NHL – Victory to Islanders Against Rangers!

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John Tavares scored for the Islanders (14-8-4), who have won three in a row and are 4-0-1 in their past five games.

The Islanders and Rangers had played each other six times each regular season, with each team hosting three games. Since 2001, the Pat LaFontaine Trophy has been awarded to the winner of the Rangers-Islanders regular season series.

In the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s, the rivalry was mostly one-sided in favor of the dominant Islanders, who ultimately won four Stanley Cup championships in a row during that time. Since 1994, however, the rivalry has shifted more towards the Rangers. The Rangers won their fourth Stanley Cup in 1994 and have experienced much playoff success since, including two appearances in the Eastern Conference Finals in 1997 and 2012 (where they lost to their other two biggest rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers and New Jersey Devils respectively), as well as a trip to the Stanley Cup Final in 2014. The Islanders, meanwhile, have not won a playoff series since 1993.

Tavares broke a scoreless tie during a two-man advantage at 12:22 of the second period. With Rangers defensemen Dan Girardi and Keith Yandle in the box, Tavares took a pass from Okposo, skated into the slot and put a wrist shot past Lundqvist for his 12th goal of the season.

Halak kept the Rangers off the scoreboard less than four minutes into the second period when he got across the crease to make a right pad save on Derick Brassard’s one-timer from between the circles. He preserved the one-goal lead with 3:26 left in the second when he made a nice glove save on Yandle’s wrist shot from the left circle.

It was a performance indicative of the healthy competition that has blossomed this season between Halak and Thomas Greiss, who started and won the Islanders’ previous two games. Greiss, who signed as a free agent July 1, is 7-3-2 with a 2.30 goals-against average and a .925 save percentage.

With the win Wednesday, Halak is 7-4-2 with a 1.93 GAA and a. 926 save percentage.

“I always say you need two goalies for a season,” Halak said. “Obviously [Greiss] has been playing well for us, and that’s what we need. We need to keep getting points, that’s the ultimate goal for everybody, and get to the playoffs. No matter who’s in the nets, if we keep getting points, that’s all that matters.”

Capuano is happy to have the choice of two hot goaltenders.

“I hope they’re pushing each other. I mean, that’s what you want,” Capuano said. “Right out of training camp, you want healthy competition. I think all our guys push one another. We’ve got two great goalies here. Obviously Jaro’s been there for us. But it’s good to see those guys push one another.

“Not only that, they’re best of friends. That’s what makes it an enjoyable situation for our coaching staff and our players.”

Stalberg tied it with 1:23 remaining in the second period. With the teams at even strength, he skated from behind the net into the slot and redirected Marc Staal’s shot from the left circle past Halak to make it 1-1. It was Stalberg’s third goal of the season.

The Rangers have little time to dwell on the loss; they host the Colorado Avalanche at Madison Square Garden on Thursday.

“It was a game we needed for ourselves,” Rangers defenseman Dan Girardi said. “A nice, good rivalry in a new building. A lot of hostility, good fans here — half and half — and it was a good atmosphere for us to be in to get our game going, have a good solid night. We were doing all the little things right. We didn’t get the two points, but I think we’re pretty happy with our effort tonight.”

This was the Rangers’ first visit to the Islanders’ new home in Brooklyn. The Islanders had played their home games at Nassau Coliseum from their entry into the NHL in 1972 through last season.

“It was good, it was intense,” Tavares said of the atmosphere. “You could tell the pace was high, the intensity was there, the physicality was high. It had the intensity with the crowd and everyone here, so it was good. We just want to feed off that.”