updated 4:11 p.m. ET Jan. 28, 2004

UNIONDALE, N.Y. - Only one penalty was called during a game between the Boston Bruins and New York Islanders.

The Islanders thought the referees missed one in the 2-2 tie Tuesday night.

P.J. Axelsson’s goal with 1:57 left in regulation ruined New York’s chances at two points. Axelsson was wide open at the left side when he deposited Jiri Slegr’s cross-ice pass into the open net for his 15th goal.

“I got a beautiful pass from Slegr and I just had my stick there,” Axelsson said. “It was a beautiful play.”

But just before the pass, Islanders defenseman Roman Hamrlik was hooked down by a high-stick and then tripped.

“Two referees were right there,” Hamrlik said. “It was embarrassing that it wasn’t called.”

Trent Hunter scored twice for the Islanders, and Rick DiPietro stopped 35 shots.

It was the first time this season an Islanders home game reached overtime. New York, 17-8-1 at Nassau Coliseum, moved five points ahead of both the New York Rangers and Atlanta for eighth place in the Eastern Conference — the playoff cutoff.

The Islanders are five points behind the fifth-place Bruins.

“What’s really frustrating was that we could have moved two points closer to Boston,” Hamrlik said. “We should have had the two points, but we’ll take the point and be ready for the next game.”

Glen Murray also scored for the Bruins, and Felix Potvin turned aside 26 shots.

“It was a hard-fought game,” Boston coach Mike Sullivan said. “Both teams were on the body and finishing their checks.”

New York took a 1-0 lead 5:56 in when off a faceoff, Hunter took a slap shot from the left half wall. Potvin got most of the shot with his glove, but not enough as the puck trickled into the far corner. Hunter leads NHL rookies with 17 goals.

Murray tied it at 8:03 when he found a loose puck off a rebound and put it past DiPietro. Murray is two points shy of 500 in the NHL.

Hunter’s second goal came at 17:21 off a nice pass from Shawn Bates, who earned his first point in 11 games.

The closest call in the scoreless second period was when Islanders defenseman Adrian Aucoin slid to block Carl Corazzini’s shot at a wide open net with two minutes remaining.

“This was an unusual game,” Islanders defenseman Janne Niinimaa said. “Both teams were just playing a chip-and-support game. I don’t know why there were so many whistles for offsides and icings.”

Notes: On a night where sleet and snow made local roads skating rinks, the Islanders still drew 12,234 to the match. ... Boston captain Joe Thornton returned after missing three games after his cheekbone was broken by a punch from Rangers forward Eric Lindros on Jan. 19. “I felt fine,” Thornton said. ... The Islanders are 35-0-6 in their last 41 games when leading after two periods. ... New York was 4-1-1 in its previous six games, with a goals-against average of 2.00. ... This home-and-home series concludes Thursday in Boston. ... New York LW Arron Asham drew the game’s only penalty when he closed his hand on the puck in the first period.

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