Islanders roll past Rangers 5-2 in Palat’s first game

NEW YORK (AP) — Ondrej Palat scored the opening goal and added an assist in his debut with the New York Islanders, who defeated their cross-town rival New York Rangers 5-2 on Wednesday night.

Simon Holmstrom had a goal and two assists, David Rittich made 14 saves, and the Islanders won their second straight game. Mathew Barzal, Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Emil Heineman also scored.

Mika Zibanejad and Taylor Raddysh scored for the Rangers. Spencer Martin stopped 31 shots, but the Rangers lost for the fourth time in their last five games and are 2-8-1 since they won the Winter Classic in Florida on Jan. 2. Star forward Artemi Panarin was held out of the lineup for roster management purposes and will not play again for the Rangers before the Olympic break.

Holmstrom made a slick pass from the half wall to set up Palat in the slot for a power-play goal with 5:01 remaining in the first period.

Tony DeAngelo found Holmstrom for a tap-in goal 1:11 later, giving the Islanders a 2-0 lead.

Zibanejad buried a cross-ice feed from J.T. Miller late in the first period to pull the Rangers within one.

Barzal and Pageau scored 47 seconds apart midway through the second period to extend the Islanders’ lead to 4-1.

The Islanders acquired Palat from the New Jersey Devils, along with a third-round pick in 2026 and a sixth-round pick in 2027, in exchange for forward Maxim Tsyplakov.

The Rangers host the Islanders on Thursday for the second half of a home-and-home.

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

New York Rangers goaltender Spencer Martin, Brennan Othmann (78), Matthew Robertson (29), Scott Morrow (60) and Noah Laba (42) react as the New York Islanders celebrate a goal by Jean-Gabriel Pageau during the second period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

New York Rangers goaltender Spencer Martin (41) reacts after New York Islanders' Mathew Barzal scored a goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

New York Rangers goaltender Spencer Martin (41)protects the net from New York Islanders' Emil Heineman (51) and Ondrej Palat (81) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

New York Rangers goaltender Spencer Martin (41) skates away as the New York Islanders celebrate a goal by Ondrej Palat during the first period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Aaron Nesmith made a go-ahead reverse layup with 13.9 seconds left and blocked Coby White's attempt from close range with 2.9 seconds remaining, and the Indiana Pacers rallied from a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Chicago Bulls 113-110 on Wednesday night.

Pascal Siakam scored 20 points, Andrew Nembhard had 18, Jarace Walker added 16, Bennedict Mathurin had 15 and Nesmith finished with 14 for the NBA-worst Pacers, who improved to 3-0 against Chicago this season.

Indiana has won two of three, having beaten defending champion Oklahoma City in an NBA Finals rematch on Friday night. The Thunder have the league's best record while the Pacers have plummeted to the bottom of the standings following Tyrese Haliburton's torn Achilles tendon in Game 7 of the Finals.

Nikola Vucevic scored 25 points and Matas Buzelis had 20 for the Bulls, who lost their second straight to fall one game under .500 (23-24).

Chicago led 101-87 on a layup by Jalen Smith with 7:14 to go. But the Pacers responded with an 18-4 run and Jay Huff's 3-pointer with 2 minutes left tied it at 105-all.

Vucevic's 3-pointer with 33.5 seconds left gave the Bulls their last lead at 110-109. Johnny Furphy hit two free throws for the final margin, which was the Pacers' biggest lead of the game.

Chicago’s Josh Giddey finished with seven assists to surpass 2,000 for his career. The 23-year-old became the 15th player in NBA history to reach that milestone at age 23 or younger.

Bulls: Host Miami on Thursday night.

Pacers: Host Atlanta on Saturday night.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin (00) and Chicago Bulls forward Jalen Smith (25) reach for a loose ball during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Indiana Pacers guard Aaron Nesmith (23) shoots over Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic (9) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Indiana Pacers forward Jarace Walker (5) shoots over Chicago Bulls forward Matas Buzelis (14) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Chicago Bulls guard Coby White (0) misses a shot over Indiana Pacers guard Aaron Nesmith (23) during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)