UNIONDALE, N.Y. (AP) — Daniel Alfredsson had two goals and an assist, Darren Helm had two goals and Jimmy Howard made 29 saves and the Detroit Red Wings dominated the Islanders 5-0 on Friday for their first regulation victory against New York in a decade.
Detroit won its third in a row as the reeling Islanders lost their fifth straight.
Since beating Boston 3-1 on home on Nov. 2, the Islanders are 2-10.
New York came into the game with a 6-0-1 mark against Detroit in its past seven meetings. The Red Wings hadn’t beaten the Islanders in regulation since November 2003.
The shutout was the second this season for Howard and the 18th of his career. The 29-year-old goaltender entered with a 0-3-4 record in his past seven starts, allowing at least three goals five times during the streak.
Julio Cortez/AP
Detroit Jimmy Howard stops a point-blank shot from Peter Regin en route to a shutout.
Helm scored his sixth of the season at 7:09 of the first. He took a pass from Alfredsson at the top of the left circle, then skated in and slid a backhand past a flailing Kevin Poulin, making his fifth straight start for the Islanders.
Helm made it 2-0 with a spectacular short-handed score at 16:49 of the second, after he and Poulin lunged for a loose puck in front of the crease.
Helm poked it free and then past the prone goaltender, tumbling upside down to the ice in the process. The goal with Justin Abdelkader in the penalty box brought out boos at Nassau Coliseum.
The 40-year-old Alfredsson, who joined Detroit after 17 seasons with Ottawa, made it 3-0 just 12 seconds into the third, beating Poulin high to the glove side on a breakaway.
Gustav Nyquist scored his fourth of the season at 6:12 of the third, finishing a two-on-one break with Johan Franzen by sending another high shot past Poulin.
Julio Cortez/AP
Kevin Poulin (r.) will want to forget Friday’s game against Detroit as soon as possible.
Alfredsson completed the scoring, knocking a loose puck past Poulin for his sixth of the season at 16:13 of the third.
The 23-year-old Poulin became New York’s No. 1 goaltender after starter Evgeni Nabokov was injured when the teams met on Long Island on Nov. 16. The Islanders won that game in a shootout, but haven’t recorded a victory since.
Poulin is 2-7 in his past nine appearances.
The game started slowly with an unusual 4 p.m. start time the day after Thanksgiving. The Islanders outshot the Wings 12-9 in the first period. Detroit had a 9-7 shots advantage in the second.
Detroit’s loss on Long Island two weeks ago was part of a stretch when they were 0-2-5 from Nov. 4-19. But the Red Wings have won four of five since, including Wednesday’s 6-1 drubbing of Boston at home.
Detroit played without top center Pavel Datsyuk, who was elbowed in the jaw at Ottawa last Saturday and missed his third straight game. Detroit also scratched forward Todd Bertuzzi, out for a fourth straight game with an upper body injury.
Center Josh Bailey was a healthy scratch for the Islanders for the first time this season. Bailey has no goals and two assists since Oct. 25.
