Isles forward Matthew Barzal named NHL's Second Star of the Week

The NHL announced Sunday that New York Islanders rookie forward Matthew Barzal was named the league's "Second Star" fot the week ending Dec. 24.

Barzal posted six points, including a League-high four goals, in three games to power the Islanders (19-13-4, 42 points) to three out of a possible six standings points.

He registered one assist in a 6-3 loss to the Detroit Red Wings Dec. 19, 1-1—2 in a 5-4 overtime loss against the Anaheim Ducks Dec. 21 and his first career hat trick (including the game-winning goal) in a 5-2 triumph over the Winnipeg Jets Dec. 23. In doing so, Barzal became the 11th rookie in Islanders history to record a hat trick and first since 2010-11 (Michael Grabner), and the youngest Islander to do so since John Tavares in the same season.

The 20-year-old Coquitlam, B.C., native leads all rookies with 23 assists and 35 points through 36 contests this season.

GAMEDAY: Isles face Jets in Saturday afternoon tilt

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (18-13-4) VS WINNIPEG JETS (20-10-6)

DEC 23 - 1 P.M. - BARCLAYS CENTER

TV: MSG+ MSG GO

RADIO: 88.7 WRHU, 660AM/101.9FM WFAN

The Islanders will look to rebound from Thursday's loss when they face the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday afternoon.

The Islanders lost to the Anaheim Ducks 5-4 in overtime on Thursday night, the fourth time in five games they'd allowed five or more goals. In December, the Islanders are averaging 4.45 goals against and are 3-6-2 over that span.

"Giving up five goals is just too many. We have to find a way to be better defensively starting with myself," Isles center John Tavares said after Thursday's game. "We were scoring enough goals, we just need to tighten up and run with the opportunities."

LINEUP NOTES

The Islanders tinkered with their third and fourth lines at Friday's practice. Shane Prince practiced with Brock Nelson, Anthony Beauvillier and Steve Bernier, while Jason Chimera, Casey Cizikas and Cal Clutterbuck were reunited on the fourth line.

THE OPPOSITION

The Jets are second in the Central Division with 20 wins and 46 points. Mark Scheifele (drafted seventh overall in 2011) has recorded 37 points (15G, 22A) in 36 games this season, while Patrik Laine has followed up a sensational rookie season with 18 goals this season, sixth most in the NHL. Jets 2014 first-round pick (ninth overall) Nikolaj Ehlers has 17 goals and 28 points in his third season with the tean.

Scheifele, Laine and Ehlers all find themselves behind leading scorer Blake Wheeler, who has 41 points (9G, 32A) this season - seventh most in the league.

In goal, Connor Hellebuyck is 18-4-5 this season with a 2.44 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage.

Lindholm completes hat trick in OT as Ducks beat Isles 5-4

By ALLAN KREDA
Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) -- On most nights, Hampus Lindholm is not a huge threat to score. But the Anaheim Ducks defenseman was in the right place three times Thursday.

Lindholm completed his first career hat trick with a goal 4:03 into overtime, and Anaheim snapped a three-game losing streak with a 5-4 comeback victory over the New York Islanders.

"I had some room and a good shooting angle and it went in," the 23-year-old Lindholm said. "We really dug deep. It was good to get a win."

Ryan Miller made 22 saves for the Ducks, sending New York to its fourth loss in five games. It was the fourth win this season for the 37-year-old backup.

Anaheim tied the game with Miller pulled for an extra skater when Rickard Rakell scored at 18:45 of the third period. Brandon Montour and captain Ryan Getzlaf assisted. Getzlaf had four assists overall and has points in five games since returning from a facial fracture.

"It's always nice to have your big guys step up," Ducks coach Randy Carlyle said.

Andrew Ladd put the Islanders ahead 4-3 at 7:52 of the third as they rallied from a 3-1 deficit. New York goalie Jaroslav Halak was shaky early but rebounded to finish with 35 saves.

"We had a lead with two minutes left," Islanders coach Doug Weight said. "We played a little timid early, trying not to make mistakes."

