Barzal hat trick powers Islanders past Jets

NEW YORK -- Mathew Barzal couldn't help but think about it. From the moment he scored his second goal late in the first period, he knew there was plenty of time for a third.
The rookie center completed his first NHL hat trick midway through the third period, and Jordan Eberle had three assists to help the New York Islanders to a 5-2 win against the Winnipeg Jets at Barclays Center on Saturday.

WATCH: [All Jets vs. Islanders highlights]
"It was still a pretty tight game, so I wasn't going to cheat for any offense. I just wanted to play hard," Barzal said. "That's kind of how it works sometimes; you start cheating a little bit and thinking about it, then it doesn't really come. If you just stick to the game plan, the puck kind of bounces your way."
Anders Lee and Anthony Beauvillier scored, and Jaroslav Halak made 38 saves for New York (19-13-4), which allowed fewer than three goals for the second time in 12 games this month.
"Obviously it's not ideal, the goals-against right now, our save percentage," said Halak, who has split the job with goaltender Thomas Greiss this season. "But we've got to take a look at it as a team. Giving up six and taking a look at where the goals are coming from. Obviously there are times that we want a couple back, but sometimes there is nothing we can do about the goals."
Tucker Poolman and Adam Lowry scored for Winnipeg (20-11-6), which went 1-1-1 on its three-game road trip. Steve Mason made 24 saves.

"The natural state in the National Hockey League is fatigue," coach Paul Maurice said after the Jets' 12th game this month. "You're always tired; that's just the way the schedule is. We weren't good enough to win the game tonight."
Barzal completed his hat trick at 11:22 of the third period with a one-timer off a pass from Eberle to give New York a 4-1 lead. It was his 12th goal of the season.
Barzal scored his second goal of the game with 36 seconds left in the first period when he fought off Bryan Little and sent the puck from behind the net off Tyler Myers' skate to give the Islanders a 3-1 lead.
"It's pretty cool," said Barzal, who played his 38th NHL game. "It was an all-around effort from my linemates (Eberle and Andrew Ladd) tonight. [Eberle] gave me a couple of great passes, and obviously [Ladd] winning battles. It's just awesome to get that chemistry going and get a win."
Lee scored his third goal in four games at 1:31 of the first period. He parked himself in front of the net and poked in Josh Bailey's power-play feed for his 22nd goal of the season to give the Islanders a 1-0 lead. The assist extended Bailey's point streak to eight games.
Barzal made it 2-0 at 2:20 when he one-timed Eberle's feed from point-blank range.

"He's a smart player. I think his biggest attributes are his speed and he's able to turn on a dime and keep continuous speed. A lot of players can't do that," Eberle said of Barzal. "He creates space for himself that way and brings a lot of guys to him too, and gives Ladd and I space. I think tonight he showed he can finish, and that's something an all-around player needs."
Poolman scored his first NHL goal when his shot from the right point made its way through traffic at 13:42 of the first period to make it 2-1.
Beauvillier gave New York a 5-1 lead with a snap shot from the right circle at 15:01 of the third. Lowry made it 5-2 off a pass from behind the net by Kyle Connor with 1:36 remaining.

Goal of the game

Barzal's goal at 11:22 of the third period.

Save of the game

Halak's save against Mathieu Perreault at 19:21 of the second period.

Highlight of the game

Barzal's goal with 36 seconds left in the first period.

They said it

"We're hitting goalies with the puck, so it's not going in. That's just the way it goes. I think we still have a lot of confidence in the sticks in our room. You can't blow the doors off every team every night, it's just not going to happen. We've got to find different ways to manufacture goals when it's going tough, and we couldn't do it tonight." -- Jets captain Blake Wheeler
"I think it's always a good time, especially holidays, see our families and everything else, but it'll be a good break for the guys. We can bang 'em around for eight or nine games and then we've got a nice little break in January, so it's good." -- Islanders coach Doug Weight

Need to know

Little played his 709th NHL game, tying him with Chris Thorburn for the most in Jets/Atlanta Thrashers history. … Mason is 2-3-1 in his past six starts. … Barzal leads NHL rookies in assists (23) and points (35). … John Tavares got an assist on Beauvillier's goal to extend his point streak to seven games. … The Islanders are 12-1-0 when they score first.

What's next

Jets: Host the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; SN, NHL.TV)
Islanders: Host the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday (7 p.m. ET; MSG+, MSG-B, NHL.TV)