Forsberg makes 31 saves, Blackhawks top Islanders

NEW YORK --The New York Islanders fell closer to elimination from Stanley Cup Playoff contention with a 3-1 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks at Barclays Center on Saturday.
Anton Forsberg made 31 saves, and Patrick Kane and Brandon Saad scored 1:49 apart in the second period for Chicago (31-36-9), which ended a five-game losing streak (0-4-1). The Blackhawks were eliminated from playoff contention on March 20.

"You'll take a win when you go in a stretch where you haven't won for a while," Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said. "You're in a tough run here, and any win certainly feels better than what we've been going through here. The guys had some fun on the bench as well. We were doing some good things tonight."
WATCH: [All Blackhawks vs. Islanders highlights]
John Tavares scored, and Jaroslav Halak made 22 saves for New York (31-34-10), which is 2-6-3 in its past 11 games and 14 points behind the New Jersey Devils for the second wild card into the playoffs from the Eastern Conference with seven games remaining.
"We just didn't capitalize on enough of our chances," Tavares said. "We can't seem to find a way to get 60 minutes and get the plays that need to be made at the right times and find a way to put a few more in.
"It's been frustrating for a while. This is not a lot of fun."
Kane gave the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal at 2:36 of the second period when his shot from the right face-off circle deflected off Islanders defenseman Adam Pelech's stick past Halak. It was Kane's 26th of the season.
With the Blackhawks out of the playoff race, Quenneville experimented with Kane at center for the first time since 2011-12. Kane played on a line with Saad and Alex DeBrincat.
"I think a lot of the guys were kind of laughing about it before the game," Kane said. "I didn't really know what to expect. It's almost like you're so used to playing a certain position, you think about certain things going into the game and you're a little lost out there at times. But I guess the biggest thing is we got the win."

Saad scored at 4:25 to make it 2-0 when he got the rebound off his initial shot and banked the puck off Halak's skate at the right post.
"Usually when someone shoots from my left side, it usually goes to the corner," Halak said. "I guess it hit the (stanchion) or whatever behind the net. It's happened already a couple of times with me this season, same spot. It's frustrating. I just had no idea where the puck was. It was just an unfortunate bounce for us."
Tavares cut the lead to 2-1 at 17:18 of the third period when he roofed a backhand over Forsberg's glove from in front.

Brent Seabrook scored an empty-net goal at 18:46 to extend the lead to 3-1.
New York went 0-for-2 on the power play. Chicago was 1-for-2.
"You're gonna have nights when your power play doesn't score," Islanders forward Anders Lee said. "Obviously, we know how important it is, especially when you're down a goal or whatnot. I thought it picked up our momentum at least for the last 10 minutes there. Power play's fine; obviously, when you don't score on it, it looks even worse."

Goal of the game

Kane's goal at 2:36 of the second period.

Save of the game

Forsberg's save on Lee at 9:12 of the second period.

Highlight of the game

Saad's goal at 4:25 of the second period.

They said it

"When you're not winning, it's not easy to get that confidence or enthusiasm. You get a win at this stage of the game, you can build a little something off it." -- Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville
"For the most part, we generated good chances, had opportunities. Even in the last eight, nine minutes, we had some really good looks and just couldn't get the puck by him. Johnny finally did. We just couldn't tie it." -- Islanders coach Doug Weight

Need to know

Seabrook has three points (two goals, assist) in a three-game point streak. … Kane has 19 points (five goals, 14 assists) in his past 18 games. … Tavares has nine points (two goals, seven assists) in a five-game point streak. … Lee had an assist on Tavares' goal and has six points (five goals, assist) in a four-game point streak.

What's next

Blackhawks: Host the San Jose Sharks on Monday (8:30 p.m. ET; NBCSCH, NBCSCA, NHL.TV)
Islanders: Host the Florida Panthers on Monday (7 p.m. ET; MSG+, FS-F, NHL.TV)