This is not the first time that Goaltender Jaroslav Halak has helped carry a team to heights it never expected in an international tournament.

For the past four games, Halak has been the primary reason Team Europe, perhaps the most unfancied team among the eight at the World Cup of Hockey 2016, is still standing and preparing for a best-of-3 final series against tournament favorite Team Canada

Game 1 is Tuesday at Air Canada Centre (8 p.m. ET; ESPN, CBC, TVA Sports).

Andrew Ladd, Jason Chimera and PA Parenteau will all make their New York Islanders preseason debuts on Tuesday night, as the team plays a pair of split-squad games against the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers tonight at 7 p.m. Both contests are road games and only the Islanders-Rangers game will be televised (MSG, MSG+). 

(What does split-squad mean? Half of the Islanders training camp roster will play the Rangers at Madison Square Garden, while the other half heads to Wells Fargo Center to play the Flyers.)

The New York Islanders picked up their first preseason win on Monday night, downing the Philadelphia Flyers 3-0 at Barclays Center. 

Shane Prince broke a scoreless tie 4:28 into the third period for the game-winner, while Joshua Ho-Sang (1G, 1A) roofed the insurance marker and Michael Dal Colle potted an empty-netter. JF Berube (14 saves) and Christopher Gibson (14 saves) combined for the shutout. 

Training camp has officially begun. 

The New York Islanders hit the ice on Friday, skating in a pair of sessions at Northwell Health Center in East Meadow. In total, 49 players - 27 forwards, 16 defensemen and six goalies - will participate in camp, though four players - John Tavares, Nikolay Kulemin, Jaroslav Halak and Thomas Greiss - are still competing in the World Cup of Hockey. 

Here are some news, notes and quotes from the first two days of training camp: 

The New York Islanders kick off their preseason on Monday night, hosting the Philadelphia Flyers at 7 p.m. at Barclays Center.

Islanders first-round picks - Mathew Barzal, Joshua Ho-Sang, Michael Dal Colle and Anthony Beauvillier - will play in Monday's game, skating alongside Ryan Strome, Ryan Pulock, Shane Prince and Eric Boulton.  

"It's important for everybody to showcase what they can bring to our lineup and our identity," head coach Jack Capuano said. "I'm not looking at the result as much as where guys are going to fit, which guys have good hockey IQ that can play within the team concept, but also guys that play with pace and play the way that we want to play.

Ryan Strome was back at center on the first day of Islanders training camp - and it's possible he could be there to start the season as well. 

Strome skated between Anders Lee and Josh Bailey in the second group of Friday's skate at Northwell Health Ice Center and while that move back to center isn't official, the 23-year-old would welcome it. 

"If that's the way it shakes out, then that'd be great," Strome said. "Obviously it'd be a bit of an adjustment just trying to get back to it. Nothing I'm not used to, I've been a centerman a lot of my life."

The New York Islanders opened 2016 training camp on Friday. 

In total 49 players - 27 forwards, 16 defensemen and six goalies - are participating in this year's camp. See below for a full training camp roster. 

Preseason games begin on Monday, Sept. 26 as the Islanders host the Philadelphia Flyers at Barclays Center at 7 p.m

CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL TRAINING CAMP ROSTER

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The New York Islanders are feeling pretty optimistic about their upcoming season. 

But after coming off the franchise's first playoff series win since 1993, keeping the young pieces of roster relatively intact and adding some impactful veterans, there's reason to feel pretty good at the start of training camp. 

"We have a big year ahead of us with the team that we have right now. I expect nothing less than to go further than we did last year," Casey Cizikas said at the team's media day on Thursday.

The New York Islanders usually play golf for themselves over the summer, but on Tuesday, they were playing for the kids. 

The Islanders players, coaches and alumni were teeing off for charity at the team's ninth annual golf outing, raising over $100K for the Islanders Children's Foundation. 

"It's a great day on the course, it's a great cause," Travis Hamonic said. "I think it's something that all of us really enjoy being a part of. Just being out here raising some money and some awareness it's important."

View 2016 Islanders Children's Foundation Golf Outing Gallery

For the past week, the Islanders prospects have been running through drills, learning systems and lifting weights, all in preparation for main camp, which starts Friday. 

It's all practice, but Wednesday night's prospect game against the Philadelphia Flyers offered a chance to show what they'd learned in a game setting. There were no points at stake - the Islanders lost 4-0 - but the stakes on the ice were real. Across from the Islanders was a real opponent, throwing real hits - it was a chippy game highlighted by big hits - forcing them to make real split-second decisions and essentially practice with live rounds.