(AP) — Blake Comeau scored his first career NHL goal to give the New York Islanders the lead midway through the third period, Trent Hunter added a goal 37 seconds later and New York shook off a recent slump to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-2 on Friday night.
Comeau, a rookie playing only his second game this season and the fifth of his career, took three-time AHL All-Star Andy Hilbert‘s pass in the left circle and beat 2006 AHL Goaltender of the Year Dany Sabourin inside the far post to put the Islanders back into the lead at 3-2.
"Andy did a great job of getting me the puck," Comeau said. "When I looked to the net, I heard guys yelling `Shoot.’ There were bodies there and the lane was open. So I put my head down and tried to put it on net as hard as I could and it ended up going in."
The 21-year-old Comeau also had his first two-point game, assisting on Hilbert’s tying goal about 8-1/2 minutes into the second period. Comeau was recalled Monday from the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, where he has three goals and six assists in 25 games this season.
"You have to reward people who deserve it, and Andy Hilbert‘s line maybe wasn’t getting as much ice time and, all of a sudden, he had a big one and it leads to another," Islanders coach Ted Nolan said. "Tonight, they deserved it."
"Obviously, no one likes to be put on the fourth line, but with the fourth line we have it’s really not a fourth line," said Hilbert, who played for Pittsburgh two seasons ago. "I think our whole team played well. It was a huge win and all four lines played a part."
