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Islanders celebrate Sillinger's 1,000th game with shutout of Lightning

Nov 2, 2007 - 3:51 AM By Doug Mittler PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

UNIONDALE, New York (Ticker) -- The New York Islanders had plenty to celebrate Thursday - the 1,000th career game for Mike Sillinger, a shutout for Rick DiPietro and a rare victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Islanders honored Sillinger in a pregame ceremony before DiPietro stopped 28 shots and recorded his eighth career assist in a 4-0 victory over the Lightning.

Bill Guerin, Josef Vasicek, Ruslan Fedotenko and Trent Hunter scored for New York, which defeated Tampa Bay for the first time since March 21, 2004. The Lightning had won the previous eight meetings, all since the end of the lockout.

Sillinger became the 223rd player to reach 1,000 career games and was the sixth to do it in an Islanders uniform. Sillinger, who recorded an assist on New York's first goal, is with his 12th NHL team since making his debut with the Detroit Red Wings in 1990.

"It just goes to show the bunch of guys we have on this team, a bunch of class acts," said Sillinger, who along with his wife received Rolex watches. "We really stick up for each other. It's an honor to be in that 200-plus players to have played in 1,000 games. It was quite an accomplishment."

The Lightning remained winless on the road, falling to 0-6-0 in their first six away from home. The loss also extended the worst road start for Tampa Bay since it went winless over the first 10 games of the 1993-94 season.

It was the third contest in four days in the New York area for the Lightning, who scored a total of two goals in the losses to the New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils and Islanders.

"We created more offense tonight than the rest of the trip combined," Lightning coach John Tortorella said. "DiPietro was the difference in the first period, that was our best period of the trip. We had a lot of chances, and one goes in against us. We're just trying to keep going about our business."

Guerin opened the scoring with a slap shot from the top of the right faceoff circle that went between the legs of goaltender Marc Denis at 13:29 of the first period. DiPietro was credited with his first assist since March 24 at Philadelphia after clearing the puck to Sillinger.

"It took a little while to find our legs," Sillinger said. "Ricky made a couple of key saves and we got a breakaway."

Vasicek doubled the Islanders' lead at 12:19 of the second, tallying after a scramble in front of the net following a shot by Miroslav Satan. The goal originally was credited to Satan before being changed in the third period.

"(Satan) asked me if I got a swing on it," Vasicek said. "I said I did. It was a great play by everybody."

Fedotenko increased the advantage to 3-0, poking home the rebound of a shot by Mike Comrie with 48 seconds left in the period. Hunter tallied exactly six minutes into the third after Lightning defenseman Dan Boyle was unable to clear the puck in front of the net.

The offensive support was more than enough for DiPietro, who made 10 saves in the first period, seven in the second and 11 in the third en route to his 12th career shutout and first since February 7 at Philadelphia.

DiPietro had allowed six goals before being replaced early in an 8-3 loss to Carolina on Saturday. "In the last game against Carolina, we didn't play the way we wanted to, myself included," DiPietro said. "If you play 82 games, you're bound to have a couple of stinkers. Life goes on."

DiPietro robbed Jan Hlavac with a glove save from point-blank range with 11 minutes left in the first period and was helped out in the third as a pair of shots by Tampa Bay hit the goalpost.

"DiPietro made some very nice saves," Lightning center Vincent Lecavalier said. "We hit a couple of posts and had a few bad bounces, too. Some games, you're not going to play well and you'll score five goals. We have to play desperate, for sure."

Denis stopped 28 shots in just his second start of the season.