Mathew Barzal scored a natural hat trick in the second period as the New York Islanders blanked the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-0 on Saturday.
Valtteri Filppula had the other goal for New York (20-13-4), which has won six of its last seven. Robin Lehner made 35 saves for his second shutout of the season, while Ryan Pulock added two assists.
Garret Sparks stopped 24 shots in taking the loss as Toronto (26-11-2) saw its five-game winning streak snapped.
Leafs centre John Tavares suited up against the Islanders for the first time since signing with Toronto in free agency on July 1. The 28-year-old played nine seasons in New York, collecting 272 goals and 349 assists for 621 points in 669 games.
Tavares, the first pick in the 2009 NHL draft, served as Islanders captain from September 2013 until bolting for the team he cheered for as a kid growing up in Toronto’s suburbs.
He has 26 goals and 18 assists in 39 games with his new team, but saw a six-game point streak (seven goals, four assists) come to an end as his old club got a measure of revenge led by Barzal’s second-career hat trick.
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