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UNIONDALE, N. Green Air Max 2018 .Y. -- In a season filled with demoralizing losses, Tuesday nights meltdown against Tampa Bay was the worst yet for the New York Islanders. Valtteri Filppula scored twice in the final 3 minutes of regulation, including the tying goal with 3.8 seconds left, and then converted in the shootout to rally the Lightning past the skidding Islanders 3-2. "When youre coming back from two down and get that first one, you get immediate confidence," said Filppula, a key free-agent signing by Tampa Bay last summer. "Thats a good sign when you get a great bounce late and win a game when you didnt play your best all night." Nikita Kucherov also connected in the shootout as the Lightning handed New York its 13th loss in 14 games (1-9-4). The only Islanders victory during that stretch came in a shootout last Tuesday at San Jose. New York is 5-15-4 since trading popular left wing Matt Moulson to Buffalo for Thomas Vanek on Oct. 27. And by now, last springs playoff appearance is a distant memory. "Its unbelievable, its frustrating, its disappointing," said Islanders captain John Tavares, who angrily slammed his stick against the boards as he left the ice. "Were not happy with the result." Filppula scored his second third-period goal off a scramble with 3.8 seconds left to force overtime. He also scored at 17:07 to cut New Yorks lead to 2-1. He has 12 goals on the season. Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielsen scored for the Islanders. Nielsen also scored in the shootout, but the game ended when Tavares couldnt convert the final chance for New York against Ben Bishop. "I think you earn what you get," Tavares said. "We left two guys open right in the slot, and theyre going to capitalize when they get their chances." Okposo scored his 11th of the season, driving the puck from the left point through traffic and past Bishop 11 seconds into the second. Tavares and Brock Nelson assisted as Radko Gudas was serving an interference penalty that carried over from the first period. Nielsen made it 2-0 at 10:21 of the third, converting on a 2-on-1 break with Michael Grabner to beat Bishop to the stick side. It was the 11th goal of the season for Nielsen, who hadnt scored since Nov. 19. Filppula ruined Evgeni Nabokovs shutout bid late in the third and eventually spoiled the entire night for New York. The Islanders (9-19-7) lost their sixth straight home game -- the past four in overtime or a shootout -- and dropped to 0-16-5 when scoring fewer than three goals. They havent won at home since Nov. 16, when they defeated Detroit 5-4 in a shootout. Only Buffalo, with eight wins, has fewer than the Islanders. "We just dont know how to win right now," Nabokov said. Tampa Bay (20-11-3) snapped a seven-game road losing streak Sunday against Detroit and pulled out another one away from home. The Lightning have been a surprise in the Atlantic Division with an especially young roster this season. They have 13 players who have played fewer than 100 NHL games. But they are anchored by 38-year-old centre Martin St. Louis, who leads the team with 13 goals and 18 assists. He played his 1,000th NHL game earlier this season. The teams meet at Tampa Bay on Jan. 16 and March 27. The Islanders next take on the rival Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Friday. "Its important how we respond in our next game after a tough loss like this," Islanders coach Jack Capuano said. NOTES: The Islanders were without defenceman Lubomir Visnovsky (concussion) for the 27th straight game. New York also was missing forward Casey Cizikas (jaw). ... Matt Carkner and Colin McDonald were healthy scratches for the Islanders. ... The Lightning were without defencemen Victor Hedman (lower body) and Keith Aulie (hand). Cheap Air Max 2018 . Bale has had a successful debut season in Spain, and Ancelotti appears ready to reward him with a starting role on Saturday. Ancelotti says "Gareth had some problems at the beginning (of the season) but when he found good physical condition he scored a lot of goals, he had a good impact on the team. Air Max 2018 Discount . "Im excited just for a new start, just to see where things are going, to bring some kind of tradition back to the team and guys being excited about something new," the defensive back said during a conference call Monday after agreeing to stay with the Bombers rather than go to free agency next month.HOUSTON - Coming off a dominant performance at home, the Raptors will have their starting point guard in uniform when they face a stiffer test in Houston Monday. Kyle Lowry, who sat out the entire second half of Saturdays 115-91 rout over Utah with a sprained right ankle, will give it a go against his former team as Toronto opens a two-game Western road swing against Dwight Howard, James Harden and the Rockets. "Im not 100 per cent but Im okay," Lowry said following his teams shoot around Monday afternoon. "No complaints. I wont favour it, it wont be a hindrance to me. Its just another game." The Raptors point guard came down awkwardly on the foot of Enes Kanter in the final possession of the first half Saturday and was removed from the game as a precaution. "I knew at halftime it wasnt serious," Dwane Casey said. "I think if it was a close game, he would have been able to play. Hes a tough kid and I had all the faith in the world [that he would be okay]." Although the Raptors set season highs in points, field goals (40), field goal percentage (.484), three-pointers (10) and assists (23) against the winless Jazz Saturday, they will have the odds stacked against them when the visit Houstons Toyota