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The Islanders open up a seven-game homestand with a matchup against Arizona
NEW YORK ISLANDERS (13-13-6) VS ARIZONA COYOTES (10-24-4)
7:30 PM | UBS ARENA | BUY TICKETS
WATCH: MSG+ | MSG GO | ESPN+
LISTEN: 88.7FM | 103.9FM | 1050AM
The New York Islanders look to keep the momentum going in a crucial stretch, as they begin a seven-game homestand against the Arizona Coyotes on Friday night at UBS Arena. The game will also be the team's Military Appreciation Night and the first 10,000 fans will receive a military appreciation hat, presented by Ford.
The Islanders showed resolve as they battled to pick up back-to-back wins against the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday and Tuesday night, with their most recent win coming in a dramatic 4-3 victory after nine rounds of a shootout. Robin Salo scored his first NHL goal, while Josh Bailey and Casey Cizikas scored in regulation. Oliver Wahlstrom came through with the shootout winner and Semyon Varlamov was 'outstanding' with a 31-shot performance in regulation and nine-straight in the nail-biting shootout.
With the All-Star break on the horizon, the Islanders are entering this stretch of games with a determined mindset as they look to climb out of eighth place (32 points) in the Metro Division and are within reach of New Jersey (33 points) and Philadelphia (34 points) with at least six games in hand. The Islanders are also slated to finish their season with 11 back-to-back sets, including a set beginning with Arizona followed by the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday.
"Back-to-backs are mental more than anything else, it can be a grind when you're traveling and what not," Scott Mayfield said. "We've been pretty good at back-to-backs since [Islanders Head Coach Barry Trotz] has been here. It's something we've talked about quite a bit because we've got a lot of them. We focus on the first game and prepare shift-to-shift. It's about the game that's happening first and then, it's a mental grind that you just get through."
The Coyotes began their four-game road trip with their second-straight win as they defeated the New Jersey Devils 4-1 on Wednesday night. Dysin Mayo, Lawson Crouse, Travis Boyd and Johan Larsson scored while Karel Vejmelka made 35 saves on 36 shots.
The Islanders and Coyotes last met in October where the Islanders blanked Arizona 3-0 with Ilya Sorokin in net.
ISLANDERS NOTES:
• Salo scored his first career goal and his third NHL point (1G, 2A) with two of those points coming in the last two games.
ISLES VS COYOTES
• Bailey scored his third goal of the season and his second goal in the last four games. The veteran winger has totaled 16 points (3G, 13A) through 27 games.
• Cizikas put away his second goal of the season and his second goal in as many games. The centerman has three points (2G, 1A) through 26 games. He and his 'Identity Line' linemates Cal Clutterbuck and Matt Martin are heating up as the trio has combined for six points (3G, 3A) in their last two games.
• Varlamov made his 10th start of the season and improved his record to 3-6-1 and has won three of his last four games. The veteran Russian goaltender has a 2.61 GAA, a .917 SV% and hasn't recorded a shutout yet this season. With his shootout win over Philadelphia, Varlamov improved to 34-20 in career shootouts, stopping 136 of 183 shots. His 74.3 SV% is the best in NHL history for any goalie who has faced 150 shootout attempts, per The Skinny, by Islanders statistician Eric Hornick.
• Mathew Barzal assisted on Salo's goal and increased his team lead in scoring to 23 points (7G, 16A) through 29 games.
• Wahlstrom's shootout winner snapped the Islanders' five-game losing streak in shootouts and marked the first goal of 16 shootout attempts by the team this season.
• The Islanders are 11-4-4 when scoring first and are 2-9-2 when allowing the opening goal.
• Ryan Pulock has exited the COVID list after being placed in protocols on Jan. 11. Pulock remains on long-term injured reserve (lower body) while Kyle Palmieri is still on IR (lower body).
• The Islanders are 3-2-1 in the front end of back-to-back sets and are 2-3-1 in the back end.
