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- Feb 11, 2013
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NEW YORK ISLANDERS VS CAROLINA HURRICANES
GAME 3 | CAR LEADS BEST OF SEVEN SERIES 2-0
7:30 PM | UBS ARENA | BUY TICKETS
WATCH: MSGSN, MSG+, ESPN2, ESPN+
LISTEN: 88.7FM, 103.9FM, 1050AM
The New York Islanders will host the Carolina Hurricanes for Game 3 of their First Round series on Thursday as the series shifts to UBS Arena. The Islanders currently trail the Hurricanes 2-0.
The Islanders are looking to move on after a bitter 5-3 defeat at PNC Arena in Game 2. Kyle Palmieri, Bo Horvat and Anders Lee (PPG) scored to build a 3-0 lead by the 3:54 of the middle frame, but the Islanders recorded just three shots on goal for the rest of the game as the Hurricanes battled back with five unanswered tallies.
After a night where they were outshot 39-12 and out attempted 110-28, the Islanders know they need to generate more chances and sustain more offensive zone pressure to combat a high shot volume team in the Canes.
“For us to be successful, we have to get the puck out of our zone, and we weren’t able to do that,” Palmieri said. “We knew they would have a push, we just weren’t able to generate a push of our own.”
As much as Monday night stung, the Islanders have maintained an even-keel mindset all season and will forge ahead with a no-quit mentality on Thursday.
“At this time of year, you can’t dwell on things too long,” Ryan Pulock said. “Game 3 is the most important game of our season.”
THE SERIES SHIFTS TO UBS ARENA
The complexion of a playoff series can change rapidly. As the series shifts to Long Island, the Islanders are hoping that home ice advantage can provide a jolt."We're going back home, it's like a totally new series," JG Pageau said. "That's going to be our mindset. Now we have the energy and the crowd on our side, we know they're going to be super loud, and we need that. They're our seventh man out there."
The Islanders are in an identical situation to last year, trailing 2-0 in the series to the Hurricanes, and they responded with a 5-1 win in Game 3 on home ice, which doubled as the first playoff game and win in history at UBS Arena. But as the series wore on, the Hurricanes found a way to prevail as visitors, winning Game 4 at UBS Arena and ultimately taking the series on Long Island in Game 6.
“I can't wait,” Bo Horvat said. “Playoff hockey on Long Island, it was unbelievable last year at UBS and obviously I expect our fans to be pumped up and ready to go for tomorrow night.”
This season, Carolina were a powerful road team with a record of 25-13-3, which ranked seventh in the league. The Islanders stood 13th in the NHL with a home record of 21-10-10, but closed out the 2023-24 regular season on a five-game winning streak on home ice.
“With the energy of our fans, it’s not an easy building to play in here,” Head Coach Patrick Roy said. “If our fans are behind us, cheering and excited about that game, all we can worry [about] is the first period in Game 3 and try to win.”
SOROKIN TO START GAME 3:
The Islanders were off Tuesday but hit the ice for practice on Wednesday. Head Coach Roy confirmed Ilya Sorokin as the expected starter after Semyon Varlamov played Games 1 and 2.Sorokin played all six playoff games for the Islanders last season against Carolina, going 2-4, with a 2.60 GAA and a .929 SV%.
"We knew we [would] have to use both goalies," Roy said. "They're both sharp and Varly had a lot of shots the last game, so it would be good to have someone fresh for tomorrow."
Matt Martin (day to day, maintenance) did not practice with the team on Wednesday, with Ruslan Iskhakov skating on a line with Kyle MacLean and Cal Clutterbuck.
Hudson Fasching skated on a line with Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri in Wednesday’s practice. Simon Holmstrom is expected to come out of the lineup for Fasching.
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