Center, a building they havent won in since 2007. Toronto has lost six straight road contests to the Rockets and is 15-3 all-time in Houston. However, this may be the best time for the Raptors, in search of their second straight win, to pay Houston a visit as the Rockets are struggling to find themselves early in the season. Houston won its first three games in the Howard era but has dropped three of four since, most recently falling to the Clippers, 107-94 on Saturday. The Rockets led by nine at the half in that game but were outscored 61-39 over the final 24 minutes. Howard is averaging 17.6 points and 13.6 rebounds - third in the NBA - in seven games with his new club and has been a handful for the Raptors dating back to his time in Los Angeles and Orlando, scoring 24.7 points on 62 per cent shooting in his last 18 games against Toronto. However, the Rockets centre is shooting just 49 per cent from the free throw line this season and Casey indicated hes not opposed to taking advantage of that. "Usually our philosophy is if you get in a bad way against a guy whos not a great free throw shooter, you want to wrap him up," Casey said Monday, asked about the hack-a-Howard method. "Dwight is no different. Its within the rules and well have to look at it." Lowry played 218 games for the Rockets over three-plus seasons, improving his scoring numbers each year. He averaged a career-high 14.3 points for Houston in 2011-12 before Toronto acquired him in a trade that summer. "It has a special place in my heart," Lowry said of Houston. "I love coming back here. This is a great city, the fans were great for me the organization was great for me. I always get a good kick out of coming back here." Trends and Tidbits The Raptors second unit had totalled 133 points in the teams first six games, outscored by the opponents bench in each contest, before exploding for 56 in Saturdays win. Tyler Hansbrough led the way with 23 points, matching a career best 11 made free throws on a career-high 13 attempts. Houston limited opponents to just 93.7 points on 39 per cent shooting in its first three games of the season, all wins, but has allowed 111.0 points on 45 per cent shooting in ffour games since, losing three. Blue Air Max 2018. . Mondays game in Houston is the Raptors first on the road against a Western Conference opponent this season. They were 3-12 when visiting teams in the West last year. Toronto will face the Grizzlies in Memphis on Wednesday before returning home for six of seven games at the Air Canada Centre. What to Watch For Two of the leagues best on the boards Both the Raptors and the Rockets have been two of the NBAs most dominant teams on the boards to begin this season. Averaging 46.3 rebounds per game, Houston ranks second in the league in that category while Toronto ranks ninth grabbing 44.3 boards per contest. The Raptors have out-rebounded their opponent in each of the first seven games, with a plus-52 differential on the glass overall. They rank third in offensive rebounds (14.1) and first in second-chance points per game (21.0), which has accounted for 22 per cent of their total offence thus far. Toronto faces its toughest test on the boards with the Rockets front line of Howard - who has led the league in rebounding in five of the last six seasons - and Omer Asik, who was third last year. "Its a challenge," Casey admitted. "Everyone from that standpoint has their work cut out for them as far as keeping them off the boards and winning the rebounding game." Pressure the home team With the front-court pairing of Howard and Asik, along with sophomore point guard Patrick Beverley stepping into the starting lineup for Jeremy Lin, the Rockets are still working out the kinks offensively. Although theyre still scoring at a torrid pace - ranked fourth, averaging 105.6 points per game - they have had some difficulty taking care of the ball. The Rockets have turned the ball over at least 18 times in five of their last six games. Overall, they allowed an average of 21.2 points of 19.0 turnovers in the six games since their opener. Who to Watch For DeMar DeRozan After a strong preseason, DeRozan has struggled to begin the campaign, specifically with his jump shot. The Raptors guard has hit just 12 of his 45 field goal attempts (27 per cent) over the last three games. Although hell have his hands full defensively with Harden, the Raptors need DeRozan to get back on track on the other end of the floor as well. DeRozan averaged 15.5 points in two games against the Rockets last year, as the two teams split the season series, and has scored 21.6 per over his last five meetings with Houston. James Harden Harden - the NBAs fourth leading scorer, averaging 24.7 points per game - is coming off his worst outing of the season, scoring just 12 points on 4-of-15 shooting against the Clippers while playing with two sore feet. He is also under the weather, battling a flu bug that is going around Houstons locker room. Although hell be playing at less than 100 per cent, Casey and the Raptors have still keyed in on the Rockets wounded star. "Hardens the head of the snake and weve got to do everything we can to control him," said Casey, who plans to throw multiple defenders at Harden, including DeRozan, Rudy Gay and possibly even Julyan Stone. Injury Report Lowry (sprained right ankle) will play for the Raptors. Harden, who is under the weather and has been playing with a series of foot ailments, is expected to give it a go. Omri Casspi (strained left knee) and Chandler Parsons (back spasms) are also expected to play but will be game-time decisions for Houston. ' ' '
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