NY Islanders hold on to defeat basement dwelling Vancouver Canucks

Anthony Duclair scored twice as the New York Islanders continued their strong road trip with a 4-3 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Monday night, extending Vancouver’s losing streak to 11 games.

Tony DeAngelo added a goal and an assist for the Islanders (27-17-5), while Ryan Pulock’s second goal of the season stood up as the game-winner with 4:02 left in the second period. Rookie defenseman Matthew Schaefer and British Columbia native Mathew Barzal each recorded two assists, and Ilya Sorokin turned aside 29 shots to steady the Islanders through a few tense moments late.

Duclair’s recent surge continued, as he now has seven goals in his last seven games after scoring just four times in his first 38 appearances this season. His offensive spark helped New York overcome an early deficit and seize control during a critical stretch late in the second period.

“I think we were trying to be a little too cute early on,” Duclair said of what changed for the Isles. “After the first we just talked about keeping things simple, putting pucks deep and then going to get it and grind it out.”

Vancouver (16-28-5) jumped out in front when Max Sasson scored 2:49 into the game. Evander Kane then restored the Canucks’ lead late in the first period, making it 2-1 with his eighth goal of the season. The Islanders answered back to tie the game before the pivotal sequence late in the second.

With the score knotted at 2-2, Pulock stepped into a pass from Schaefer at the top of the slot and snapped a shot over Kevin Lankinen’s glove to give New York a 3-2 lead. Just 1:24 later, DeAngelo struck to make it 4-2, giving the Islanders breathing room heading into the third.

The Canucks pushed back in the final minutes, as Drew O’Connor scored late to cut the deficit to one, but Sorokin and the Islanders’ defense held firm to close it out.

Lankinen finished with 28 saves for Vancouver, which fell to 4-14-3 at Rogers Arena and remains winless in 2026. The loss came on the same day the Canucks traded winger Kiefer Sherwood to the San Jose Sharks for defenseman Cole Clayton and second-round picks in the 2026 and 2027 drafts, underscoring a difficult stretch for the franchise both on and off the ice.