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Islanders aim to stop skid vs. red-hot Panthers

Dec 9, 2006 - 5:32 PM Florida (10-15-5) at NY Islanders (14-11-3) 7:00 pm EST

UNIONDALE, New York (Ticker) -- The New York Islanders do not want to return to their early season form.

Looking to avoid a three-game skid, the Islanders will host the Florida Panthers on Saturday.

New York dropped its first three contests of the season, but has not suffered a similar losing streak since. However, after scoring just four goals in their last two games after tallying 12 in the previous two, the Islanders aim to avoid their third straight loss.

On Thursday, Mike Sillinger netted his eighth goal, Arron Asham added his fourth and DiPietro stopped 32 shots for the Islanders in a 4-2 loss to Montreal.

The Panthers are headed in the opposite direction. Florida is looking for its season-high third straight win with star Olli Jokinen scoring in the last three contests. Alex Auld made 17 saves in registering his second straight victory as the Panthers posted a 3-1 triumph over Buffalo on Thursday.

New York is 2-0 against the Panthers this season. Florida has lost six of its last seven contests at the Nassau Coliseum.