Panthers End Islanders Hot Streak

     The Florida Panthers returned home on Tuesday night against the New York Islanders with a 4-2 victory at BB&T Center. The Isles had their seven-game road winning streak stopped while the Panthers have won three of their last five games.
     The Cats waited just 32 seconds into the game to take a 1-0 lead. A loose puck was picked up at the Islanders blue line was Brad Boyes. He passed the puck back-and-forth with Aleksander Barkov as they advanced it forward on a two-on-one break. Barkov finished the play with a one-time shot from the right circle for his eighth goal of the season.
     Florida(18-21-7) increased their lead to 2-0 when Drew Shore came from behind the Islanders cage and spun around with a wrist shot from the right circle. It went off the skate of a defender and into the net at 15:34 of the first. It was the first goal this season for Shore in his ninth game with the team.
     New York(18-23-7) saw it become a three-goal deficit with 36 seconds remaining in the first period. Scottie Upshall sent a cross-ice pass from the Isles blue line to Nick Bjugstad in the left circle. He sprinted toward the net, faked a backhand shot and lifted a forehand shot over the left shoulder of Kevin Poulin for his tenth tally this year.
     Upshall got the Panthers second shorthanded goal of the season with 4:01 left in the second period to extend their margin to 4-0. He stripped the puck from Andy MacDonald at the Panthers blue line and walked in alone on a breakaway.
     The Islanders broke the shutout with 31 second to go in the second. Colin McDonald picked up his third goal this year with assists from Matt Martin and Calvin de Haan.
     They would close the gap to 4-2 at 2:38 of the third period. Franz Nielsen carried the puck to behind the Panthers net, sent a backhand pass to the right of the crease where Thomas Vanek ripped a shot by Tim Thomas.
     Poulin dropped to 9-13-0 as he made 22 saves while Thomas faced his former team and stopped 31 shots and improved to 12-11-3. Both teams were scoreless during the power play as the Cats went 0-for-5 and the Isles were 0-for-3.