NHL Update: New York Islanders beat Los Angeles Kings 3-0
Matt Moulson lit the lamp twice and Al Montoya earned his second career shutout with 35 saves, as New York Islanders squeak out 3-0 victory over Los Angeles Kings on Saturday night.
“It was lucky to get a couple on him,” Moulson said. “We had a dinner (Friday). He wouldn’t let me cook. He thought I was going to put something in there.”
New York had lost six straight contests against Kings, and had not defeated them since 15 February 2003.
Montoya made his first start of the season in nearly two years. He was sharp, making 28 saves in the last two periods, which helped Islanders win for the fifth time in their last six games.
"The team made it pretty easy. I might have made some saves that look tough, but for the most part it was just everything from the outside, letting me see everything. It's not every night that happens."Montoya said.
Frans Nielsen also scored a goal for the victors.
Jonathan Quick saved 20 shots for Kings, who have lost two consecutive games. Los Angeles fell to 5-1-3 on its 10-game road trip, which concludes Wednesday at Anaheim Ducks.
“We had a very good road trip,” Los Angeles coach Terry Murray said. “We have one more game and then we get back home. When you see players not making plays, you could say the road trip was a little long.”
New York got on the board when Nielson notched a shorthanded goal at 5:01 into the opening period. Michael Grabner picked off a pass in his own zone and fed the puck to Nielson who blasted a quick snap shot through Kings defenseman, Jack Johnson,
and goaltender Quick.
“I’ve seen Franzie for a while, so I know what he can do,” New York coach Jack Capuano said. “The other guy is going pretty good right now. He’s utilizing his strength right now, which is his speed. Franzie is a very intelligent hockey player.
He sees where Grabs is going and is putting pucks into areas where Michael can skate.”
During the All-Star weekend, Grabner had won the NHL’s fastest man competition. He created a power play for New York using his speed 1:33 later when Alec Martinez took a penalty in order to prevent a breakaway.
“I think Franzie played a strong game, too. We had a lot of chances,” Grabner said. “I try to use my speed to back them up or create some offense.”
In the seventh minute of the middle stanza, New York took a 2-0 lead when Moulson whipped a wrist shot from the right circle.
Montoya’s big second-period performance maintained the lead, and Moulson essentially sealed the victory with less than seven minutes left in the third stanza, when he wheeled around in the slot and hit a shot in the net.
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