Jaroslav Halak had trouble ahead of Kyle Palmieri and the New York Islanders defeated neighbor Rangers 3-0 on Wednesday.
The Rangers keeper made 26 saves in the game, but he yielded twice to the Islanders forward. Palmieri scored with a shot into the mitt side slot midway through the second period.
Josh Bailey extended the Islanders’ lead early in the third period, deftly redirecting a throw-in from Adam Pelech. Ten minutes later, Palmieri returned with his second goal of the game, again scored on the mitt side.
No Rangers player was able to beat Ilya Sorokin who had a 41-save shutout. Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Pelech each finished the game with two assists.
Goaltender Ilya Sorokin made 17 saves in the first period, 12 in the second and 12 more in the third for his 11th career shutout. He had seven shutouts last season.
The longtime rivals shared four games last season, with the road side winning each time. However, the Islanders have now won seven of the last nine meetings and are 9-4-0 against Rangers since January 2021.
The Islanders were zero-for-two on the power play, while the Rangers failed on their one chance.
Halak played four seasons with the Islanders, including a 38-win campaign in 2014-15. After leaving Long Island, he spent three seasons with Boston and one in Vancouver before signing with the Rangers in the offseason to support Vezina Trophy winner Igor Shesterkin.