Ladd's rebound shot for his ninth goal beat Miller after Islanders captain John Tavares tied the game with his second goal of the night at 5:44 of the third. The goal was the 21st of the season for Tavares.

The Islanders trailed 3-1 late in the second when Tavares scored at 16:59.

Tavares wasn't happy with his team's defensive performance, including his own. He was on ice for three of Anaheim's goals.

"Giving up five goals is too many," he said. "We have to find a way to be better defensively, starting with myself. We're scoring enough goals. It's frustrating. We should have better results."

The Ducks led 2-0 after the first period on goals by Lindholm and Ondrey Kase.

After Islanders rookie sensation Mathew Barzal narrowed the deficit on the power play at 5:39 of the second, Lindholm scored again at 12:36.

A day after announcing future arena plans at Belmont Park, the Islanders lost their second straight at home. They are 10-3-3 at Barclays Center this season.

The game drew a crowd of 10,092. The Islanders are last in the NHL in attendance, averaging 11,475 through 16 home games.

Lindholm opened the scoring at 8:09 with assists by Andrew Cogliano and Getzlaf. The 30-year-old Cogliano has never missed a game in his NHL career, playing in 822 straight.

Kase made it 2-0 at 9:54 when his slot eluded Halak.

The Islanders came out with more jump in the middle period. Barzal narrowed the deficit to 2-1 on the power play, his ninth goal of the season. Josh Bailey and Tavares had assists.

Bailey has points in seven straight games, and Tavares has a six-game point streak. Both had three points in the game and share the team lead with 45.

Lindholm scored his second of the game at 12:36 of the second to make it 3-1 in favor of the Ducks.

The Islanders entered having allowed a league-high 3.5 goals per game. They have given up three or more in 10 of 12 games this month.

"We're not satisfied," Weight said. "We have to keep the confidence up."

Anaheim won the previous meeting 3-2 at home on Oct. 11.

Islanders forward Shane Prince made his season debut. Prince had ankle surgery in August and recently played four games with Bridgeport of the AHL.

The Ducks were coming off a 4-1 loss to the New York Rangers on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden after losing 5-3 at New Jersey.

NOTES: Anaheim's leading scorer, Corey Perry, remained sidelined with a knee injury he sustained Dec. 11 at home against Carolina. ... The Islanders scratched forwards Alan Quine and Anthony Beauvillier, and defenseman Dennis Seidenberg. They were missing injured defenseman Calvin de Haan.

UP NEXT

Ducks: Finish their road trip Saturday afternoon at Pittsburgh before the Christmas break.

Islanders: Host the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday afternoon.

Red Wings beat homeward-bound Isles

NEW YORK -- The New York Islanders are expected to achieve a goal decades in the making Wednesday afternoon, when a press conference will be held on Long Island announcing the Islanders' owners have won their bid to build a new arena on the Nassau/Queens border.

Now an even bigger challenge awaits for the Islanders: Fixing one of the leakiest goaltending units in the NHL.

The Detroit Red Wings scored the final four goals Tuesday night as they overcame a drastic disadvantage in shots to beat the Islanders 6-3 at Barclays Center.

The Red Wings were outshot 37-22 but were playing on a particularly titled ice in the first two periods, when they were outshot 32-10, including 23-4 in the second. But Detroit managed to enter the second intermission in a 3-3 tie thanks to Anthony Mantha's goal with 4:45 remaining.

"A bit lucky for us, we (hadn't) played that great," said Red Wings center Henrik Zetterberg, who collected three assists to earn first star honors. "But we were in the game. Just wanted to go out and play a good 20 minutes and that's what we did and got two points."

Zetterberg assisted on Mantha's goal -- he missed a back-handed shot into a wide-open right corner of the net before Mantha put back the rebound -- as well as on Trevor Daley's game-winner with 9:57 remaining in the third.

The Red Wings added insurance goals when Mike Green scored with 5:48 left and Luke Glendening produced an empty-netter with 28.1 seconds remaining.

"There's no question about it, through the first two periods, really, I think we were fortunate to be in the game," Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill said. "I will say this, though: I thought we came out in the third and played great. I thought we really played hard. I thought we played to win. I thought we made a lot of plays. I thought we skated and I thought we won lots of puck battles."

