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Phaneuf lifts Maple Leafs past Islanders in OT

Mar 1, 2013 - 5:12 AM Uniondale, NY (Sports Network) - Dion Phaneuf scored the winner just 71 seconds into overtime to give the Toronto Maple Leafs a 5-4 win over the New York Islanders on Thursday.

In the extra session, Mikhail Grabovski sent a pass from the right corner back to the point for Phaneuf, who skated down to the circle and snapped a shot that just trickled past Evgeni Nabokov for the win.

"They played a hard game and kept pushing us all night," said Phaneuf. "We let them back in it, but I think this was a big character win in that we stuck with it and we're able to pull it out."

Nazem Kadri netted the first hat trick of his career and James van Riemsdyk also scored for the Maple Leafs, who have alternated wins and losses in their past seven games. James Reimer made 23 stops in the win.

Kyle Okposo had a goal and two assists while Andrew MacDonald added a goal and an assist for the Islanders, who have dropped their past three games. Nabokov was charged with all five goals on 28 shots.

The Islanders took a 2-1 lead at the 6:22 mark of the second when Lubomir Visnovsky's blistering slap shot from the left point hit off the crossbar and went in, but the Maple Leafs scored the next three goals.

It was a tie game about 2 1/2 minutes later as Kadri's heavy wrister from the slot sailed past the glove of Nabokov, and van Riemsdyk gave his team the lead 2 1/2 minutes after that.

David Steckel sent a pass from the left wing to the slot on a rush play and van Riemsdyk threw a shot on net. Nabokov made the stop, but the rebound was followed up by van Riemsdyk and he put that in for his 12th of the year.

Kadri capped his hat trick four minutes later as he took an outlet pass through the middle, skated down the right wing and made a nice move to get around the defender before snapping it in for his eighth of the year.

The Islanders, though, rallied in the third period to tie the game and got the first goal at the 5:31 mark when MacDonald's one-timer from the right circle sailed in.

At the midway mark of the period, New York tied the contest when Okposo blocked a point shot in his own end and went the other way. From the right circle, he snapped the disc over the glove of Reimer for his second goal of the season.

"We showed some character in the third period after a lull in the second," said New York head coach Jack Capuano. "But we can't be satisfied with a point."

Josh Bailey scored just 3:34 into the game to get the Islanders on the board, but Kadri tied the game five minutes later on a wrist shot.

Michael Grabner was awarded a penalty shot when he was tripped by Phil Kessel on a breakaway with 4:04 to play in the first, but blew a chance to give New York the lead as his shot went high.

Game Notes

The hat trick was the first by a Leaf since Joffrey Lupul on Nov. 2, 2011 ... Toronto hosts New Jersey on Monday ... New York hosts Ottawa on Sunday ... The Islanders had taken a 7-4 win in Toronto on Jan. 24 ... The only penalty call in the game was the one that led to the penalty shot.