NHL

Islanders blank Panthers, 3-0

The Islanders felt they had been the victims of bad luck of late. The schedule makers, however, gave them a gift yesterday: the punchless Panthers.

Starting fast but tailing off, the Islanders snapped their three-game losing streak — all at home — with a 3-0 victory in front of 14,512 at Nassau Coliseum last night. The win moved the Islanders to within a point of the Hurricanes for the eighth and final playoff spot.

Goaltender Evgeni Nabokov made Andrew MacDonald’s first-period goal stand up until John Tavares and Casey Cizikas notched empty-netters in the final half-minute, making 23 saves for his third shutout of the season. Of the three, it was by far the easiest. He was rarely tested, many of his saves on long shots and there were very few rebound opportunities.

The two teams were both playing their third game in four nights, and it showed in the way each side skated. There were very odd-man rushes and the scoring chances were even more rare.

The Islanders (14-15-3, 31 points) last four home games have followed a similar pattern: quick starts. The biggest difference between last night’s victory and the previous three defeats: A subpar opponent compared to the three playoff contenders.

The Islanders didn’t perform poorly in the three losses, but the Senators, Penguins and Canadiens made them pay for their mistakes and inability to sustain a high level of play, whereas the Panthers, one of four teams with less points in the Eastern Conference than the Islanders, couldn’t.

So while the Isles weren’t nearly as good in the second and third period as they were in the first, they still gained a much-needed two points, and avoided a fourth straight third period collapse.

The Islanders have mastered the opening period. They played from ahead and scored first, 6:05 in on MacDonald’s slap shot above the right circle, the defenseman’s second goal of the season. It capped an effective power play of sustained pressure and was set up by a nifty cross-ice feed from Frans Nielsen.

The Isles were the far better team in the opening period, notching 10 of the contest’s first 12 shots and enjoyed a 13-4 edge overall, drawing a pair of power plays, and nearly scoring again when Nielsen hit the right post.

Their second period left a lot to be desired, from the battle level to their execution. Florida managed seven shots on goal over the first four minutes, but the Isles did well to keep them away from Nabokov and onto the perimeter.

zbraziller@nypost.com