Makeshift Islanders lineup delivers just what was needed to snap four-game losing streak

The New York Islanders beat the Los Angeles Kings 5-2, ending a four-game losing streak with a makeshift line-up after Jean-Gabriel Pageau left morning skate with a lower-body injury. The win mattered because the Islanders needed points and showed better puck management and defensive detail than in their previous game, though the performance remained uneven.

Matias Maccelli and Ryan Pulock returned to the line-up, with Pulock recording two secondary assists in his first game back from a shoulder injury. Victor Eklund scored for a fourth consecutive game, the longest such streak by an Islanders rookie since Anthony Beauvillier in 2018; Matthew Schaefer and Simon Holmstrom also scored, while Bo Horvat added an empty-net goal. Ilya Sorokin stopped 26 of 28 shots, but the Islanders allowed 13 high-danger chances at five-on-five.