Game Preview: Islanders at Ducks

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (8-6-4) AT ANAHEIM DUCKS (10-8-1)  

10 P.M. | HONDA CENTER 

HOW TO WATCH/STREAM: MSGSN, MSG+ ON DAZN, ESPN+ 

HOW TO LISTEN: 88.7 FM WRHU | 103.9FM LI NEWS | 92.5FM THE BEACON | ISLES + UBS ARENA APP 

The New York Islanders will conclude their three-game California road trip against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center on Saturday with faceoff set for 10 p.m.  

The Isles are coming off a 5-2 win against the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday as Brayden Schenn led the way with a goal and two assists.  

Read a full game recap here. 

Schenn was one of five different goal scorers that included Matthew Schaefer in his 100th career game, Bo Horvat, Simon Holmström and Victor Eklund.  

Matias Maccelli and Ryan Pulock made their returns to the lineup following their respective injuries. Maccelli recorded an assist and Pulock had a pair of points (2A) as part of a plus-4 performance.  

Read who won the Islanders player of the game awards. 

Ilya Sorokin made 26 saves and the Islanders snapped their four-game winless streak. The Isles have registered a point in each of their last three games (1-0-2).  

The Ducks turned a 1-6-1 stretch to close October into a five-game winning streak prior to their 4-2 loss to the Nashville Predators on Wednesday.  

Cutter Gauthier scored his 16th goal of the season against Nashville and the 22-year-old has a seven-game goal streak, which is the longest active mark in the league and tied for the third longest in Ducks history. 

Over those seven games, Gauthier has 14 goals with three hat tricks and 17 points. He’s tied for third in the NHL in goals with 16 tallies in 18 games.

PROJECTED LINEUP

The Islanders utilized 11 forwards and seven defensemen against the Kings as JG Pageau did not play after Head Coach Pete DeBoer said he is day-to-day with a lower body injury.  

Pageau participated in morning skate on Thursday but was unable to play. 

Stay tuned for line updates following Saturday’s morning skate.

EKLUND EXCELLENCE

Eklund has blossomed in his rookie season and the 20-year-old is second on the Isles with seven goals in 18 games. He’s shined with a blend of physicality and offensive prowess that’s shown through in net front goals like his one against the Kings.  

Among rookie skaters in the NHL, Eklund is tied for second in goals (7), tied for third in power-play goals (2), third in hits (53) and tied for seventh in points (10), fourth in plus/minus (plus-5).  

Eklund has a four-game goal streak and is the first Islander 20-years-old or younger to accomplish that feat since Anthony Beauvillier in 2018, according to Isles statistician Eric Hornick.  

Eklund is the first Isles rookie since Michael Grabner to score in four straight and is one of three rookies in Islanders history to have a four-game goal streak within the first 18 games of a rookie season.  

He’s developed a connection with Schenn who’s recorded an assist on six of Eklund’s seven goals.  

“Schenner [Schenn] has done a great job with Eky [Eklund] making him feel comfortable and taking care of him on and off the ice,” DeBoer said. “Two skilled guys, people forget Schenner was a highly skilled guy coming out of junior hockey and a high first-round pick and they think the game the same offensively and they’re really working well off each other right now.”

SEASON SERIES

The Islanders lead the season series 1-0 after utilizing three first period goals from Ondřej Palát, Eklund and Holmström to beat the Ducks 3-2 in the opening matchup on Oct. 20.  

Leo Carlsson had a pair of assists and Jackson LaCombe – who has the third most assists in the NHL by a defenseman (21) – recorded a helper on goals by Frank Vatrano and Alex Killorn. However, the Ducks registered just 17 shots and it was part of their seven losses in eight games.  

Saturday’s showdown will be the second and final meeting between the Islanders and Ducks.

SCOUTING THE DUCKS

Gauthier was named the NHL’s first star of the week for his eight goals and 10 points from Nov. 2 to Nov. 8. He became the first player in Ducks history to post a hat trick in consecutive games and the first player in NHL history to have two or more power-play tallies in four straight games.  

Gauthier leads the NHL with 10 power-play goals while Leo Carlsson – who leads the Ducks with 26 points (6G, 20A) is second in the league with 17 power-play points, powering the Ducks to first in the NHL with a 36.8 percent power play.  

The Ducks are third in the Pacific at 10-8-1, became the first team since 1988-89 to score a minimum of five goals in eight consecutive games and received a significant boost to their lineup as Troy Terry made his return to the lineup on Wednesday. 

Despite their offense ranking 5th in the league in goals per game (3.74), they allowed the third most goals per game at 3.68 and have the NHL’s second worst team save percentage (.863).