MacArthur, Artyukhin score in Atlanta debuts, Thrashers beat Isles 6-3

Thrashers beat Islanders 6-3

ATLANTA — Nik Antropov had two goals and an assist, and Clarke MacArthur and Evgeny Artyukhin scored in their Atlanta debuts to help the Thrashers beat the New York Islanders 6-3 on Thursday night.

Niclas Bergfors, another recent acquisition, also scored. He has five goals in seven games since being obtained as part of the Ilya Kovalchuk trade with New Jersey.

MacArthur was acquired from Buffalo on Wednesday in a trade for two draft choices. Artyukhin came from Anaheim for a minor leaguer and a draft pick Monday.

Maxim Afinogenov also scored for Atlanta, 4-0-2 in its last six games. Bryan Little and Ron Hainsey each had two assists, and Johan Hedberg made 34 saves.

Mark Streit, Rob Schremp and Tim Jackman scored for the Islanders.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

ATLANTA (AP) — Niclas Bergfors scored twice, and Clarke MacArthur and Evgeny Artyukhin scored in their Atlanta debuts to help the Thrashers beat the New York Islanders 6-3 on Thursday night.

Bergfors, another recent acquisition, has six goals in seven games since being obtained as part of the Ilya Kovalchuk trade with New Jersey.

MacArthur was acquired from Buffalo on Wednesday in a trade for two draft choices. Artyukhin came from Anaheim for a minor leaguer and a draft pick Monday.

Nik Antropov and Maxim Afinogenov also scored for Atlanta, 4-0-2 in its last six games. Bryan Little and Ron Hainsey each had two assists, and Johan Hedberg made 34 saves.

Mark Streit, Rob Schremp and Tim Jackman scored for the Islanders.

The Thrashers chased Islanders goalie Dwayne Roloson in the first period, scoring three goals on seven shots.

Bergfors got Atlanta started with a goal 5:04 into the game. Then Antropov and MacArthur scored in a 25-second span. The first two Atlanta goals came on feeds from Little, and MacArthur knocked in his own rebound.

Martin Biron didn’t fare any better than Roloson when he came in, giving up a goal to Afinogenov on the second shot he faced.

The Islanders made it 4-1 on their 21st shot of the first period, with Streit beating Hedberg on a power-play blast with 17 seconds left.

Atlanta regained its four-goal advantage on Bergfors’ power-play goal 10:05 into the second period, and Artykhin scored an unassisted goal on a breakaway with 4:07 remaining in the period.

Schremp scored on a power play for the Islanders with 8:22 remaining in the third period, and Jackman scored with 7:12 left.

NOTES: The Islanders have won just three of their past 13 games. … With the addition of MacArthur and Artyukhin, Todd White was among the healthy scratches for Atlanta despite having a goal and an assist Tuesday night in a 4-2 victory over Florida. … The game was the 800th in franchise history for the Thrashers, who joined the NHL as an expansion team in 1999-2000. The franchise has 301 victories.

(This version CORRECTS APNewsNow. Thrashers 6, Islanders 3. RECASTS throughout to correct that Antropov sted scored twice sted Bergfors.)