Islanders Snap Winless Streak With 5-2 Victory Over Kings as Maccelli and Pulock Return

Snapping a four-game winless slide, the New York Islanders beat the Los Angeles Kings 5-2 on Thursday night at Crypto.com Arena, securing their first victory in Los Angeles since 2018, as reported by Newsday.

Islanders Break Los Angeles Drought

Parts of the game resembled heavy traffic, but the Islanders gladly traded style for points. The win improved their record to 8-6-4 on the season, halting a skid that had troubled the squad over their previous outings. Meanwhile, the Kings dropped to 5-10-2.

Los Angeles had not lost in regulation to the Islanders since Feb. 6, 2020. The Kings had gone 10-0-1 in the matchups since then, including a 3-2 overtime win at UBS Arena on Oct. 22.

“We were more connected,” coach Pete DeBoer told Newsday. “We put two good players back in the lineup, which helps. Our goalie was great again and we cleaned up the things that we didn’t like about last game.”

Maccelli and Pulock Return to the Lineup

The Islanders welcomed back speedy forward Matias Maccelli and defensive stalwart Ryan Pulock to the lineup. Maccelli had missed time since getting hurt on Oct. 17 in Toronto, during which the team went 3-3-3. Pulock had been out after re-aggravating a shoulder injury on Oct. 29 that required offseason surgery, with the team going 0-2-2 in his absence.

Third-line center Jean-Gabriel Pageau remained unavailable due to a lower-body issue. Pageau tested himself during the morning skate but exited halfway through the session. DeBoer dressed 11 forwards and seven defensemen to manage the ice time for the returning players.

“I started feeling good in the third period again,” Maccelli told Newsday after logging 13:46 of ice time. “Now we’ve gotten rid of that little rust that I haven’t played in the last month so I should be good for next game.”

Scoring Breakdown and Key Plays

Brayden Schenn opened the scoring at 5:50 of the first period, depositing a rebound off Pulock’s blue-line blast. The Kings answered when Trevor Moore tied it 1-1 at 8:55 of the first period on a deflection.

Matthew Schaefer restored the lead on a power-play goal at 12:56 of the first period, assisted by Maccelli. Playing in his 100th NHL game, Schaefer drove a heavy wrist shot through traffic into the upper right corner. The goal marked a man-advantage conversion for the second straight match following a 1-for-18 slump over six games.

In the second period, Schenn transported the puck to the crease, setting up rookie Victor Eklund’s fourth goal in four games at 5:35. Quinton Byfield answered for Los Angeles with a five-on-three power-play goal at 7:52 to cut the deficit to 3-2.

Simon Holmstrom sealed the momentum 39 seconds into the third period by grabbing a loose puck high in the slot and lasering a wrist shot past goalie Darcy Kuemper. Captain Bo Horvat added an empty-net goal late in the contest.

Sorokin Makes 26 Saves as Defense Improves

Ilya Sorokin turned in 26 saves for his third straight strong outing. Darcy Kuemper stopped 16 shots for the Kings.

“He’s been so good for us,” Horvat told Newsday about Sorokin. “I can’t stop talking about how good he is. For us to finally play a little bit better in front of him. There were still things we’ve got to work on. But, for the most part, we were solid and didn’t give up too many Grade-A [shots] for him.”

The defensive structure proved sounder than during the recent homestand, which included a 5-4 overtime loss to the Devils and a 3-2 eight-round shootout loss to the Sharks. Pulock logged 19:22 of ice time and noted the team’s improved zone control.

“We scored some goals by going to the net and then we defended hard,” Pulock told Newsday. “We did a pretty good job of not spending a ton of time in our zone.”