Martin Frk and Gustav Nyquist scored in the first period for the Red Wings (13-13-7), who have won two straight following a hard-luck 11-game skid in which they went 1-5-5. Goalie Petr Mrazek, making his first start since Dec. 2, recorded 34 saves.

"We've played lots of really good games this year where we haven't won," Blashill said. "And this wasn't our best game, but we found a way to win. We have to do that also."

The seventh loss in the last 10 games for the Islanders (18-13-3) dampened the good mood of an announced crowd of 10,511 that arrived at Barclays hours after Newsday reported the franchise's owners won a bid to build a new arena at Belmont Park. A press conference announcing the move back to Long Island is scheduled for Wednesday.

The Islanders played at Nassau Coliseum from the club's inception in 1972 until moving to Brooklyn in 2015. But fans have been displeased by the longer commute to Barclays Center as well as the arena's poor hockey sight lines.

"A good note in, I think, a frustrating time," Islanders coach Doug Weight said. "I think it's great for the fans, it's great for the organization and everybody involved from the owners, they worked hard. Obviously I've heard what you heard and it feels like it's going to be good news."

The Islanders could certainly use some better news regarding their goaltenders. New York ranks second in the league in goals scored (121) and goals allowed (120).

Thomas Greiss, making his third straight start Tuesday, recorded 16 saves. Greiss and fellow co-starter Jaroslav Halak have combined for a save percentage of .871 in the last 10 games.

Weight, who has said the defensive struggles are a team-wide issue, continued to defend his goalies Tuesday night.

"Yes, I have confidence in my goalies, of course I do," said a curt Weight, who added he was "(ticked) off" about the Islanders' current predicament.

"They're going through a rough time now," Weight said. "It gets in your head and you feel like you cant give anything up."

Anders Lee, Ryan Pulock and Josh Bailey scored for the Islanders. Bailey, who has scored a goal in three straight games (five total) and recorded a point in six consecutive contests (11 points), was named the third star of the week by the NHL on Monday.

NOTES: The Islanders scratched C Shane Prince (conditioning stint) as well as D Thomas Hickey and C Alan Quine. ... Islanders D Calvin de Haan (shoulder) was placed on injured reserve Monday with an injury sustained in Saturday's game against the Los Angeles Kings. Newsday reported de Haan could miss the rest of the regular season. Hickey, who missed the previous four games with an upper-body injury, was activated in a corresponding move. ... The Red Wings scratched LW David Booth and D Xavier Ouellet. ... Red Wings G Petr Mrazek played a full game for the first time since Nov. 9.

Islanders get Belmont Park site

Corey Sipkin/New York Post

NY Post Sports Desk

The Islanders are returning to Long Island.

After three seasons in Brooklyn on the miserable ice at Barclays Center, the Islanders have been awarded the rights to the Belmont Park for their new arena, The Post’s Rich Calder confirmed.

The team was competing with MLS’ New York City FC, who planned for a 26,000-seat stadium at the site.

“It’d be great for the fans and the city and the franchise and everything else. … We’re all hopeful and we’re all anticipatory but you don’t want to get ahead of yourself,” Islanders coach Doug Weight said before the announcement.

The Islanders’ plan calls for an 18,000-seat arena that will include an entertainment hub, hotel and retail village. The team is seeking to get out of its 25-year lease at the Barclays Center.

Bailey Named NHL Third Star of the Week

By New York Islanders PR

Photo: New York Islanders

The National Hockey League announced today that Josh Bailey has been named the Third Star of the Week.

Baileys scored eight points (4G, 4A) in four games including his first career hat trick on Thursday night in Columbus. Bailey recorded a point in every game last week and is currently riding a five game point streak and a three game multi-point streak. His eight points ranked second in the NHL behind teammate John Tavares (nine points).

Bailey co-leads the Islanders in points with 40 (9G, 31A) and leads the team with 31 assists. His 31 helpers currently rank second in the NHL.

In Saturday night's overtime win over the Los Angeles Kings, Bailey and Tavares become the first Islanders since 1993-94 (Pierre Turgeon) to hit the 40 point mark in the team's first 33 games.

