Oct. 26, 2024 23:46 PM EST

Tkachuk, Bennett Help Panthers Rally To Beat Islanders 6-3

By: SCOTT CHARLES
Associated Press
Florida Panthers' Niko Mikkola (77) watches as goaltender Spencer Knight (30) stops a shot while New York Islanders' Anders Lee falls on top of him during the second period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II) Frank Franklin II, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Florida Panthers' Niko Mikkola (77) watches as goaltender Spencer Knight (30) stops a shot while New York Islanders' Anders Lee falls on top of him during the second period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
Florida Panthers goaltender Spencer Knight stops a shot by New York Islanders' Brock Nelson (29) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
New York Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov (40) stops a shot during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
Florida Panthers goaltender Spencer Knight (30) protects the net during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the New York Islanders Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
Florida Panthers' Matthew Tkachuk celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the New York Islanders Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
View All (10)

NEW YORK (AP) — Matthew Tkachuk scored twice, Sam Bennett got the go-ahead goal in the third period, and the Florida Panthers rallied from three goals down to beat the New York Islanders 6-3 on Saturday night.

Sam Reinhart also scored, Mackie Samoskevich got his first NHL goal and Gustav Forsling added an short-handed empty-netter in the closing minutes to seal the Panthers' win. Dmitry Kulikov and Anton Lundell each had two assists, and Spencer Knight finished with 25 saves as the defending Stanley-Cup Champions won their second straight.

Dennis Cholowski, Kyle Palmieri and Brock Nelson scored in the first period for New York. Semyon Varlamov finished with 22 saves as the Islanders lost for the second time in three games.

Knight allowed three goals on the first seven shots and then denied the next 22 shot attempts from the Islanders.

Takeaways

Islanders coach Patrick Roy has been unable to get the Islanders to protect leads, a characteristic that has plagued New York since Lane Lambert took over behind the bench after Barry Trotz was fired in May 2022. New York scored three straight goals in first period but allowed Florida to score six unanswered to win it.

Bennett has stepped up in captain Aleksander Barkov's absence, scoring in four straight games including a go-ahead goal in third period against Islanders.

Key moment

Tkachuk found loose puck behind Varlamov and pulled the Panthers to within one goal. Florida seized momentum and completely erased the Islanders' three-goal advantage by end of the second period.

Key stat

The Islanders have scored at least three goals in five of their eight games. They have been shut out in other three.

Up Next

The Panthers visit Buffalo on Tuesday while the Islanders wrap up a brief two-game home stand against Anaheim.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Topics

People in the Story