NEW YORK — Jonny Brodzinski made the go-ahead goal during the second period, helping the New York Rangers win 5-2 against the New York Islanders on Sunday.
Mika Zibanejad, Will Cuylle, Kaapo Kakko, and Alexis Lafreniere also scored for the Rangers, who have won five of six games. Igor Shesterkin saved 25 shots.
“Our team is strong right now,” said Rangers forward Vincent Trocheck. “We are getting contributions from all over the lineup. Even when the lines aren’t scoring, they are still helping in other ways. Building momentum, keeping the puck in the offensive zone. If we can continue to do that, I like our chances against any opponent.”
Bo Horvat scored twice, Ilya Sorokin made 26 saves, but the Islanders lost their fourth consecutive game.
The Rangers scored three times in the second period to overcome a one-goal disadvantage and take a 3-2 lead.
“I saw a team that played better than us today,” said Islanders coach Patrick Roy. “They managed the puck much better than what we did. They were very fast on transition. I thought they had more energy than us. … They (Rangers) did what they had to do and that’s why they’re first in our division.”
Horvat scored his second goal for the Islanders to tie the game at 2-2, but Brodzinski gave the Blueshirts a 3-2 lead by redirecting K’Andre Miller’s shot into the net at 15:01.
“I don’t think we turned the puck over too much,” Miller said. “We were clean, on our breakouts to the neutral zone, getting pucks up to the forwards and letting them get on the forecheck.”
The Rangers took their first lead at 2-1 when defenseman Ryan Lindgren made an impressive long pass to set up Cuylle for a breakaway.
Lindgren, a top-pairing defenseman for the Rangers, left the game late in the second period after getting tangled up with Jean-Gabriel Pageau behind Shesterkin. The bruising blueliner did not put any weight on his left leg as he left the ice and did not return.
Zibanejad tied it at 1-1 with a powerful one-time slap shot from the high slot 27 seconds into the second period. Trade-deadline acquisition Jack Roslovic set up Zibanejad’s 22nd goal of the season.
Kaako sent a wrist shot past Sorokin to give the Rangers a two-goal lead 2:36 into the third period.
Artemi Panarin set up Lafreniere for a one-time blast from the slot to give the Rangers a 5-2 lead at 10:42. The first overall selection from the 2020 NHL draft tied his career high of 19 goals in a season.
The Islanders opened the scoring in the first period when Horvat fired a sharp-angled shot past an outstretched Shesterkin. Nelson and Mike Reilly assisted at 14:08.
“I think the biggest struggle was just breaking pucks out clean,” Mathew Barzal said. “Got to find a way to be better in that area for sure.”
HURRICANES 7, SENATORS 2
OTTAWA, Ontario — Dmitry Orlov got four points and Carolina scored four goals in the third period to defeat Ottawa.
Orlov had two goals and two assists. Evgeny Kuznetsov, Seth Jarvis, Jalen Chatfield, Jake Guentzel and Brendan Lemieux also scored for Carolina. Sebastian Aho contributed with three assists. Frederik Andersen saved 30 shots.
Thomas Chabot and Tim Stutzle got goals for the Senators, but their three-game win streak ended. Anton Forsberg saved 31 shots.
The Senators had poor defensive coverage, allowing Chatfield to score and then the Hurricanes controlled the play and Orlov shot from just inside the blue line.
Carolina secured the win when Guentzel beat Artem Zub and scored his first goal with the Hurricanes after being acquired from Pittsburgh. Lemieux later tipped a Brent Burns shot for his third goal of the season.
GOLDEN KNIGHTS 3, DEVILS 1
Jack Eichel scored his 21st goal of the season for Vegas as they beat New Jersey.
The Golden Knights scored the next two goals after the Devils took a 1-0 lead 38 seconds into the third period.
Eichel maneuvered through the neutral zone and found open ice at the top of the slot. He finally scored his seventh shot of the game, bringing joy to the crowd of 18,234.
William Carrier and William Karlsson also scored for Vegas, while goalie Logan Thompson stopped 20 shots. Defenseman Noah Hanifin had two assists.
PENGUINS 6, RED WINGS 3
Sidney Crosby matched Wayne Gretzky for the seventh-most goals with a single franchise in NHL history, and Pittsburgh beat Detroit.
Crosby, Lars Eller, Reilly Smith and Valtteri Puustinen each scored a goal and provided an assist for Pittsburgh, which won for the second time in three games following a four-game losing streak. Michael Bunting and Drew O’Connor also scored.
Crosby’s 583rd career goal, his first in 12 games and No. 33 this season, helped the Penguins maintain their playoff hopes after trading star winger Jake Guentzel at the trade deadline.
Alex Nedeljkovic, who spent the previous two seasons with the Red Wings, stopped 25 shots for Pittsburgh.
JETS 6, BLUE JACKETS 1
Tyler Toffoli scored twice and assisted, leading Winnipeg past Columbus Blue.
Nikolaj Ehlers scored and assisted, and Kyle Connor, Logan Stanley and Vladislav Namestnikov also scored. Sean Monahan added two assists and Connor Hellebuyck stopped 30 shots for the Jets, who pulled even with the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche atop the Central Division.
Brendan Gaunce scored and Elvis Merzlikins stopped 21 shots for Columbus, which has lost four of its last five games, including three out of four at home. The Blue Jackets remain last in the Metropolitan Division.
Connor got Winnipeg on the board with the game’s first shot, a wide-open wrister from the slot with 1:26 elapsed. Mark Scheifele’s primary assist gave him 40 on the season for the sixth time in his career.
Winnipeg then used a four-goal second period to break open the game, scoring early and frequently.
BLACKHAWKS 5, SHARKS 2
Ryan Donato, Kevin Korchinski and Joey Anderson scored in a 1:23 span of the third period, and Chicago beat San Jose.
Philipp Kurashev and Connor Bedard also scored for the Blackhawks, who have won four of their last six games. Petr Mrazek finished with 24 saves.
Ryan Carpenter and Klim Kostin got goals for San Jose in its 13th loss in 14 games (1-11-2). Devin Cooley made 26 saves in his first NHL game at 26 years old.
Carpenter scored a goal from a sharp rebound of Alexander Barbanov’s shot to put the Sharks ahead 1-0 with 9:27 remaining in the first period. It was his fifth goal of the season.
Kostin scored from 10 feet away on the stick side after a pass from Mikael Granlund from behind the net to give the Sharks a 2-0 lead. It was his fifth goal.
Kurashev got Chicago on the board with 5:58 left in the second, redirecting Tyler Johnson’s excellent pass over Cooley’s shoulder.
The Blackhawks then scored four times in the last 10 minutes of the game.
BLUES 4, DUCKS 2
ST. LOUIS — Robert Thomas netted two power-play goals in the third period, and St. Louis Blues defeated Anaheim for their fourth straight win.
Jake Neighbours also scored a power-play goal in the third for the Blues. Kevin Hayes scored in the second, and Pavel Buchnevich had three assists.
St. Louis is four points behind Vegas for the second wild card in the Western Conference.
Troy Terry scored two goals for Anaheim in its sixth straight loss. The Ducks were shut out in their previous two games.
Joel Hofer saved 26 shots for the Blues. Rookie goalie Lukas Dostal stopped 23 shots for the Ducks.
