TAMPA, Fla. -- John Tavares came up with the power-play magic when the New York Islanders needed it the most. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay Lightning center Steven Stamkos is looking for answers.

Tavares, the Islanders captain, had the winning goal on a power play with 3:36 remaining in regulation to give New York a 3-2 victory over Tampa Bay on Saturday.

Tavares' 11th goal of the season came after Lightning winger Erik Condra was sent off on a hooking call. With the Islanders putting a lot of traffic in front of Lightning goaltender Ben Bishop, Tavares poked a rebound off a shot from center Frans Nielsen past Bishop.

"Special teams was a big part of the game for us today," Tavares said. "Obviously, last night it wasn't very good, but we only had the one opportunity. When you're able to get a couple of opportunities, it gives you a little bit more feel out there and get into a bit of a rhythm."

The Islanders (12-8-4) trailed 2-0 early in the second period after Lightning forward Alex Killorn and defenseman Anton Stralman scored.

"There's way too much hockey left," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. "Even with a lot of guys out of the lineup, we've been doing well. Unfortunately in a 48-hour span, we lost four points, but we have to keep playing this way and eventually you'll start getting points out of these games."

Tampa Bay (11-11-3) took a 1-0 lead at 16:20 in the first period on Killorn's fourth goal of the season. Stralman took a slap shot from the point that Islanders goalie Thomas Greiss stopped with his pad, but the puck went into the air and Killorn poked it in on the fly while Stamkos provided a screen.

Stralman made it 2-0 at 1:39 in the second period when he scored a goal in the slot off an excellent backhanded pass from Stamkos in front of the net.

However, the Lightning were frustrated over the lost opportunities, especially on the power play where the team was 0 of 4.

Stamkos called the power play "terrible" and said it has cost the team wins this season.

"Just the special teams ... we've got to be better on power plays. We've got to be better on penalty kills," Stamkos said. "Can't ask for a much better five-on-five game than what we played tonight. The lack of execution on the power play is frustrating. How many more wins would we have this season if the power play can score a goal?"

The Islanders trimmed the deficit to 2-1 on Josh Bailey's fifth goal at 3:51 in the second period. Bailey sent a hard wrist shot past Bishop to complete a two-on-one rush with Brock Nelson.

"Guys have the mindset that we're going to stay in attack mode," Islanders coach Jack Capuano said. "We're going to do the right things and be a resilient hockey team. We made some mistakes (Saturday). Obviously, our goalie bailed us out here. Some guys played well, some guys that didn't the other guys picked them up."

Islanders right winger Cal Clutterbuck tied the score at 16:51 of the second period when he poked a loose puck past Bishop after Lightning defenseman Braydon Coburn had the puck bounce off his stick in the defensive zone to give Clutterbuck the unexpected opportunity.

"Two points, we'll take it," Clutterbuck said. "I thought we were working hard the first few periods. And you want to win games and we did that.

Greiss had 29 saves, including a stop on a penalty shot from Stamkos in the second period. Bishop finished with 19 saves for the Lightning.

"It's not good enough, we need wins right now," Lightning forward Ryan Callahan said. "It's frustrating, obviously. We want these points. We lost the game tonight on special teams."

NOTES: Lightning F Ryan Callahan got the better of a fight against Islanders RW Kyle Okposo in the first period, but Callahan said there was no history with the two players. ...Lightning C Tyler Johnson was ruled out Saturday after leaving Friday's game against the Washington Capitals early in the first period with an undisclosed injury. Tampa Bay was also without Fs Ondrej Palat, Jonathan Drouin and Cedric Paquette. ... Islanders D Thomas Hickey returned the lineup after being sidelined with a leg injury since Oct. 24. ... The Lightning recalled LW Mike Angelidis from Syracuse of the American Hockey League to fill Johnson's roster spot but he was a healthy scratch and will sent back down Sunday. ... The Islanders recalled G Jean Francois Berube from a conditioning stint in Bridgeport to put him on the injured reserve with a lower-body injury.