VANCOUVER, BC -- The New York Islanders were in need of a bounce-back game on Monday night against the Vancouver Canucks after falling 4-2 to the Calgary Flames on Saturday evening.
While it wasn't pretty early against Vancouver, the Islanders got the win, a 4-3 victory to improve to 3-2-1 on their seven-game road trip with one game to go.
Ilya Sorokin made 29 saves for the Islanders. Kevin Lankinen made 28 saves for Vancouver.
Here's how the game unfolded:
The Islanders couldn't have been more off defensively to start the game.
Their defensive-zone coverage was lackluster, leading to Vancouver striking first at 2:49 of the first courtesy of fourth-line center Max Sasson.
Fortunately for the Islanders, Ilya Sorokin was able to keep the Canucks from adding to their slim 1-0 lead before Anthony Duclair wired home the 1-1 equalizer at 10:11 of the first after a tremendous feed from Tony DeAngelo:
What kind of sauce? #Isles
— The Elmonters (@TheElmonters) January 20, 2026
pic.twitter.com/NTLcLG5eF9
That was Duclair's 10th goal of the season, with Matthew Schaefer notching his 20th assist of the season.
The Canucks did get back on top, with Evander Kane deflecting an Elias Pettersson wrist shot at 14:48 after Maxim Tsyplakov turned the puck over on the breakout.
Matthew Schaefer appeared to tie the game at 2-2 on a glorious effort, but Vancouver won a challenge for offside.
The Islanders scored two unanswered goals in the second period to enter the third period up 3-2.
First, it was Duclair scoring his second goal of the game, this time on the power play from the bumper spot off a nice feed from Ritchie at 14:34 of the second:
Ritchie to Duclair for a PPG🚨is becoming a thing. #Isles
— The Elmonters (@TheElmonters) January 20, 2026
pic.twitter.com/wtg5mpVdJp
Then, it was Schaefer feeding Ryan Pulock, who beat Lankinen blocker side at x to give the Islanders a 3-2 lead:
Ryan Pulock 🎯
— The Elmonters (@TheElmonters) January 20, 2026
Matthew Schaefer 21 assists #Isles lead 3-2 pic.twitter.com/V9LjRFD3b6
Schaefer notched his second straight multi-point game and seventh multi-point game of the season.
Tsyplakov sat for 11:15 in that second period.
The Islanders had a chance to double their lead with a 5-on-3 power play early in the third, but the Canucks killed it off.
DeAngelo got the Islanders that critical two-goal lead. After Anders Lee peeled to the front of the net, his shot banked off Lankinen and went right toward DeAngelo, who buried the rebound at 10:15 of the third:
Tony D gives the #Isles some breathing room late in the third. pic.twitter.com/M9IUSo8ArZ
— The Elmonters (@TheElmonters) January 20, 2026
The Canucks got one back with 1:51 to play in the third with Lankinen on the bench.
O'Connor scored his second of the game, deflecting a Filip Hronek shot from atop the crease to make it 4-3.
The Islanders held on to get the win.
UP NEXT: The Islanders battle the Seattle Kraken at 10 PM ET on Thursday.