Rangers Get Just Enough, Rebounding to Beat Isles
UNIONDALE, N.Y. - Benoit Pouliot gave the struggling Rangers a much-needed victory on Tuesday by scoring a third-period goal to lift them over the Islanders, 3-2, at Nassau Coliseum.
Pouliot's second goal of the season, on a wrist shot from the top of the slot at 13 minutes 46 seconds, came off a pass from Carl Hagelin, a speedy winger making his season debut for the Rangers after missing 10 games following off-season shoulder surgery.
Cam Talbot, making his third start in the last four games, had 22 saves for the Rangers (4-7-0), who were coming off a listless 2-0 loss in their home opener on Monday against Montreal.
The Islanders fell to 4-5-3 in the debut game of the high-scoring left wing Thomas Vanek, who was acquired from Buffalo on Sunday for forward Matt Moulson and two draft picks.
The Rangers, skating without their injured top scorer Rick Nash and captain Ryan Callahan, have scored just 18 goals in 11 games.
The Islanders led, 2-1, entering the third period after Peter Regin and Cal Clutterbuck scored second-period goals.
But defenseman Ryan McDonagh scored the tying goal on the power play at 4:59 of the third, blasting the puck past Evgeni Nabokov from the point for his second goal of the season.
Chris Kreider opened the scoring for the Rangers with a power-play goal at 12:30 of the first, the only score of a brisk period in which the Islanders outshot the Rangers, 9-4.
Kreider's goal came after a rebound of a Brad Richards shot from the point came to him in front of Nabokov. The goal was the first of the season for Kreider, who was recalled from Hartford of the American Hockey League on Oct. 20.
Kreider struggled last season amid multiple trips back and forth from Hartford after bursting on the scene with five playoff goals for the Rangers in the spring of 2012.
Clutterbuck tied the score at 1-1 with his first goal as an Islander at 3:40 of the second, breaking down the right wing and beating Talbot high to the glove side.
Talbot started a night after Henrik Lundqvist lost the team's dreary Monday match. The 26-year-old Talbot, who made his N.H.L. debut against Philadelphia last week, was promoted from Hartford after the Rangers waived the backup Martin Biron two weeks ago. Talbot recorded his first win against Detroit last Saturday.
The game was the Rangers' only visit of the season to the Nassau Coliseum. A Winter Classic game at Yankee Stadium between the teams on Jan. 29 is an Islander home game. Their other three meetings will be at Madison Square Garden.
SLAP SHOTS
John Tavares, the Islanders' captain, had his 10-game point-scoring streak snapped. He had four goals and nine assists during the streak. ... The Islanders continued to be without defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky (concussion). ... The Islanders have scored at least two goals in every game this season. Chicago and St. Louis are the only other teams to have done so.
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