This is Bailey's second time winning NHL Star of the Week honors this season. He was named the NHL's Second Star of the Week on Nov. 6.

Isles top Caps to snap skid

NEW YORK -- There's nothing easy about the commute to Barclays Center for the New York Islanders. But for the Islanders players who live on Long Island, getting to Monday's game by navigating traffic along the New York-area highways or dealing with the train felt like vacation compared to what they went through last week.

Brock Nelson scored just 2:36 into the first period Monday night to give the road-weary Islanders a lead they would never relinquish in a 3-1 win over the Washington Capitals at Barclays Center.

The win snapped a three-game losing streak for the Islanders (17-10-3), who came back early Sunday morning from a 1-2-1 road trip in which they never left the Eastern time zone yet arrived home feeling as drained as they would from a cross-country trek.

"For an Eastern Conference road trip, that week felt like three for some reason," New York captain John Tavares said. "We just seemed flat those last couple of games."

The Islanders opened the trip with a 5-4 shootout win over the Florida Panthers before falling to Tampa Bay (6-2), Pittsburgh (4-3 in overtime) and Boston (3-1). The real exhaustion set in during a delayed trip back from Boston through the season's first snowstorm following Saturday's game.

"We had a tough time getting back from Boston," left winger Andrew Ladd said. "I felt it played a role in terms of how we felt yesterday morning."

Ladd, who has played 551 of his 877 career games in the far-flung Western Conference, grinned and said the recent trip was nothing like those he experienced earlier in his career.

Even head coach Doug Weight, who played 990 games for Western Conference teams, noticed his players dragging during and after the trip.

"Florida, Tampa Bay, Pitt, Boston, it shouldn't be a bone-crushing, terrible four-game trip -- we sound like spoiled Easterners, but I think we all felt it," Weight said. "I think I heard it from a lot of guys coming back that didn't think they were going to feel that way. They're not a group that comes in and says 'I'm tired' so they don't have to skate or beg for days off. It was good to have a day off (Sunday)."

Nelson's goal provided a much-needed spark for the Islanders, who allowed the opponent to score first in each of the previous five games. New York opened the second in even quicker fashion when Ladd and Tavares scored in a 58-second span within the first two minutes to chase Capitals goalie Braden Holtby.

"You look at all the goals, they came early in the periods," Washington head coach Barry Trotz said. "I thought they came out a little bit better than us. I thought they were just a little quicker early."

The Capitals ended the shutout bid of Islanders goalie Jaroslav Halak (31 saves) when Dmitry Orlov scored 8:23 into the third. But Washington didn't mount another serious challenge, even after pulling Philipp Grubauer with a little less than three minutes remaining.

"Just coming home, I think being in our own bed and (getting) some home-cooked food just seemed to do the trick," Tavares said.

The loss snapped a four-game winning streak for the Capitals (19-11-1), who fell into a tie for second in the Metropolitan Division with the Islanders. The two teams are two points behind the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Washington has won seven of its last nine games (7-2-0).

"Everyone knows we didn't really have our best game tonight, so that's a bit of a wakeup call," Capitals right winger Tom Wilson said. "We know them very well, they played us hard, they played us smart. We didn't seem to have the legs in order to compete against them tonight."

Holtby made nine saves while Grubauer stopped all 17 shots he faced.

NOTES: The Islanders scratched D Johnny Boychuk (lower body), who missed his third straight game, as well as C Shane Prince and C Alan Quine. ... Prince, who has been out all season with an ankle injury, was activated Sunday and loaned to Bridgeport of the AHL on a conditioning assignment. In a corresponding transaction, D Thomas Hickey (upper body) was placed on injured reserve, retroactive to Saturday. ... The Capitals scratched RW T.J. Oshie (upper body), who missed his third consecutive game, as well as D Taylor Chorney. ... Capitals G Braden Holtby was lifted from a game for the third time this season. He was pulled in the second period of a 6-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Oct. 26, and yanked after two periods of a 6-3 loss to the Nashville Predators on Nov. 14.

