Game Preview: Islanders at Hurricanes

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (8-7-6) AT CAROLINA HURRICANES (13-8-0)

7:30 PM ET | PNC ARENA

WATCH: HULU | ESPN+

LISTEN: 88.7FM | 103.9FM | 1050 AM 

The New York Islanders are looking to get back in the win column on Thursday night as they take on the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena.

The Islanders are coming off a heartbreaking 5-4 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night, leading 4-2 entering the third period before surrendering three goals to lose in regulation. Bo Horvat, Mathew Barzal (1G 2A), Cal Clutterbuck and JG Pageau scored in the loss, while Ilya Sorokin made 28 saves. The loss snapped the Islanders’ six-game point streak.

“We’re a confident group and we know we played a good game, it’s just a matter of cleaning up some mistakes,” Casey Cizikas said on Wednesday. “I think guys are battling out there and the way it’s going is tough, but these are games you learn from.”

The Hurricanes beat the Philadelphia Flyers 4-1 on Tuesday night. Michael Bunting (1G, 1A), Brendan Lemieux, Seth Jarvis and Jesperi Kotkaniemi found the back of the net in the victory, while Pyotr Kochetkov made 28 saves.

The Islanders trail the season series 0-0-1 after a 4-3 OT loss on Nov. 4 at UBS Arena. Noah Dobson, Mathew Barzal and Simon Holmstrom built a 3-0 lead, but the Hurricanes scored three consecutive goals to force overtime, with Sebastian Aho winning it for the Canes in the extra frame. Following Thursday’s contest in Raleigh, the Islanders will face Carolina on the road again on Dec. 23, as the season series is set to conclude on Mar. 19 at UBS Arena.

ISLANDERS NOTES

- Matt Martin, who was activated off IR on Tuesday, participated in the Islanders’ optional practice on Wednesday afternoon in Raleigh. The winger missed six consecutive games with an upper-body injury.

- Mat Barzal is the team leader in points (19) after a three-point game on Tuesday, where he scored a goal and notched a pair of assists. Barzal’s three-point game was the 23rd such game of his career and first since Feb. 9.

- Anders Lee is expected to play in his 700th NHL game on Thursday night in his 12th season as an Islander. Lee will be the 12th player in franchise history to skate in 700 games with the club. The Islanders’ captain has three points (2G, 1A) in his last four games and picked up a fighting major on Tuesday night.

“He’s one of the hardest workers I’ve played with,” Cizikas said. “To see the way he puts his body on the line and the way he competes, it’s day in and day out. He definitely leads us out there.”

- Mike Reilly made his Islander debut on Tuesday against the Devils. The 30-year-old defenseman blocked one shot, recorded one hit and three shots on goal in 10:42 TOI.

“He’s adjusted very well so far,” Head Coach Lane Lambert said of Reilly. “He’s a Minnesota guy and there are guys on the team from Minnesota, so they’ve been very familiar with each other for years now, skating together in the offseason. He’s made a great adjustment.”

- Noah Dobson is sixth in the NHL in ice time, averaging 25:03 TOI. The defenseman is second on the team in assists (13) and points (18).

- Alexander Romanov picked up his third assist in three games.

- The Islanders’ power play (22.4%) ranks eighth in the NHL and has scored in five straight road games. Despite a significant boost overall this season, Lambert said there is still room for improvement.

“I think we’ve had a couple of opportunities late in games [on the power play] and we haven’t taken advantage of them,” Lambert said. “It has been good, but those are some key moments we have to capitalize on. I like the way our guys are moving the puck and there’s more quickness in puck movement, we just have to keep attacking the net.”

- The Islanders sport an away record of 4-4-2.

HURRICANES NOTES

- Tuesday’s 4-1 win over the Flyers gave the Hurricanes their fourth win in five games. Carolina stands second in the Metropolitan Division with 26 points. Thursday’s matchup against the Islanders opens a brief two-game homestand before the Hurricanes embark on a six-game road trip.

- Andrei Svechnikov missed Tuesday’s matchup with an illness. He had an active four-game point streak with one goal and four assists over that span. The 23-year-old winger has nine points (1G, 8A) through 12 games this season, after missing the first eight games in recovery from a lower-body injury.

- Sebastian Aho leads the Hurricanes with 19 points (5G, 14A) in his eighth season with the team. Aho has six points (1G, 5A) in his last five games. 

- Teuvo Teravainen leads in goals (10), two short of his 12-goal total last season. He played in his 500th game as a Hurricane on Tuesday night.

- Brett Pesce returned on Nov. 10 after missing eight games with a lower-body injury. The 29-year-old defenseman has two points (1G, 1A) through 13 games this season and has not hit the scoresheet since he returned from injury.

- Seth Jarvis has eight points (4G, 4A) in his last five games. He sits second on the team with 18 points (9G, 9A) in 21 games.