Islanders 4, Predators 3: Brock Nelson's goal with 6:08 remaining helped visiting New York avoid a third-period collapse and hand Nashville its season-high fifth consecutive loss.

Nelson collected a well-placed pass from defenseman Johnny Boychuk and beat Pekka Rinne low to the far side to improve the Islanders to 1-0-1 on their pivotal four-game road trip. Captain John Tavares and blue-liner Nick Leddy recorded a goal and an assist apiece, rookie Anders Lee added a power-play tally and Jaroslav Halak made 28 saves as New York moved two points ahead of the New York Rangers for first place in the Metropolitan Division.

Colin Wilson, Craig Smith and Mike Ribeiro scored for the Predators, who rallied from a 3-1 third-period deficit to no avail. Rinne stopped 22 shots as Nashville remained four points ahead of second-place St. Louis in the Central.

Tavares kicked off the scoring 11:24 into the opening period, banking a shot in off Rinne for his 31st goal of the season. Lee doubled the advantage with 90 seconds remaining in the session, redirecting Leddy's shot past the netminder with Paul Gaustad serving a cross-checking penalty.

Wilson halved the deficit with less than two seconds left in the period, banging in a loose puck to reach the 20-goal plateau for the first time in his career. Leddy extended the Islanders' lead 8:39 into the third, gathering a slick pass from Frans Nielsen and whipping a wrist shot over Rinne's shoulder, but Ribeiro responded with a redirection of defenseman Ryan Ellis' point shot just past the midway point of the period and Smith drew the Predators even 31 seconds later.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Wilson's tally, which ended his eight-game drought, gave the Predators their fourth 20-goal scorer of the season. ... Nashville's skid is its longest since a five-game slide from Dec. 17-27, 2013. ... Tavares has collected seven goals and nine assists over his last 11 games to move into a tie with Washington teammates Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom for the league lead with 67 points.