Game Preview: Islanders at Capitals

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (31-16-6) AT WASHINGTON CAPITALS (36-14-5)
7 PM | CAPITAL ONE ARENA
WATCH: MSG+ | MSG GO | NBCSN | SNW | SNP
LISTEN: 88.7FM | 103.9FM | 98.7FM
The Isles close out their two-game road trip at Washington when they take on the Capitals at Capital One Arena on Monday evening.
The Isles are looking to get back in the win column after they fell 3-1 to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night, snapping the team's five-game point streak. Derick Brassard scored the sole goal on the power play while Mathew Barzal's first period goal was overturned after being deemed offsides upon review. Semyon Varlamov made 27 saves.

The Caps suffered a 7-2 rout against Philadelphia on Saturday night at Capital One Arena. T.J. Oshie scored on the power play while Evgeny Kuznetsov also found the back of the net. Braden Holtby made 18 saves in 47:22 time in net. Ilya Samsonov relieved him and made one save in his 11:52 time between the pipes.
With Alexander Ovechkin on the verge of 700 goals (he currently has 698), NBCSN will televise the matchup nationally, though Islanders fans will still be able to watch on MSG+.

MORNING SKATE UPDATES:

• Thomas Greiss was the first goaltender off at morning skate. Greiss has made 24 starts this season and has a record of 15-7-2.
  - Ross Johnston will draw back into the lineup tonight against the Capitals as confirmed by Head Coach Barry Trotz. The Isles forward has been a healthy scratch since Jan. 21, but his phsyciality and size will be an asset against when facing the Caps.
  "Washington] is a big heavy team," coach Trotz said. "They're probably have a little bit of snarl from their last home game and they're heading on the road...They're probably the heaviest team in the league in terms of size and strength...They play with a little bit of a snarl, they always have, we want to be able to match that."
  - **Washington Projected Lineup ([courtesy of Tom Gulitti):**
  Ovechkin-Backstrom-Wilson
  Vrana-Kuznetsov-Oshie
  Hagelin-Eller-Panik
  Leipsic-Dowd-Hathaway
  Kempny-Carlson
  Fehervary-Orlov
  Siegenthaler-Jensen
  Samsonov

ISLES NOTES:

• Brassard scored his 10th goal of the season and his third on the power play. The center extended his point streak to three games with four points (2G, 2A) during that span. Through 53 games this season, Brassard has 28 points (10G, 19A).
  - Anthony Beauvillier assisted on Brassard's goal and extended his point streak to five games with six points (3G, 3A) during that span. The 22-year-old winger also has points in eight of his last nine games with 11 points (5G, 6A) through that stretch.
  - Josh Bailey also assisted on Brassard's power-play tally. Bailey registered his 21st assist of the season. The winger has 32 points through 53 games.
  MORE COVERAGE
  WRITTEN COVERAGE
  Notes: TBL 3, NYI 1
  Fischler: Au Revoir Denis
  ISLES TV
  2/8 Postgame: Barry Trotz
  Recap: TBL 3, NYI 1
  - Varlamov made his 29th start of the season. The Russian netminder has a record of 16-9-4, a 2.58 goals against average and a .915 save percentage.
  - The Islanders' special teams shined against Tampa's dual power play and penalty kill threats. The Isles power play went 1-for-1 against Tampa's fourth-ranked PK unit, while the Isles penalty kill was 1-for-1 against the Lightning's fifth-best extra-man unit.
  - The Isles record fell to 31-16-6 with Saturday's loss. Their 68 points matches last season's second-highest points total of through 53 games in the Post-Cup era. The Islanders racked up 69 points in 53 games in the 2014-15 season.
  - The Isles are 14-9-2 on the road this season and are 7-4-1 in the last 12 games.
  - The Isles are 9-7-2 in Division games and 22-9-4 in games facing opposing divisions.

CAPS NOTES:

• T.J. Oshie recorded a two-point (1G, 1A) night as he scored his 20th goal of the season and assisted on Kuznetsov's goal. Oshie has three points (1G, 2A) in his last two games. Through 55 games this season, the winger has 40 points (20G, 20A).
  - Kuznetsov found the back of the net for the 19th time this season. The center has 46 points (19G, 27A) through 52 games this season.
  - Nicklas Backstrom registered one assist on the night and his 32nd helper of the season. The center has 42 points (10G, 32A) through 47 games and has assists in back-to-back games.
  - Holtby made his 37th start of the season. His record dropped to 20-11-4. Holtby has a 3.21 GAA and a .893 SV%.
  - Samsonov has a record of 16-3-1, a 2.19 GAA and a .923 SV%.
  - Ovechkin went without a goal but has scored 14 goals in his last eight games. The Russian winger has 698-career goals, which ranks eighth in NHL history. Through 54 games this season, Ovechkin has 40 goals and 57 points. Ovechkin is tied with Auston Matthews for the most goals in the NHL right now.
  - John Carlson did not record a point against the Flyers. The Caps d-man leads all NHL blueliners in points (65) and assists (51) through his 55 games this season.
  - The Caps power play went 1-for-4 against the Flyers. Across the NHL, Washington's power play is ranked 13th overall with a conversion percentage of 20.1.
  - Washington's penalty kill went 3-for-5 against Philadelphia. The Caps PK unit is tied with Boston for second in the NHL with a kill percentage of 84.0%.
  - Washington leads the Metro Division with 77 points and a record of 36-14-5.
  - The Capitals average the third-most goals for per game in the NHL with a nightly average of 3.56.
  - The Caps currently do not have any players on Injured Reserve.

ISLES VS. CAPS:

The Caps have won two-of-three meetings over the Islanders this season. Washington defeated the Islanders 2-1 in the season opener on Oct. 4 and rallied from a 4-1 deficit to defeat the Isles 6-4 in the third meeting on Jan. 18. The Isles claimed their sole victory of the season over the Caps with a 4-3 decision on Dec. 31.