Penguins prevail in OT vs. Isles

PITTSBURGH -- His team had given up a two-goal lead in the third period and he was feeling some fatigue during a long shift in overtime, so Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Matt Hunwick was relieved in more ways than one when he scored.

Hunwick slipped the puck past the right skate of New York Islanders goalie Jaroslav Halak 1:29 into the extra session to give the Penguins a 4-3 win Thursday night at PPG Paints Arena.

Hunwick's third goal of the season and first in overtime in his career came after Bryan Rust drove through the crease with the puck. A video review confirmed he did not interfere with Halak.

The play started down the ice.

"I saw one of their guys changing, so it was a chance to create a three-on-two," Hunwick said. "You hope you score there because if I had to go back down the ice and play (defense) again, I'd probably be pretty tired."

Hunwick was on the ice primarily because Justin Schultz, often an overtime choice for Pittsburgh, is hurt, but also because coach Mike Sullivan thought Hunwick deserved to be there.

"He can really skate," Sullivan said. "He's a mobile guy and there's a lot of ice out there. The guys that tend to have foot speed have an advantage. Matt's a guy we can use in that situation because of his mobility."

Pittsburgh's Jake Guentzel scored in the first period, and Jordan Eberle tied it in the second. After Phil Kessel and Riley Sheahan scored 32 seconds apart in the third period for a 3-1 Pittsburgh lead, New York's Mathew Barzal and Brock Nelson answered for a 3-3 tie.

Kris Letang added two assists for the Penguins.

"We found a way to get one (point). We battled back in the end," Eberle said. "It was a good road game. Going into the third with a 1-1 game, they make it 3-1 and we battled back. It was a weird game (from) that aspect, but I guess you can salvage a point and be happy about that."

The Penguins (16-11-3) pulled even with the Islanders (16-9-3), who began the night a point ahead of the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions.

Pittsburgh has won five of six overall. It has a five-game home point streak (4-0-1) against the Islanders and is 7-1-1 against them in the past nine meetings at PPG Paints Arena.

Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry is 5-1-0 in his past six appearances after making 23 saves. Halak stopped 28 shots.

Jarry, a rookie filling in for injured No. 1 goaltender Matt Murray, got a close-up look at Pittsburgh's resilience after giving up the two-goal lead.

"In tough times the team comes together that much tighter," he said. "It's something they pride themselves on. They've taken pride in that the last couple years. That's a big thing, and that helps in overtime."

Pittsburgh put the puck in the net at 8:10 of the first, but it was immediately waved off because Guentzel got his glove on the puck, knocking it upward, and when it landed it trickled into the net before he could get his stick on it.

Guentzel got a goal that counted, a power-play version, at 12:17 of the first with a deft backward deflection just above the crease on a Letang slap shot from the right point for a 1-0 lead.

Eberle tied it at 5:53 of the second. As Jarry was trying to corral a loose puck in the crease with his glove, Eberle swooped in and jabbed it over the goal line.

A blast by Kessel from the left dot past Halak's glove at 7:29 of the third gave Pittsburgh a 2-1 lead and its second power-play goal. Sidney Crosby earned an assist, giving him an 11-game point streak (seven goals, 19 points) against the Islanders.

Sheahan, playing on his 26th birthday, scored his first since Nov. 16 after Halak went far out of his net to play the puck, scrambled back and was out of position when Sheahan roofed a shot for a 3-1 lead at 8:01 of the third.

Barzal swept it past Jarry from the slot at 15:07 of the third, the rookie's eighth goal and 27th point, to make it 3-2.

"That's a big goal," said Nelson, who followed by tying it with Halak pulled with 1:10 to go to send it to overtime. "We had a little bit of a push. We didn't have as many chances as we would like and that was a big-time goal to give us a little bit more momentum. We definitely fed off that. I think after that, we had a few good looks and could've won it there toward the end."

NOTES: Pittsburgh RW Tom Kuhnhackl left in the second period after a collision with teammate Ryan Reaves. There was no update on his status. ... New York C Casey Cizikas was activated from injured reserve and returned after missing four games because of a lower-body injury. ... Pittsburgh D Justin Schultz missed his first game because of a lower-body injury and was placed on IR. Coach Mike Sullivan indicated Schultz's absence could be a couple weeks. ... Pittsburgh D Frank Corrado was recalled from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton but did not dress. D Chad Ruhwedel dressed for the first time in four games.

