Halak does the heavy lifting with 50 saves

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NEW YORK -- Jaroslav Halak stopped 50 shots for his first shutout of the season as the New York Islanders kept up their recent mastery of the crosstown-rival Rangers with a 3-0 victory Thursday night.

Josh Bailey, Jordan Eberle and Thomas Hickey each scored for the Islanders, who have won all three meetings this season and 10 of the last 11. Rookie sensation Mathew Barzal had three assists to help the Islanders move into a tie with Columbus one point behind Carolina for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference.

Halak, who faced 51 shots in a loss to Columbus on Tuesday night, had 15 saves in the first period, 14 in the second and another 21 in the third for his 42nd career shutout.

Henrik Lundqvist finished with 32 saves for the Rangers, who have lost six of eight overall and dropped to 0-4-1 in five visits to Bazrclays Center since the Islanders moved to the Brooklyn arena in 2015. The Rangers remained four points behind the Hurricanes, who lost at New Jersey (see full recap).

Hischier, Noesen push Devils past Hurricanes
NEWARK, N.J. -- Nico Hischier had a goal and two assists, and Stefan Noesen scored twice to lead the New Jersey Devils to a 5-2 victory over the Carolina Hurrricanes on Thursday night in a game between the two teams currently in wild-card playoff positions in the Eastern Conference.

Kyle Palmieri and Damon Severson also scored for the Devils, who have won two straight after losing four in a row. Keith Kinkaid made 27 saves.

Hischier had the primary assist on Palmieri's go-ahead goal late in the second period and helped blow the game open in the third, combining with Noesen to score goals in a 32-second span.

Jeff Skinner and defenseman Brett Pesce scored for Carolina, which was on the road after going 5-2-1 in a season-high eight-game homestand. Scott Darling had 17 saves for the Hurricanes, who will play New Jersey at home on Sunday (see full recap).

Aston-Reese helps Pens notch 10th straight home win
PITTSBURGH -- Zach Aston-Reese broke a third-period tie with a power-play goal and the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Los Angeles Kings 3-1 on Thursday night for their 10th straight home victory.

Two nights after scoring his first two NHL goals, Aston-Reese gave the Penguins the lead at 5:24 of the period. Kris Letang's point shot through traffic clipped Aston-Reese's skate and went between goalie Jonathan Quick's pads.

The Penguins' home streak is the longest since a franchise-record 13-game run during the 2013-14 season. The Penguins haven't lost in Pittsburgh since Jan. 4, a 4-0 setback to Carolina. Pittsburgh has won eight of 10 overall and 13 of 17.

Ryan Reaves scored in the second period, and Evgeni Malkin added an empty-netter. Matt Murray, playing his 100th NHL game, stopped 34 shots. Murray is in sole possession of first place for the most wins in his first 100 games among goalies to debut since 2005-06. He is unbeaten in regulation in his last eight decisions and won his last six at home.

Dion Phaneuf scored a power-play goal in his Kings debut. Phaneuf and forward Nate Thompson were traded from Ottawa to the Kings for Marian Gaborik and Nick Shore during the Senators' 6-3 loss to Pittsburgh on Tuesday night (see full recap).

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