Game Preview: Islanders at Blue Jackets

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (21-13-4) AT COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS (15-15-6)

NATIONWIDE ARENA | 5PM

WATCH/STREAM: MSGSN | GOTHAM SPORTS APP

LISTEN: 88.7FM | 103.9FM | ISLANDERS + UBS ARENA APP

The New York Islanders kick off a two-game road trip as they head to Columbus to take on the Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena on Sunday.

The Islanders put on a clinic on Saturday night, shutting out the New York Rangers 2-0 as Anders Lee scored and Simon Holmstrom sealed the deal with an empty netter. David Rittich pitched a 27-save shutout for his ninth win of the season.

METRO MADNESS

The Islanders (46 points) rose to second place in the Metropolitan Division, though they’re still three points behind the first-place Carolina Hurricanes (49 points) who won Saturday. The top six teams in the Metro are separated by seven points.

The Islanders are 6-4-2 against divisional opponents this season.

HORVAT RETURNS

Bo Horvat made his return to the lineup on Saturday after missing five games with a lower-body injury.

Horvat took nine shots (four on goal, two attempts blocked and three missed) in 22:41 TOI on a line with Jonathan Drouin and Emil Heineman. Horvat won a neutral zone faceoff late in the third period which allowed Holmstrom to score an empty netter.

CUSP OF A MILESTONE

Anders Lee netted his 299^th career goal on Saturday night. The captain is one goal shy of becoming the fifth member in franchise history to score 300 career goals for the Isles.

RITTICH EXPECTED TO START

David Rittich is expected to make consecutive starts on the back-to-back set, as Ilya Sorokin (lower-body) is on IR retroactive to Dec. 20.

The netminder has been solid all season but especially as of late, stopping 119-of-124 shots faced over his last four games for a .960 SV% over that span. Saturday’s shutout was his second of the season for the Isles and ninth of his career.

Rittich has started both ends of a back-to-back four times in his career, with a 2-1-1 record in the second half.

SEASON SERIES

The Isles are up 1-0-0 on the season series after a 3-2 win on Nov. 2. Matthew Schaefer logged his first multi-goal game and Simon Holmstrom scored in the win.

BLUE JACKETS NOTES

Columbus is coming off a 3-1 win over the LA Kings on Monday. The Blue Jackets' three goals were all on the power play, as Mason Marchment (2G) and Kirill Marchenko found the back of the net one the man advantage in a game where their power play went 3-for-7. Jet Greaves made 23 saves.

Marchment is off to a hot start with his new team. He scored three goals in his first two games as a Blue Jacket after he was traded from Seattle. Before the trade, the 30-year-old had 13 points (4G, 9A) in 29 games for the Kraken. Columbus acquired the forward in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft and a fourth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.

Columbus is eighth in the Metropolitan Division with 36 points and are 3-6-1 in their last 10 games.

Captain Boone Jenner has five points (2G, 3A) in five games since returning from an upper-body injury sidelined him for 14 games.

Zach Werenski leads the Blue Jackets in scoring with 40 points (14G, 26A) in his 10^th season in Columbus. He’s riding a five-game point streak with 10 points (5G, 5A) over that span.

The Blue Jackets power play has been hot as of late, going 10-for-34 in the month of December (29.4%).