Lightning overpower Islanders

TAMPA, Fla. -- They came in as the top two scoring teams in the NHL, but the Tampa Bay Lightning looked more like it Tuesday night.

The Lightning pulled away from the New York Islanders, scoring three goals in three minutes late in the second period on the way to a 6-2 victory at Amalie Arena.

Tampa Bay (19-6-2) saw a 2-0 lead disappear on a quick pair of Islanders goals in the second period, but answered in a big way.

Yanni Gourde scored twice in 94 seconds -- first a power-play goal with 3:38 left in the second, then an even-strength goal with 2:04 left -- for a 4-2 lead, and Vladislav Namestnikov added another goal four seconds into the next power play with 1:14 left in the period.

"Obviously, you want to be around the net. This is where you score goals," Gourde said. "I'm going to continue doing that. I think that's where most goals are scored."

New York (16-9-2) rallied back from a 2-0 deficit with two goals in less than two minutes. Rookie Mathew Barzal scored on his seventh goal of the season on the power play with 12:53 left, and had the assist on Jordan Eberle's 11th goal of the season with 11:02 remaining to tie the game.

"The only positive you can take from the game is that they're one of the best if not the best team in the league, and in the second period, it was completely flipflopped," Eberle said. "We know how we can play. We just need to do it for a full 60 minutes."

Tampa Bay jumped out to a 2-0 lead in a dominant first period, outshooting the Islanders 11-2. Brayden Point scored 34 seconds into the game for his 10th goal, and defenseman Andrej Sustr scored with 2:13 left in the first on his second goal of the season.

Chris Kunitz added a goal in the third period off a steal and breakaway for his fourth goal of the season, with 14 minutes remaining.

"We had a really good first, took our foot off the gas, but they're a really good team," Kunitz said. "They're going to capitalize on turnovers and chances.

Islanders goalie Thomas Greiss gave up six goals on 32 shots, while Tampa Bay's Andrei Vasilevskiy (29 saves) picked up his NHL-high 18th win.

Two weeks ago, the Islanders had handed the Lightning a 5-3 loss in the same building, but John Tavares said his team was much more careful with the puck in that game.

"I felt like we managed the puck extremely poorly, turned it over a lot," Tavares said. "They're obviously a very good hockey team. They make plays, have some great shooters and they put pressure on you. We made it too easy for them."

Gourde recorded his seventh and eighth goals of the season and has four goals in two games against the Islanders, compared to four in 26 games against everyone else. The Lightning, who have the league's top power play, have power-play goals in seven straight games, going 4-for-8 in the last three.

New York, which had picked up a shootout win at Florida on Monday night, missed a chance for their second back-to-back sweep in seven chances this season. The Lightning dominated early and expected a strong second period from the Islanders, who dominated for 15 minutes but saw things slip away in the final minutes of the period.

"Thankfully, Yanni Gourde came to the rescue at the end of the second, gave us a big lift, and we took it home from there," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. "He's always going against the Islanders. He plays with lots of energy and I thought that line was really good tonight, with (Cory) Conacher and (Alex) Killorn. They were hunting pucks, they were hounding, and they were rewarded."

Tampa Bay passed the Islanders for the league in goals with 100, one ahead of New York.

NOTES: Lightning D Braydon Coburn missed a second straight game with a lower-body injury, with RW J.T. Brown and D Jamie McBain as healthy scratches. ... The Islanders had D Dennis Seidenberg and D Thomas Hickey as healthy scratches. ... The Lightning continue a four-game homestand on Thursday against the Colorado Avalanche. ... The Islanders continue a four-game road trip Thursday at the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Barzal lifts Islanders in shootout

SUNRISE, Fla. -- New York Islanders rookie center Mathew Barzal wanted a chance at his first NHL shootout attempt ... so he did the only think he could think of -- he kept his eyes trained on his coach, Doug Weight.

