At the Rink: Islanders at Maple Leafs

TORONTO -- Tyler Kennedy had the good fortune to play with a superstar in Sidney Crosby with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Now the veteran right wing is looking forward to playing with another, John Tavares, with the New York Islanders.

Kennedy will make his debut with the Islanders when they play the Toronto Maple leafs at Air Canada Centre on Monday.

"I see huge similarities between Sid and [Tavares]," Kennedy said. "Both are very professional and they both want to win. It was one of the first things I noticed when I came here, how similar they are. They are both great players and [Tavares] is a huge leader, like Sid. He leads by example. He is the real deal."

The Islanders acquired Kennedy from the San Jose Sharks at the trade deadline for a conditional pick in the 2015 or 2016 NHL Draft. Kennedy, 28, had four goals and nine points in 25 games with the Sharks. In 464 NHL games Kennedy has 84 goals and 194 points.

"Obviously it is a new chapter in my career," Kennedy said. "This is a young team and I'm excited to be here. I want to help out as much as I can. I want to do things the right way and lead by example."

Kennedy, who missed his first two games with New York because of an upper-body injury, will play on a line with Brock Nelson at center and Michael Grabner at left wing.

Islanders coach Jack Capuano said the goal was to make sure Kennedy was 100-percent healthy before putting him on the ice for a game.

"He saw our doctors, went through a couple of days of good workouts and we're looking forward to seeing him play," Capuano said. "We expect him to bring energy to the mix. He didn't play the first two [2013 Stanley Cup] Playoff games in Pittsburgh against us and when they inserted him into the lineup he was an impact player. He's an energy guy who skates and shoots the puck well."

The Maple Leafs, in the midst of a three-game homestand, are coming off a 6-1 loss against the St. Louis Blues on Saturday.

Maple Leafs center Nazem Kadri was 20 minutes late for practice Sunday and was sent home by coach Peter Horachek. Kadri will not play against the Islanders.

Horachek said he expects Kadri to learn from his mistake and move forward.

"I'm over it now," Horachek said. "There's no sense dwelling on it and asking lots of questions because my answers will get shorter and shorter."

Kadri was remorseful and said he accepts his punishment without question.

"It's my mistake; I screwed up and I have to face the consequences," Kadri said. "I'm not going to sit here and try to make excuses. It was my fault and I will accept whatever [punishment] is given to me."

Here are the projected lineups:

ISLANDERS

Anders Lee - John Tavares - Josh Bailey

Michael Grabner - Brock Nelson - Tyler Kennedy

Nikolay Kulemin - Frans Nielsen - Ryan Strome

Matt Martin - Casey Cizikas - Cal Clutterbuck

Nick Leddy - Johnny Boychuk

Thomas Hickey - Travis Hamonic

Calvin de Haan - Lubomir Visnovsky

Michal Neuvirth

Jaroslav Halak

Scratched: Eric Boulton, Brian Strait, Matt Donovan, Colin McDonald

Injured: Mikhail Grabovski (upper body), Kyle Okposo (eye)

MAPLE LEAFS

James van Riemsdyk - Tyler Bozak - Phil Kessel

Leo Komarov - Peter Holland - Richard Panik

Joffrey Lupul - Trevor Smith - David Booth

Brandon Kozun - Zach Sill - Joakim Lindstrom

Dion Phaneuf - Jake Gardiner

Eric Brewer - Tim Erixon

Morgan Rielly - Petter Granberg

Jonathan Bernier

James Reimer

Scratched: Nazem Kadri

Injured: Stephane Robidas (shoulder), Roman Polak (hernia)

Status report: With Kennedy making his Islanders debut, McDonald was taken out of the lineup and Capuano switched his lines around. … The Maple Leafs announced Monday that Polak will hae season-ending hernia surgery. Grannberg was recalled from Toronto of the American Hockey League on an emergency basis. ... Sill has played on the wing for Toronto since being traded to the Maple Leafs from Pittsburgh, but will fill in at center with Kadri sitting out.

Who's hot: Tavares established a single-season high with 32 goals when he scored Saturday against the Florida Panthers. He has two goals and five points in his past two games and leads the NHL in scoring with 70 points. … Leddy has goals in his past two games. … Booth has goals in his past two games.