TAMPA, Fla. — For a second time in less than a week, the Islanders didn’t play particularly well against the Lightning.

And for the second time in less than a week, the Islanders beat the Lightning anyway.

Another superlative outing from Ilya Sorokin carried the Islanders to a 2-0 win over Tampa at Benchmark International Arena, giving Mathieu Darche the victory over his old employer in his first game back in Florida.

Ilya Sorokin makes a save during the Islanders’ 2-0 road win over the Lightning on Dec. 6, 2025 in Tampa. AP

Generously, you could say the Islanders grinded out a road win.

More accurately, Sorokin kept them in the game until they finally broke through on Cal Ritchie’s through-the-legs power-play goal in the third, and the Islanders saw it out from there.

Defensively,

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