsburgh’s Marcus Pettersson and to Barzal, whose shot bounced in off Jarry’s shoulder.
Lee added an insurance goal 3:33 into the third, when he put back a rebound of a shot by Nelson to end a sequence in which the Islanders had four shots.
–Field Level Media
