Ducks defeat Islanders in shootout, avoid third straight loss

UNIONDALE, N.Y. -- The Anaheim Ducks avoided a third straight loss on their four-game road trip with a 6-5 shootout win against the New York Islanders at Nassau Coliseum on Saturday.

Adam Henrique had a goal and an assist for Anaheim (15-17-4), which was without center Ryan Getzlaf because of flu-like symptoms. Max Comtois and Jakob Silfverberg scored in the shootout for Anaheim; Josh Bailey scored for New York.
Ducks goalie John Gibson made 28 saves.
WATCH: [All Ducks vs. Islanders highlights]
"You can walk out of here and lose by a goal or lose by three and have all kinds of great excuses," Anaheim coach Dallas Eakins said. "Our captain was sick, we've got a couple guys hurt, we've got a bunch of other guys hacking up a lung in there too. It would have been real easy to do that.
"But I'll keep saying the one thing we do have for sure. We might not be there from an experience point, and we're certainly not one of the best teams in the League right now, but we do have really high character in there. I think they really showed that today and I think they should be very proud of the performance they put on here."
Nick Leddy had a goal and two assists for New York (23-8-3), which has lost its past two home games after winning eight in a row at Nassau Coliseum. Semyon Varlamov made 23 saves in his second straight start.

It was the Islanders' first loss under coach Barry Trotz when scoring at least four goals (38-0-1).
"We're in the winning business, not the points business," Trotz said.
Ryan Pulock tied the game 5-5 with a power-play goal at 13:19 of the third period on a one-timer from the left face-off circle. Cam Fowler gaven the Ducks a 5-4 lead at 10:19 when he was left alone in the left circle and snapped a shot past Varlamov.
Silfverberg tied the game 4-4 at 14:41 of the second period, 26 seconds after Leddy's one-timer gave the Islanders a 4-3 lead at 14:15.

Henrique gave the Ducks a 3-2 lead at 5:23 of the second on a redirection of Korbinian Holzer's shot. Mathew Barzal tied it 3-3 with his Islanders-leading 15th goal when he knocked down Anders Lee's pass with his glove, raced in and scored on a breakaway at 9:20.
Lee gave the Islanders a 1-0 lead 1:50 into the game when he one-timed Barzal's cross-ice pass for his 10th goal of the season. Comtois tied it 1-1 with a power-play goal at 16:27 on a deflection of Isac Lundstrom's one-timer.
Sam Carrick gave Anaheim a 2-1 lead 36 seconds later with a shorthanded goal at 17:03. Brock Nelson responded on the same power play, putting a rebound in at 17:50 to tie it 2-2.

"They're known as a stingy team, and that's what we try to be as well," Fowler said. "You didn't expect both teams to put up five [goals], but sometimes there's going to be games like that, and we have to find ways to stay in hockey games and win in a variety of different ways. We were able to do that tonight."

They said it

"Awesome to see, right through the lineup. [Gibson] was standing tall in there as much as he could, our younger guys kept playing, our older guys were trying to lead the way. We need full team efforts here, like up and down the lineup. That's a [darn] good hockey team over there, and to be able to come into their rink and score five goals against a team that is that stingy, we'll feel pretty good about that." -- Ducks coach Dallas Eakins
"I just think maybe we've got to be a little harder, a little stronger and a little quicker in our decisions. I think we were just a little, at times tonight, just like a half-step slow, whether that was picking up a guy's stick or clearing the puck, and that goes in the net. Just one of those bear-down moments type of things. We'll figure it out." -- Islanders captain Anders Lee

Need to know

The Ducks hadn't scored five goals in a game since their 7-4 win against the Winnipeg Jets on Oct. 29. … It was the first time this season an Islanders goalie started two games in a row. … Barzal played his 200th NHL game. … New York right wing Cal Clutterbuck is out indefinitely after having surgery on his left wrist Friday. Clutterbuck was injured when he was cut by center Patrice Bergeron's skate blade in the third period of a 3-2 shootout win at the Boston Bruins on Thursday. The Islanders recalled forward
Andrew Ladd
from Bridgeport of the American Hockey League on Saturday. He was a healthy scratch.

What's next

Ducks: At the New York Rangers on Sunday (12:30 p.m. ET; NHLN, MSG, PRIME, NHL.TV)
Islanders: Host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday (Nassau Coliseum, 7 p.m. ET; MSG+, FS-O, NHL.TV)