Hurricanes 4, Islanders 2
UNIONDALE, N.Y. -- Bobby Sanguinetti's goal with 9:43 left in the third period Sunday night gave the Carolina Hurricanes the lead for good in their come-from-behind, 4-2 win over the New York Islanders at Nassau Coliseum.
Hurricanes winger Patrick Dwyer set up the goal by picking up a loose puck along the boards in the Islanders' zone and skating up the left side of the ice. He fired the puck across the ice, past the Islanders' Brad Boyes and right to Sanguinetti, who beat goalie Kevin Poulin over the right shoulder for the tiebreaking goal.
The Hurricanes (9-7-1) trailed 2-0 after one period but snapped a three-game losing streak and moved into a tie for eighth place in the Eastern Conference. The Islanders (8-10-1) had a two-game winning streak end, and they fell to an NHL-worst 2-7 at home as they began a seven-game homestand -- their longest homestand in six seasons.
Eric Staal and Jordan Staal scored less than a minute apart in the second period for the Hurricanes, and Alexander Semin added an empty-net goal in the final minute. Carolina goalie Cam Ward had 22 saves.
Matt Moulson and John Tavares scored in the first period for the Islanders.
Poulin had 23 saves in his season debut. He was recalled from AHL Bridgeport on Saturday to replace Rick DiPietro, the oft-maligned backup to starting goaltender Evgeni Nabokov.
Mark Streit had the best chance to tie it late for the Islanders, but his slap shot was gloved by Ward with about two minutes left.
The game was tied 2-2 after two periods following an odd first 40 minutes in which the teams took turns maximizing their offensive opportunities.
The Hurricanes outshot the Islanders 14-5 in the first period, but it was the Islanders who ended the period with a 2-0 lead thanks to goals by Moulson and Tavares.
Moulson's putback of his own rebound gave New York a 1-0 lead just 4:38 into the game. A little less than eight minutes later, Tavares picked up a loose puck at mid-ice and raced up the left wing, faked a pass and beat Ward in the upper right corner of the net.
In the second period, the Islanders outshot the Hurricanes 14-4 and held Carolina without a shot for almost 15 minutes, but the Hurricanes tied the game with a two-goal flurry in a 45-second span.
A faceoff between Eric Staal and Michael Grabner following a penalty on the Islanders skipped to Semin, whose slap shot glanced off Poulin and back to Eric Staal, who poked it past Poulin with 1:32 left in the period.
The Hurricanes quickly got the equalizer when Jordan Staal's slap shot from beyond the faceoff circles flew between Lubomir Visnovsky's legs and past Poulin.
NOTES: Poulin's start for the Islanders was his first in the NHL since Feb. 21, 2012, when the Islanders fell to the Sabres, 2-1. ... DiPietro cleared waivers Saturday and reported to Bridgeport, but he did not play for the Sound Tigers in their 2-1 loss to Wilkes-Barre on Sunday. ... The Islanders had two seven-game homestands during the 2006-07 season. They went 4-1-2 from Oct. 14-31, 2006, and 5-1-1 from Feb. 15-March 1, 2007. ... Hurricanes center Jeff Skinner missed his fourth straight game with a concussion. The other Hurricanes scratches were defenseman Jamie McBain and center Jeremy Welsh. The Islanders scratched wingers Eric Boulton and David Ullstrom and defenseman Joe Finley. ... The Hurricanes, who fell out of first place in the Southeast Division with a 5-2 loss to the Lightning on Saturday, are 0-4-0 in division games. They are the only team in the NHL that is winless against its division this season.
