Artemi Panarin scored twice in the third period and collected three assists as the New York Rangers beat the visiting New York Islanders 6-2 Monday in the first meeting of the season between the rivals.

After helping the Rangers get a 3-1 lead with a trio of assists, Panarin scored his team-leading 25th goal of the season 49 seconds into the third. He then scored his 26th goal a little more than eight minutes later.

He intercepted an errant clearing attempt in the defensive zone by Islanders center Mathew Barzal to start his breakaway en route to his first goal. Panarin then got by Islanders defenseman Scott Mayfield, stopped near the left side of the net and lifted a backhander over goaltender Semyon Varlamov.

Panarin then scored his second goal on another breakaway, getting past defenseman Nick Leddy and putting a cross-ice feed from Jesper Fast into the net.

Panarin also increased his season total to 67 points and posted the Rangers' first five-point game by a forward since Derick Brassard on Jan. 25, 2016. He also posted his second career five-point game.

Fast scored in the first period while Chris Kreider and defenseman Adam Fox scored in the second period as the Rangers won their fifth straight home game. Defenseman Jacob Trouba accounted for the Rangers' sixth goal during a power play.

Rangers goaltender Alexandar Georgiev made 32 saves.

Jordan Eberle scored 18 seconds into the game, and Brock Nelson added a power-play goal in the third for the Islanders, who are 11-10-2 since a team-record 17-game point streak (15-0-2) from Oct. 12-Nov. 23.

Varlamov allowed six goals on 35 shots and was pulled after Trouba's goal. Thomas Greiss finished up with one save over the final 9:45.

Eberle opened the scoring by lifting a backhander past Georgiev on the game's first shift, but it was all Rangers the rest of the way.

Fast tied the game with 11:46 left in the first by diving to get possession of a rebound of Panarin's shot, and the Rangers took control with two goals in a span of about six minutes in the second. Kreider deflected Panarin's off-balance shot 5:06 into the second, and Fox beat Varlamov with a wrist shot from the right circle for his first goal in 20 games at 11:11.

--Field Level Media