Isles Expected Lines:
Yotes Expected Lines:
NEW YORK ISLANDERS (13-13-6) VS ARIZONA COYOTES (10-24-4)
7:30 PM | UBS ARENA | BUY TICKETS
WATCH: MSG+ | MSG GO | ESPN+
LISTEN: 88.7FM | 103.9FM | 1050AM
The New York Islanders look to keep the momentum going in a crucial stretch, as they begin a seven-game homestand against the Arizona Coyotes on Friday night at UBS Arena. The game will also be the team's Military Appreciation Night and the first 10,000 fans will receive a military appreciation hat, presented by Ford.
The Islanders showed resolve as they battled to pick up back-to-back wins against the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday and Tuesday night, with their most recent win coming in a dramatic 4-3 victory after nine rounds of a shootout. Robin Salo scored his first NHL goal, while Josh Bailey and Casey Cizikas scored in regulation. Oliver Wahlstrom came through with the shootout winner and Semyon Varlamov was 'outstanding' with a 31-shot performance in regulation and nine-straight in the nail-biting shootout.
With the All-Star break on the horizon, the Islanders are entering this stretch of games with a determined mindset as they look to climb out of eighth place (32 points) in the Metro Division and are within reach of New Jersey (33 points) and Philadelphia (34 points) with at least six games in hand. The Islanders are also slated to finish their season with 11 back-to-back sets, including a set beginning with Arizona followed by the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday.
"Back-to-backs are mental more than anything else, it can be a grind when you're traveling and what not," Scott Mayfield said. "We've been pretty good at back-to-backs since [Islanders Head Coach Barry Trotz] has been here. It's something we've talked about quite a bit because we've got a lot of them. We focus on the first game and prepare shift-to-shift. It's about the game that's happening first and then, it's a mental grind that you just get through."
The Coyotes began their four-game road trip with their second-straight win as they defeated the New Jersey Devils 4-1 on Wednesday night. Dysin Mayo, Lawson Crouse, Travis Boyd and Johan Larsson scored while Karel Vejmelka made 35 saves on 36 shots.
The Islanders and Coyotes last met in October where the Islanders blanked Arizona 3-0 with Ilya Sorokin in net.
ISLANDERS NOTES:
• Salo scored his first career goal and his third NHL point (1G, 2A) with two of those points coming in the last two games.
ISLES VS COYOTES
• Bailey scored his third goal of the season and his second goal in the last four games. The veteran winger has totaled 16 points (3G, 13A) through 27 games.
• Cizikas put away his second goal of the season and his second goal in as many games. The centerman has three points (2G, 1A) through 26 games. He and his 'Identity Line' linemates Cal Clutterbuck and Matt Martin are heating up as the trio has combined for six points (3G, 3A) in their last two games.
• Varlamov made his 10th start of the season and improved his record to 3-6-1 and has won three of his last four games. The veteran Russian goaltender has a 2.61 GAA, a .917 SV% and hasn't recorded a shutout yet this season. With his shootout win over Philadelphia, Varlamov improved to 34-20 in career shootouts, stopping 136 of 183 shots. His 74.3 SV% is the best in NHL history for any goalie who has faced 150 shootout attempts, per The Skinny, by Islanders statistician Eric Hornick.
• Mathew Barzal assisted on Salo's goal and increased his team lead in scoring to 23 points (7G, 16A) through 29 games.
• Wahlstrom's shootout winner snapped the Islanders' five-game losing streak in shootouts and marked the first goal of 16 shootout attempts by the team this season.
• The Islanders are 11-4-4 when scoring first and are 2-9-2 when allowing the opening goal.
• Ryan Pulock has exited the COVID list after being placed in protocols on Jan. 11. Pulock remains on long-term injured reserve (lower body) while Kyle Palmieri is still on IR (lower body).
• The Islanders are 3-2-1 in the front end of back-to-back sets and are 2-3-1 in the back end.
Isles Expected Lines:
Yotes Expected Lines:
