Recap: Ducks Roll to 4-1 Win Over Isles

The Ducks put together one of their most complete games of the season tonight on home ice, downing the New York Islanders 4-1 at Honda Center.

NHL GAMECENTER | DUCKS STREAM

With the win, Anaheim improved to 28-28-7 on the season and moved within seven points of the Western Conference's final Wild Card position.

Mason McTavish and Sam Colangelo led the Ducks offensively with two-point nights, including a goal each in the third period that put the game out of reach for New York. Drew Helleson also scored, helping Anaheim secure its sixth win in its last eight home games.

Pavel Mintyukov, Leo Carlsson, Cutter Gauthier, Trevor Zegras and Isac Lundestrom collected assists, as Anaheim's offense now ranks seventh in the NHL since the 4 Nations Face-Off break.

Between the pipes, Lukas Dostal earned his career-high 19th win of the season with stops on 31-of-32 Islander attempts.

Defenseman Tony DeAngelo scored the lone goal for the Islanders, who fell to 29-27-7. Marcus Hogberg made 23 saves in his 50th career NHL appearance.

Anaheim's Trevor Zegras nearly put the home side ahead midway through the first with his latest lacrosse-style goal, picking up the puck on the blade of his stick below the goal line and attempting to wrap it around the post into the top of the net, but the shot hit Hogberg's shoulder and then the crossbar before bouncing wide. Zegras is one of two players in league history, along with Carolina's Andrei Svechnikov, to score three lacrosse-style goals, also known as "The Michigan."

Instead it would be Colangelo putting the Ducks ahead later in the opening frame, with Anaheim finally breaking through after several long shifts in the New York zone. McTavish and Colangelo gained the line on left wing, with McTavish spinning a pass to the driving Gauthier on the far side of the ice while Colangelo kept racing to the net. Gauthier then delivered the quick centering feed back to his new linemate, allowing Colangelo to tuck a forehand bid past the outstretched Hogberg while fighting off an Isles defender.

Colangelo has now scored in four straight games, the longest streak by any NHL rookie this season and tied for the second-longest rookie run in Ducks franchise history. The 23-year-old Colangelo, who also led the AHL's San Diego Gulls with 19 goals in 38 games at the time of his recall, has collected five goals and six points in 18 NHL appearances this season.

With a goal and an assist on the night, McTavish has collected six points in his last four games and now ranks third among team scoring leaders this season. Gauthier's helper made him just the sixth NHL rookie to reach 30 points this season.

Dubbed Anaheim's "Kid Line", at 21 (Gauthier), 22 (McTavish) and 23-years-old (Colangelo), the trio has combined for 16 points in its first four games together.

Zellweger almost doubled that advantage midway through the second period amidst another Anaheim flurry in the offensive zone, beating Hogberg clean from the slot off a pass from Gauthier, but the shot rang the post and stayed out.

However much like in the first, the Ducks would follow up a close call by making good on their next opportunity - this time a seeing eye shot by Helleson at the right point that snuck through traffic and past Hogberg.

The goal was Helleson's third of the season and his fourth in the NHL. The rookie blueliner has appeared in each of Anaheim's last 16 games, with a +4 rating in that span.

The lead hit three in the initial minute of the third period, when the sides traded odd-man rushes and the Ducks made the Isles pay for missing their chance at getting back in the game. After an Anaheim turnover, New York attacked 2-on-1 with defenseman Adam Pelech ultimately missing a wide of the net on a shot from the slot. The puck then quickly went back the other way where McTavish would make no mistake, beating Hogberg to the blocker side for a crucial insurance goal.

Anaheim's Jansen Harkins was awarded a penalty shot moments after the goal, the second of his NHL career, but Hogberg turned the veteran forward aside with a pad save.

Colangelo would then seal the deal though with one of the earliest empty netters you'll ever see, putting Anaheim ahead 4-0 with over 11 minutes to play.

The empty-netter clinched Colangelo's first multi-goal game in the NHL.

DeAngelo spoiled Dostal's shutout bid with less than five minutes left in regulation, but it would be far too little, too late for the visitors as Anaheim cruised to a season sweep of its Eastern Conference foe.

The Ducks conclude a three-game homestand Tuesday against Washington.