Barzal's plan didn't work at first. Weight chose Jordan Eberle, who was stopped by goalie James Reimer, and John Tavares, who fell, got up and also got stuffed.

"Johnny (Tavares) slipped on a banana peel," Weight joked.

Finally, after three Florida Panthers had failed to score a shootout goal, Weight turned to Barzal, and the 20-year-old Canadian delivered, giving the Islanders a wild 5-4 win on Monday night at the BB&T Center.

"He wouldn't stop staring at me as I picked the first two guys," Weight said when asked why he chose Barzal. "I wouldn't look at him.

"He's a confident kid. He was excited. He wanted to get out there."

New York, which entered Monday with the highest-scoring offense in the NHL at 3.72 goals per game, took advantage of an injury to opposing goalie Roberto Luongo, who left in the second period due to an injury.

The Islanders, who have scored five or more goals 13 times in 26 games, provided great offensive support for goalie Jaroslav Halak, who made 39 saves.

New York (16-8-2) also got scores from Anders Lee, Thomas Hickey, Brock Nelson and Tavares. Lee's goal was No. 100 in his career.

Luongo, fourth in NHL history with 459 wins, was removed from the game with 17:29 left in the second period. He appeared to injure his right leg while making a kick save on a shot by Ryan Pulock.

Florida replaced Luongo, who had allowed just 18 goals in his past nine games, with backup Reimer, who inherited a 1-1 score and took the loss.

Reimer said losing Luongo was a tough blow emotionally.

"My first thought was that he was going to get up, and you hope it's just a minor tweak," Reimer said. "It's never fun when you see your partner go down. I'm hoping for the best for him, and, at the same time, you're trying to get yourself into the game."

The Panthers (10-13-4) got goals from Keith Yandle, Aaron Ekblad, Aleksander Barkov and Denis Malgin.

Panthers coach Bob Boughner, who said Luongo was "hobbling" after the game, said more will be known about the injury on Tuesday.

"It's a pretty traumatic thing," said Boughner, referring to the team's emotions following the loss of Luongo.

Early on, though, the Panthers were looking good.

Florida opened the scoring with 10:25 elapsed in the first period. Yandle pounced on a loose puck, unleashing a shot from the point that beat Halak glove-side.

The Islanders tied the score three minutes later. Lee grabbed a rebound off the end boards and beat Luongo between his pads.

There were five goals scored in the frantic third period.

Reimer had only been in for three minutes when he allowed a soft goal by Hickey, who shot the puck from the side boards. Reimer fought the fluttering puck and managed to block it before accidentally kicking it into his own goal with his right leg.

Florida surged back with its power play. After failing to score with a two-man advantage, the Panthers, still on a 5-on-4 power play, got a goal by Ekblad, who used a Jonathan Huberdeau screen to tie the score 2-2.

Barkov's power-play goal gave Florida a 3-2 lead, but New York closed the period with the goals by Nelson and Tavares, which came just two minutes apart.

Florida tied the score 4-4 with 5:06 expired in the third period. Vinny Trocheck won a puck battle along the end boards and passed the puck to Malgin, who scored from the slot.

That was the last puck that went in until Barzal got the call from Weight.

"I didn't have a move -- I just tried to read (Reimer)," Barzal said. "I got in tight, and I went to my backhand. I threw a couple of hesitations in there, but he didn't bite. I was lucky to get the backhand up."

If Barzal was lucky, Weight, 46, was relieved.

Asked about the emotional win, Weight muttered: "I'm too old for this."

NOTES: Islanders C Casey Cizikas (four goals, four assists) missed his third straight game due to a lower-body injury. ... Florida moved RW Nick Bjugstad to the top line, along with C Aleksander Barkov and LW Jonathan Huberdeau. Bjugstad replaces Evgenii Dadonov (shoulder), who is out at least four weeks. ... Panthers RW Denis Malgin, who played on the top line for the first two games after Dadonov was injured, has been moved to the second unit with C Vincent Trocheck and LW Jamie McGinn. ... Florida scratched LW Henrik Haapala, LW Dryden Hunt and D MacKenzie Weegar. ... The Islanders scratched D Dennis Seidenberg and D Scott Mayfield.