Ben Bishop

The New York Islanders controlled about forty minutes of hockey tonight against the visiting Ottawa Senators but surrendered four unanswered goals in the final period of the game to lose 5-3 in regulation.

Matt Kassian would get the scoring started with a redirection just 6:23 into the first period after Sergei Gonchar let go of a wrister from the point to give the Sens the early lead, but Keith Aucoin would answer with his fifth goal of the year just before the end of the period.

Kyle Okposo made a nice spin around pass from behind the Sens net to find Aucoin to bury the puck through Ben Bishop's five hole. Josh Bailey had the secondary assist.

Despite the tie score, the Islanders created several turnovers in the Senators end of the ice - most notably during shifts from the Okposo-Nielsen-Bailey line.

Later this afternoon, the New York Islanders will take on the Ottawa Senators at the Nassau Coliseum. It will be the second of three meetings between the two Eastern Conference clubs.

Coming into the game with the worst home record in the NHL at 2-8-1, the Isles are looking to turn things around today against a team that has struggled to score but manages to stay afloat due to their stellar backup goaltenders.

Major penalties, desperation saves and a lot of bad blood were thrown into the pot Saturday afternoon.

Those were the ingredients in a violent 60 minutes between the Flyers and Senators. Ilya Bryzgalov won the goalie battle and he helped lead the Flyers to a huge 2-1 win over Ottawa Saturday afternoon to cap the home stand.

And most importantly, the Flyers got to .500 for the first time this season. After six previously failed attempts, their seventh try at evening up their record was successful.

(Pictured: Zac Rinaldo fights along the boards with Daniel Alfredsson. Photo by Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images)

The Jeff Carter for Jack Johnson deal may have been the biggest of the near-deadline trades yet, but the Senators are no longer sitting/waiting/wishing for a replacement between the pipes.

Bryan Murray pulled the trigger on a deal that brought the montrous Ben Bishop, who stands at 6'7, to Ottawa on Sunday, which makes Ottawa's wait for starter Craig Anderson much less nerve-wracking. I have always enjoyed Alex Auld's game, but not enough that I am willing to rely fully on him down the stretch.

Anderson might not miss significant time, but tendon damage to his pinkie finger is a big enough deal that insurance was neccesary. Bishop offers a solid back-up option for ...