Guerin Scores Twice As Isles Top Coyotes

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UNIONDALE — Bill Guerin snapped a scoreless tie in the second period and added a goal in the third to lift the New York Islanders to a 3-2 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes on Thursday night in a matchup of the NHL's lowest-scoring teams.

The Islanders came in with a league-low 66 goals — two fewer than Phoenix — but found a way to beat their unfamiliar opponent. New York failed to score more than three goals for the 20th straight game, but that was enough to earn its first home win over the Coyotes in 10 years.

Marc-Andre Bergeron put the Islanders ahead 2-0 in the third, and Guerin answered defenseman Nick Boynton's short-handed goal to restore New York's two-goal lead with 8:20 remaining.

Due to the NHL's unbalanced schedule, Phoenix hadn't visited Long Island since Oct. 29, 2002. The Coyotes beat the Islanders 6-3 last season when the Islanders went to the desert.

Phoenix, the lowest-scoring team in the Western Conference, avoided the shutout on Boynton's first goal of the season. The short-handed tally cut the Coyotes' deficit to 2-1 at 8:04.

Niko Kapanen again brought Phoenix within a goal with 3:55 left when the Coyotes cashed in for the first time in five power plays.

Rick DiPietro made 34 saves for the Islanders, who were 1-5-1 in their previous seven and played at home for the first time following a 1-2-1 road trip.

Ilya Bryzgalov stopped 30 shots in his 12th straight start since being claimed off waivers from Anaheim by Phoenix last month. After starting with four consecutive wins for the Coyotes, Bryzgalov is 2-6. He had allowed only four goals in his previous three outings, winning twice.

Guerin scored the long-awaited first goal of the game with 7:03 left in the second period. Mike Comrie's shot got between Bryzgalov's pads and trickled behind him into the blue-painted crease. Guerin calmly took a whack at the loose puck and slammed it into the empty net.

He scored his eighth of the season and third in three games, following a 13-game drought, to make it 3-1 in the third.

Kapanen got to a loose puck after a shot struck teammate Martin Hanzal in front and knocked in the rebound to make it 3-2.

The Coyotes had a chance to tie it when Bruno Gervais was sent off for slashing with 1:17 left, but New York held on. DiPietro threw punches behind his net during a stoppage with only 2.3 seconds remaining and earned a harmless roughing penalty.

About five minutes after Guerin's first goal, DiPietro kept the Islanders in front when Steven Reinprecht got free in the New York zone and ripped a drive that was sticked away.

Notes:@ Boynton had gone 27 games without a goal, dating to April 7 at Phoenix. ... The Islanders' previous home win against Phoenix was Dec. 6, 1997. ... New York D Bryan Berard was a healthy scratch. LW Ruslan Fedotenko rejoined the lineup after missing two games due to a shoulder injury. ... Bergeron hadn't scored in 13 games. ... The Coyotes are 1-1 on their six-game road trip that will take them to New Jersey, the New York Rangers, Philadelphia, and San Jose. ... The Islanders are the only NHL team without 70 goals this season.

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