John Tavares scored twice while Thomas Greiss made 23 saves to lead the New York Islanders to a 3-0 shutout win over the Dallas Stars at Barclays Center Thursday night. Interim head coach Doug Weight earned a victory in his first game behind the Isles’ bench just two days after taking over for Jack Capuano.
Greiss was sharp when called on by the Islanders. It was his second straight shutout. Greiss blanked the Boston Bruins Monday afternoon in Boston.
Tavares continued his recent hot streak. He now has seven goals in his last four games for the Isles.
The Stars ended their three-game road trip with a 1-2-0 record and head back to Dallas still trying to find some consistency in their game.
First Period
The Islanders had the first good scoring chance of the game on a shorthanded breakaway by Tavares, but the captain was unable to convert the opportunity as Lehtonen took away his angle.
Tavares did give the Isles the lead at 13:31 of the first period. He took a pass from Anders Lee and showed off his skill on a pretty fake that allowed him to get an uncontested shot from the slot.
Both teams had 10 shots on goal in the period but Greiss was able to keep the Stars off the board, and the Islanders led 1-0 after 20 minutes.
Second Period
The game got chippy early in the second period as Thomas Hickey and Radek Faksa dropped the gloves.
The Islanders dominated play but Kari Lehtonen made 16 saves to keep the Stars in the game.
The Islanders defense limited the visitors to just five shots on goal in the second stanza but neither team was able to score.
Third Period
The Stars had some quality chances in the third period but were unable to solve Greiss. The Stars were still only trailing by one goal until Tavares scored on a shorthanded breakaway with just 3:06 left in the third period. Nikolay Kulemin made the pass that sprung Tavares, who tallied the first shorthanded goal of his NHL career.
Calvin de Haan added an empty-net goal in the final seconds to close out the scoring and clinch the victory for the Islanders.
Scoring Summary
First Period
NYI – John Tavares (17) assisted by Anders Lee
Second Period
No Scoring
Third Period
NYI – John Tavares (18) assisted by Nikolay Kulemin
NYI – Calvin de Haan (3) assisted by Thomas Greiss
THW Three Stars
First: John Tavares (2 goals, GWG)
Second: Thomas Greiss (23 saves, shutout)
Third: Anders Lee (assist)
Next Up
Los Angeles Kings vs New York Islanders
Barclays Center, 7:00 PM EST on Saturday Jan. 21
Broadcast Channels: MSG-Plus and KCOP-13
2016-17 Season Series: Nov. 23, 2016 – Kings 4, Islanders 2
Washington Capitals vs Dallas Stars
American Airlines Center, 8:00 PM EST on Saturday Jan. 21
Broadcast Channels: NHL Network, CSN-DC and Fox Sports-SW
2016-17 Season Series: First Matchup of the Season
Long time hockey writer and author of the new book, “Ice Wars: The Complete History of New York’s Greatest Modern Sports Rivalry.” It tells the story behind every game between the Rangers and Islanders dating back to 1972 and features profiles of more than 80 players from both teams and quotes from more than 50 exclusive interviews from players, coaches and broadcasters from both teams.
