NEW YORK - Viktor Arvidsson scored early in the second period, Juuse Saros stopped 24 shots and the Nashville Predators held on to beat the New York Islanders 3-1 Monday night for their fourth straight win.
Kevin Fiala and Ryan Johansen also scored to help the surging Predators win for the seventh time in eight games and remain in control of third place in the Central Division.
Josh Bailey scored and Thomas Greiss finished with 28 saves for the Islanders, who remained two points behind Boston for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference. New York has lost six of its last nine overall (3-5-1) and is 0-4-1 in its last five at Barclays Center since earning a point in 11 straight (9-0-2) on home ice.
Arvidsson made it 2-0 at 3:15 of the second as he deflected a centering pass from Filip Forsberg past Greiss for his 29th, tying him with Forsberg for the team lead. The goal was reviewed but stood after it was determined the puck went off Arvidsson's skate and then his stick before going in.
It was Arvidsson's sixth goal in eight games and Nashville's NHL-leading 95th in the second period this season.
The Islanders were booed midway through the period as they failed to get a good scoring chance on their second power play of the game. New York finished 0 for 2 on the man advantage, falling to 2 for 21 over their last eight games.
Johansen added an empty-netter for his 13th with 21 seconds left.
Bailey got the Islanders on the board with 2:40 left in the middle period as he deflected a shot by Nick Leddy from the left side down and past Saros. It was Bailey's 13th goal of the season and first in 16 games.
The Predators appeared to take the lead about 8 1/2 minutes into the game when Ryan Ellis fired a shot from the right point that seemed to deflect off an Islanders defender and past Greiss. However, New York interim coach Doug Weight challenged for offside and the goal was waved off after a video review showed Fiala was indeed guilty of the infraction.
Fiala made up for it when he put Nashville ahead at 10:17 by firing a shot from the high slot past Greiss' blocker side for his ninth.
NOTES: Predators C Mike Fisher missed his third straight game due to a lower-body injury. ... D Roman Josi played in his 400th career game, all with Nashville. ... Johansen's goal was his 58th point, keeping him two ahead of Arvidsson for the team lead. ... The Predators improved to 23-3-7 when scoring first and 27-1-5 when leading after two periods. The teams conclude their two-game season series April 4 at Nashville. ... The Islanders agreed to terms with F John Stevens on a two-year, entry-level contract. The 22-year-old had five goals and 23 assists this past season as a senior at Northeastern and totaled 26 goals and 80 assists in four seasons with the Huskies. ... Islanders D Johnny Boychuk missed his 12th straight game with a lower-body injury. F Ryan Strome missed his third straight with an upper-body injury sustained last week in win at New York Rangers. ... The Islanders play five of their last seven games on the road, where they are 15-16-5.
UP NEXT
Predators: At Boston on Tuesday night.
Islanders: At Philadelphia on Thursday night.
