ELMONT, N.Y. — Blowing leads and losing hurts badly. Especially to a former teammate.
The Canucks rallied from a three-goal deficit on two third-period goals from Elias Pettersson for a 6-5 win on Thursday night at UBS Arena. It marked Bo Horvat’s first game against his former teammates as well as ex-Islander Anthony Beauvillier’s.
Both scored goals, with Beauvillier’s power-play tip at 16:58 of the third period the winner after Noah Dobson’s power-play goal with 49.6 seconds left in regulation pulled the Islanders within a goal.
The Islanders (27-23-5) had a four-game winning streak snapped as a shaky Ilya Sorokin made 28 saves.
The Islanders acquired Horvat for Beauvillier, Aatu Raty — re-assigned to the AHL — and a top-12 protected first-round pick on Jan. 30, signing him to an eight-year, $68 million extension on Sunday.
Beauvillier received a standing ovation as a video tribute featuring his overtime winner in Game 6 of the 2021 Eastern Conference finals against the Lightning in the last game at Nassau Coliseum was shown during a first-period stoppage. Beauvillier hopped over the boards to skate a quick lap, tapping his glove to his heart to acknowledge the crowd.
Horvat’s goal, a one-timer from the left circle after Mathew Barzal stickhanded down low through traffic and fed it back, gave the Islanders a 4-2 lead at 15:13 of the second period, prompting more “Hor-vat, Hor-vat,” chants. Horvat, who had a potential power-play goal overturned for goalie interference on Anders Lee at 1:46 of the first period, has two goals in two home games as an Islander.
Barzal had made it 3-2 on a one-timer at 2:26 of the second period but Nils Aman cut the Islanders’ lead to 4-3 at 16:04 of the second period. Pettersson’s power-play blast from the blue line tied it at 4-4 at 4:38 of the third period.
Pettersson then put the Canucks (21-27-4) ahead with a stoppable wrist shot at 8:28 of the third period.
Both Horvat and Beauvillier were on the ice to start the game and Beauvillier was at the crease for the Canucks’ first goal on defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson’s shot from the left point tied it at 1-1 at 11:44 of the first period. That snapped Sorokin’s shutout streak at 144:00 after shutouts in his previous two starts.
Brock Boeser’s one-timer gave the Canucks a 2-1 lead 46 seconds later.
But Brock Nelson, keeping the puck on an odd-man rush, tied it at 2-2 at 14:34, extending his point streak to a career-high nine games. It was the Islanders’ second goal on their first three shots against Collin Delia (25 saves).
Kyle Palmieri’s rising wrister had opened the scoring at 11:05.
