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Sillinger's two shorthanded goals ignite Islanders

Jan 23, 2008 - 4:36 AM RALEIGH, North Carolina (Ticker) -- It was a shorthanded bonanza for Mike Sillinger and the New York Islanders.

Sillinger scored two of his team's three goals with a man down as the Islanders posted a 6-3 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday.

Korean-born Richard Park had a shorthanded goal and Sean Bergenheim, defenseman Brendan Witt and Blake Comeau also tallied for New York, which has won four straight on the road.

It was also just the third time in team history the Islanders have recorded three shorthanded goals.

"Our PK did an excellent job," Sillinger said. "I know they scored a power-play goal, but anytime you outscore them 3-1 (on the penalty kill), you should win the hockey game."

Sillinger opened the scoring after accepting a feed from Trent Hunter from behind the Hurricanes' goal and wristed the puck past goaltender Cam Ward at the 8:11 mark of the session.

"I was standing in front all alone, I just surprised the goaltender," Sillinger said. "I don't think he was expecting it."

However, the Hurricanes leveled the score 81 seconds later when All-Star Eric Staal deflected a shot from Cory Stillman past netminder Wade Dubielewicz for his 27th goal of the season.

The Islanders took command early in the second period.

Park took a pass from defenseman Radek Martinek off the boards and beat Ward with a backhander to put New York in the lead for good.

"Martinek cleared the puck out," Park said. "I got in a footrace and was fortunate enough to get a jump."

Forty-five seconds later, Sillinger scored again with a man down on a breakaway, rebounding his own shot and tipping it past Ward to give the Islanders a 3-1 advantage.

It gave both Sillinger his second two-goal game of the season and the Islanders their record-tying third shorthanded goal. The last time New York had three shorthanded goals was against Ottawa on March 2, 2000.

It was the first time the Hurricanes franchise had allowed three shorthanded goals in one game since the Buffalo Sabres defeated the then-Hartford Whalers, 6-3, on April 4, 1995.

Hurricanes coach Peter Laviolette said his team made some poor decisions while on the power play.

"With a man down, they caught us in a footrace a couple of times and we ended up on the wrong side," Laviolette said. "The players that are up on the power play have to take the responsibility to do the right things at the right time with the pucks - and we didn't."

Bergenheim scored at even strength to make it, 4-1, at 7:52 of the period when he punched the puck past Ward despite being tripped up by defenseman Frantisek Kaberle.

After an unassisted goal by defenseman Mike Commodore with 4:33 left in the second and another by Matt Cullen at 6:20 into the final session cut the Islanders' lead to 4-3, Witt tallied with 2:35 left before Comeau's empty-netter with 75 seconds remaining sealed the victory.

Dubielewicz stopped 44 shots for his fourth win in his last five appearances.

"The Hurricanes are a pretty good offensive team," said Dubielewicz, who knocked away 19 of 20 shots in the third. "They definitely had the pressure on us. We bent but we didn't break."

Ward made 25 saves for Carolina, which had beaten the Islanders, 3-2, in overtime on Monday and was looking for its first three-game winning streak since October 9-13.

"We had a little bit of a chip on our shoulders today - and we knew how important this win would be," Witt said.