Islanders beat Senators 3-2 in shootout

Mike Sillinger scored the go-ahead goal in the third period and then added the winner in the shootout to help the New York Islanders snap an eight-game losing streak against the Ottawa Senators with a 3-2 victory Wednesday night.

New York led 2-1 after the teams traded goals early in the third, but the Senators appeared set to continue their dominance over the Islanders when defenseman Andrej Meszaros scored his second of the game with 1:55 left in regulation.

Rick DiPietro sealed New York's first shootout win of the season when he gloved Dean McAmmond's drive in the sixth round of the tiebreaker. The Islanders got even at 1 in the shootout when captain Bill Guerin scored on their last regulation attempt, after Daniel Alfredsson scored on Ottawa's first shot.

Sillinger beat Ray Emery with a snap shot to begin the final round of shooters. That was enough for New York, which hadn't beaten the defending Eastern Conference champions since Jan. 19, 2004. The Islanders were swept by Ottawa in all eight games over two seasons since the NHL lockout.

DiPietro, in his 17th straight start, stopped 35 shots for New York, 5-30-8-0, against Ottawa since Feb. 12, 1996. The Islanders haven't scored more than two regular goals in their last 10 games, but are 5-4-1 — all one-goal decisions.

After racing to a 15-2 mark, the Senators have hit the skids. Ottawa has dropped four straight and is 1-3-2 in its last six.

Each team had a power play in overtime, and the Senators had the best scoring chance. DiPietro got caught getting back after he raced toward a loose puck in the right circle. A shot from defenseman Joe Corvo hit Islanders forward Richard Park and headed for the open net. DiPietro covered the puck in the crease as he slid into the goal.

Meszaros tied it with his second of the game when his shot from the right point hit Park and caromed in.

Josef Vasicek, who scored only six goals in 63 games last season, netted his ninth with the Islanders to make it 1-0 late in the first period.

Meszaros tied it with a power-play goal 1:05 into the third, but Sillinger put the Islanders back in front 3:53 later.

Emery made just his fifth start of the season, finishing with 20 saves. After a stellar performance during the Senators' run to the Stanley Cup finals last spring, Emery missed the first six games this season as he recovered from a wrist injury.

Emery has lost four straight decisions, including a relief stint for Martin Gerber on Saturday when he allowed only one of four goals in a 4-3 home defeat to Philadelphia.

Due to his slow comeback combined with the fine play of Gerber, Emery has found playing time scarce. Not even the return of captain Daniel Alfredsson, who missed one game with a groin injury, could help the Senators.

Things looked good for Ottawa when Meszaros scored from a sharp angle from the right of DiPietro during a power play that carried over from the second period.

The Senators went on the advantage again and appeared to take the lead, but a goal by former Islanders forward Randy Robitaille was waved off because Antoine Vermette was in the crease at 2:51.

New York grabbed a 1-0 lead with a rare first-period goal, scored by Vasicek with 25.4 seconds left. The Islanders have scored only 11 times this season in 22 opening frames and hadn't netted one in six games.

Notes:@ Ottawa hadn't lost four straight since dropping five consecutive from Oct. 28-Nov. 8, 2006. ... Senators LW Dany Heatley had his four-game goal streak snapped. ... Islanders C Shawn Bates (abdominal injuries) played for the first time since Jan. 30. ... New York is 11-1 against East playoff teams from last season.