Shabanov has 3 points, Islanders shut out Red Wings

DETROIT -- Maxim Shabanov had two goals and an assist, and Ilya Sorokin made 29 saves to help the New York Islanders defeat the Detroit Red Wings 5-0 at Little Caesars Arena on Thursday.

Shabanov entered the night with three points (one goal, two assists) in his first eight NHL games this season.

“It’s exciting to have such a good game and to get a win,” Shabanov said through an interpreter. “Our line just tried to do its job and play our best game.”

Shabanov plays on the fourth line with Casey Cizikas (two assists) and Calum Ritchie (one goal, one assist). Their line was involved in four of the Islanders' five goals.

“We just play a simple game,” Cizikas said. “We played north-south hockey. We worked hard and we took advantage of our opportunities.”

Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat also scored for New York (12-7-2), which finished its seven-game road trip 6-1-0.

“We know if we play the way we are playing we can win a lot of games,” Islanders coach Patrick Roy said. “The thing I loved about this road trip is our presence. We always stayed aware of the next step instead of looking at the score and being satisfied.”

John Gibson made 21 saves for Detroit (12-8-1), which had its four-game point streak end (3-0-1).

“That was obviously very disappointing,” Red Wings coach Todd McLellan said. “We had a ton of momentum coming into this game, and we were just outexecuted. They had a seven-game road trip, but if you don’t push and take advantage of a team like that, they get some confidence and they start to feel better.”

Ritchie gave New York a 1-0 lead at 6:46 of the first period, electing to shoot on a 2-on-1 and beating Gibson short side from the left circle.

It was his second straight game with a goal after he didn't score in his first nine games this season.

“[Shabanov's] pass on that play was unreal,” Ritchie said. “And then he got [two] more points with three more unreal plays. He’s just a great player.”

Shabanov made it 2-0 at 14:54 of the first. Ritchie won a face-off in the right circle, and Cizikas tapped the puck back to Shabanov, who had his shot from the high slot flutter blocker side on Gibson.

“We were talking on the bench about how well that group works together,” Roy said. “At the end of a long road trip, they gave us a lot of gas and a lot of momentum.”

Barzal extended the lead to 3-0 at 3:19 of the second period. He scored with a wrist shot from the high slot that deflected in off the shin of Marco Kasper, whose turnover in the defensive zone created the chance.

Horvat made it 4-0 at 5:04. He won a face-off in the left circle and immediately skated to the right circle before one-timing a diagonal pass from Ryan Pulock short side on Gibson.

“We have coverages for face-offs that should be automatic,” McLellan said. “Maybe you aren’t skating well, but you can still prevent goals like that. We gave up two of them, which sums up the night.”

Shabanov pushed it to 5-0 at 6:52 of the third period, splitting Red Wings defensemen Moritz Seider and Simon Edvinsson on an individual rush before lifting a backhand past Gibson's glove.

“[Shabanov] is a skilled player. He finds small spaces to make plays and he’s so strong on his feet,” Cizikas said. “He likes to hold onto the puck and make that play, and he does a great job of it.”

NOTES: The Islanders won six games on a road trip for the second time in franchise history. They also went 6-1-0 on a seven-game trip from Feb. 19-March 6, 2016. ... Sorokin's shutout was his second this season and 24th in the NHL. He trails Glenn Resch by one for the most shutouts in Islanders history. ... Red Wings forwards Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond each had his five-game point streak end. ... Islanders defenseman Adam Boqvist had the secondary assist on Ritchie's goal. It was his first point of the season and 100th in the NHL. ... The Red Wings have been outscored 12-2 by the Islanders this season. They lost 7-2 in New York on Oct. 23.