Keller scores 2, Coyotes hang on to defeat Islanders

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Clayton Keller scored twice, and the Arizona Coyotes rallied from down two goals for a 5-4 win against the New York Islanders at Mullett Arena on Friday.

Keller and Nick Bjugstad scored 14 seconds apart in the second period for the Coyotes (10-14-4). Karel Vejmelka made 30 saves and Nick Schmaltz had three assists.
"I talk about him every day," Coyotes coach Andre Tourigny said of Keller, who has five goals in three games. "Every week he gets better. He's a little more competitive. … He's a student of the game, he's passionate and he's a learner."
Mathew Barzal had a goal and an assist for the Islanders (17-13-1), who led 2-0 in the first period. Ilya Sorokin made 24 saves for New York, which lost its sixth in eight games (2-5-1).
"We've got to turn that around, but if I had to put my finger on one thing that hasn't gone right in that stretch, I don't know what it could be," forward Zach Parise said.

Travis Boyd drove to the net and put in his own rebound for a 4-3 Coyotes lead at 2:08 of the third period. Keller upped it to 5-3 with a one-timer from the right circle at 14:49 before Anthony Beauvillier scored at 18:21 for the 5-4 final.
"I mean, good things happen when you shoot the puck," said Schmaltz, who plays on a line with Keller and Boyd. "We're shooting the puck a little bit more. Some nights they go in and some nights they don't but, the more you shoot, the better chance you have to score goals."
Arizona has won its first three home games since ending a 14-game road trip (4-7-3) that lasted more than a month.
"We're a tough team to play against when we're playing the right way," Boyd said. "I think we're building something here, and it's a lot of fun to go out and play. Everybody is excited to be back home and we're playing well here, too."
Sebastian Aho gave New York a 1-0 lead at 1:41 of the first period with a one-timer from the left point, the first time in five games the Islanders scored the opening goal.
Barzal made it 2-0 at 13:33, diving into the crease to deflect Robin Salo's shot from above the left circle. Shayne Gostisbehere cut it to 2-1 at 19:16, three seconds after a power play ended.
"That goal late in the period, at the end of the penalty kill, shifted momentum a little bit," Islanders coach Lane Lambert said. "We have to be better. We have to find a way to get it back."
New York was 0-for-5 on the power play and is 0-for-11 in its past three games.
"I'm extremely disappointed with the fact that we didn't produce," Lambert said. "We generated some shots, but we needed a goal there."

Keller, who had a hat trick in a 5-4 win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday, tied it 2-2 at 8:55 with a wrist shot from the left face-off circle that deflected off defenseman Scott Mayfield's skate.
"I thought our start was a little sloppy. We didn't do what we talked about and that's get the puck behind them and force them to make plays," Schmaltz said. "But we got a good goal there at the end of the first and kind of kept it rolling in the second."
Bjugstad followed at 9:09 for a 3-2 lead on a one-timer from the left circle. At that point, Arizona led 10-0 in shots in the period.
Noah Dobson tied it 3-3 at 17:45 on a shot from the blue line.
"We weren't very sharp and didn't really have much possession or attack in our game to start the second," Islanders forward Brock Nelson said. "I'm not too sure what to pinpoint exactly."
NOTES: Forward Kyle Palmieri returned after missing 10 games with an upper-body injury. He had two shots on goal in10:46 of ice time. "I didn't see any rust there," Lambert said. … Sorokin shut out Arizona in two of his first three starts against them. … The Islanders are 0-1-1 during a five-game road trip that continues against the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday. … The Coyotes also were 0-for-5 on the power play. … Keller has seven points (five goals, two assists) during a four-game point streak. … Arizona swept the two-game season series, winning 2-0 on Nov. 10. … Gostisbehere has 12 points (three goals, nine assists) in his past 11 games.