Isles get two goals apiece from Cizikas, Lee in win over Penguins

The Islanders got the first one. It will be a hollow victory, just the latest in a season’s worth of stop and starts, if they don’t follow it up on Sunday.

They opened a crucial home-and-home series against the Pittsburgh Penguins with a 6-3 win on Saturday night at UBS Arena after building a three-goal lead in the second period. It was a necessary bounce back after they entered the NHL’s holiday break with a dismal 7-1 loss to the visiting Buffalo Sabres on Monday night, giving up a season-high in goals to a team that had lost 13 in a row. That dropped them into last place in the Metropolitan Division as the Islanders are in a now-or-never timeframe for any conceivable start to a playoff push.

Casey Cizikas, with his second goal after being elevated from the fourth line in the second period, finally gave the Islanders (14-15-7) some breathing room as he caught up to the puck in the neutral zone and used his speed to finish a rush at 14:43 of the third period. Anders Lee finished the scoring with an empty-net goal with 22 seconds left in the period.

These two matches against the Penguins are the start of a stretch of seven of 15 through Jan. 30 facing divisional opponents. It’s a great opportunity to make up ground in the standings if the Islanders start stringing wins together. The Islanders have just two, two-game winning streaks this season and have yet to win three straight.

They also play eight of their 12 games next month at UBS Arena, including a season-long, seven-game homestand from Jan. 14-28.

Ilya Sorokin, making a career-high 12th straight start, stopped 22 shots while Tristan Jarry made 29 saves for the Penguins (16-16-5).

The Islanders built a 4-1 lead at 9:39 of the second period on goals one minute, three seconds apart from Lee (the beneficiary of defenseman Kris Letang knocking the puck into his own net) and Cizikas, tipping defenseman Alexander Romanov’s shot. Anthony Duclair opened the three-goal barrage at 5:39 off Kyle Palmieri’s patient feed.

But Noel Acciari knocked in a loose puck in the crease at 13:49 and Rickard Rakell deflected defenseman Matt Grzelcyk’s blue-line shot with four seconds left in the second period.

Jean-Gabriel Pageau, after winning an offensive-zone faceoff, got to the left post for Mathew Barzal’s feed to give the Islanders a 1-0 lead at 14:47 of the first period after Brock Nelson’s apparent goal at 4:59 was overturned as Penguins coach Mike Sullivan successful challenged Duclair interfered with Jarry.

Michael Bunting tied it at 1-1 with a power-play goal at 16:03 after Cizikas interfered with Bunting in the offensive zone 12 seconds after Pageau’s goal.

Notes & quotes

Coach Patrick Roy moved Cizikas onto Bo Horvat’s line with Simon Holmstrom in the second period after Maxim Tsyplakov, dropped to the fourth line, took two penalties in the offensive zone…Backup goalie Marcus Hogberg is expected to start on Sunday. For Hogberg, who spent the previous three seasons in the Swedish Hockey League, it would be his first NHL start since April 28, 2021 when he earned the win for the Ottawa Senators against the Vancouver Canucks. “It’s my job to be ready when they need me,” said Hogberg, who has stopped all 17 shots he’s faced in two, one-period relief appearances since being recalled from the Islanders’ AHL affiliate in Bridgeport on Dec. 5…Goalie Semyon Varlamov (lower body/long-term injured reserve) has not resumed skating. Varlamov last played on Nov. 29 . . . Defenseman Dennis Cholowski and forwards Pierre Engvall and Matt Martin remained the healthy scratches.