Islanders 3, Flyers 1
NEW YORK -- Right winger Kyle Okposo scored the tie-breaking goal early in the second period Wednesday night as the New York Islanders snapped a two-game losing streak with a feisty 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers at Barclays Center.
Center Casey Cizikas scored in the final minute of the first period for the Islanders (11-8-3), who moved at least temporarily into the top eight in the Eastern Conference by winning for just the fifth time in 13 games (5-6-2). Center Frans Nielsen added an empty netter with 1:09left in the third.
Goaltender Jaroslav Halak recorded 17 saves
Right winger Claude Giroux scored for the Flyers (7-10-5), who have lost four of five (1-2-2) and 12 of 15 (3-8-4). Philadelphia has scored a league-low 31 goals and produced two goals or fewer for the 15th time this season.
Goaltender Steve Mason made 33 saves.
The first game between the longtime regional rivals at Barclays Center featured some old-time chippiness, particularly in a second period that featured two fights and six penalties.
Islanders defenseman Nick Leddy, who was penalized for boarding Flyers left winger Michael Raffl with 1:10 left in the first, got into the first fight of his career just 21 seconds after Okposo's goal. Giroux grabbed Leddy and skated as he held him for about 30 feet before Leddy dropped the gloves.
The teams engaged in pushing and shoving following the next whistle. With 7:20 left, a pair of enforcers Islanders left winger Matt Martin and Flyers right winger Wayne Simmonds went at it in an extended brawl that included Martin getting an extra two minutes for ditching his helmet.
The already energized crowd was whipped into a frenzy seconds later when a clip from the original "The Karate Kid" was shown just before the movie's star, Long Island resident Ralph Macchio, was pictured sitting rink-side with a T-shirt that read STANLEY CUP.
Giroux gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal just 3:59 into the game. His slap shot from the left circle went under Halak's legs a mere 12 seconds after Islanders center Josh Bailey was whistled for goalie interference -- and before the PA announcer could finish announcing the penalty.
A short-handed goal by Cizikas tied the score with 57.7 seconds left in the period. Right winger Cal Clutterbuck skated into the crease before dishing a no-look pass to Cizikas, who fired the puck past Mason.
Okposo scored the lone goal of the fight-filled second period at 5:14, when he cradled the puck along the boards before threading a shot through Giroux and defensemen Luke Schenn and Nick Schultz.
NOTES: The Islanders and Flyers met for the seventh time on Thanksgiving Eve. ... The Islanders' first Thanksgiving Eve game at Barclays Center marked the 17th time they've played at home on Thanksgiving Eve in the last 19 non-lockout seasons. ... The Islanders scratched LW Taylor Beck and D Adam Pelech. ... Third-string Islanders G Jean-Francois Berube, who played in just one of the first 21 games, was assigned to Bridgeport of the AHL on Tuesday. ... The Flyers scratched RW Sam Gagner (upper body) as well as C Vincent Lecavalier and D Evgeny Medvedev. ... Gagner was replaced on the active roster by RW Colin McDonald, who made his season debut a day after he was promoted from Lehigh Valley of the AHL. McDonald played in 133 games for the Islanders over the previous three seasons.