Game Preview: Islanders at Lightning

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (39-28-9) at TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (44-26-6)
7 PM | AMALIE ARENA
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As the calendar flips to April, and the playoff chase hits another level, the New York Islanders face a stiff test, as they take on the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night at Amalie Arena.
Saturday's tilt against the Bolts is also the first half of a back-to-back set for the Islanders, who take on the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday in Raleigh.

The Islanders are coming off a 2-1 win over the Washington Capitals on Wednesday night, their first shootout win of the season, improving to 1-5 in the bonus round. That extra point was an important one, as the Isles (87 points) are in the first wild card position, three points up on the Pittsburgh Penguins (84 points), though the Pens have a game in hand. The Islanders are four points clear of the Florida Panthers (83 points).
While the Isles are 16-6-4 in their last 26 games, they've struggled in Tampa and have lost five straight regular season games to Tampa Bay, including a 5-3 loss on Oct. 22, 2022, with their last win coming on Dec. 9, 2019. They have been outscored 22-10 over that span.
The Lightning have won two straight games heading into Saturday's contest beating the Carolina Hurricanes 4-0 on Tuesday and the Capitals 5-1 win on Thursday. The Lightning (94 points) are all but cemented into a first round series with the Toronto Maple Leafs, as they sit in third place in the Atlantic Division, nine points up on the Panthers and 27 points back of the division-leading Boston Bruins. The Bolts are four points back of the Leafs, with Toronto holding two games in hand and likely to have home-ice advantage in their impending first round series.

MORNING SKATE UPDATES:

Sebastian Aho skated with the team during the optional session, but will not play on Saturday night.
Islanders President and GM Lou Lamoriello addressed the media prior to the skate and offered updates on Mathew Barzal, who will skate this weekend on Long Island, Oliver Wahlstrom, who he confirmed is out for the season, and more.
Read here
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ISLANDERS NOTES:

• The Islanders signed a pair of college free agents on Friday, inking defensemen Aidan Fulp and Travis Mitchell to two-year, two-way (NHL/AHL) entry-level contracts beginning with the 2023-24 season.
  Fulp, 23, spent the past three seasons with Western Michigan University of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC), recording 38 points (four goals, 34 assists) in 94 games.
  Mitchell, 23, completed his fourth and final season at Cornell University earlier this month, setting collegiate career highs in goals (6), points (19) and games played (34) while serving as team captain.
  - Ilya Sorokin stopped 25 of 26 shots against the Capitals, recording his 28th win of the season and the 67th win of his Islanders career. With his 67th win, Sorokin moved past Glenn Healy for sole possession of eighth on the Isles all-time wins list.
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  Isles History
  Sorokin went 8-1-1 in March, which tied for the most March wins for a goalie in Isles history. Sorokin's eight wins were second in the NHL in March, trailing only Edmonton's Stuart Skinner.
  Sorokin's 2.36 GAA ranks fourth in the NHL among goalies with 25 games played or more. His .924 SV% ranks third among goalies with 25 or more games played.
  Sorokin has struggled against the Lightning in the past, going 0-3-0 with a 4.58 GAA and a .848 SV%. The Lightning are the only Eastern Conference team Sorokin has never beat.
  - Pierre Engvall has goals in back-to-back games and now has five goals in his first 12 games with the Islanders since being acquired on Feb. 28. Engvall has 17 goals this season between Toronto and the Islanders, which is a career-high for the Swede.
  - Brock Nelson's next game will be his 753rd as an Islander, moving past Mike Bossy to take sole possession of eighth on the Islanders all-time games played list. Nelson is eight games behind Matt Martin for seventh on the Isles all-time list. Nelson's next goal will be his 238th, which will tie Bob Bourne for ninth on the Isles all-time goal list.
  - Adam Pelech has played 25+ minutes in back-to-back games, skating 26:00 on Wednesday in Washington.

LIGHTNING NOTES:

• Tampa's two wins brought the Lightning back to NHL .500 for the month of March. The Lightning finished the month 7-7-2. Tampa had lost four straight games prior to the two-game winning streak.
  - Nikita Kucherov leads the Lightning with 76 assists and 104 points, marking Kucherov's third 100-point season. Kucherov had 18 points (5G, 13A) in 16 games during March, which also led the team. Kucherov's 76 assists are second in the NHL, trailing only Connor McDavid, while his 104 points trail only McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
  - Brayden Point leads the Lightning with a career-high 47 goals this season, smashing his previous high of 41, set during 2018-19. His 10 goals in March led the Lightning, while his 16 points were fourth.
  - Tanner Jeannot has three points in 17 games since being acquired from the Nashville Predators on Feb. 27 for Cal Foote, a conditional 2025 first, a 2024 second and a third, fourth and fifth-round pick in 2023.
  - Mikhail Sergachev is in the midst of a career-year, with 57 points (8G, 49A) in 74 points. Sergachev's previous career-high was 40 points, set during the 2017-18 season. The 24-year-old tied Seattle's Vince Dunn for the third most points among defensemen in March. Sergachev is 12th overall in defensemen points.
  - Andrei Vasilevskiy is fourth in the NHL with 33 wins this season. Vasilevskiy is 33-20-4 with a 2.61 GAA, a .916 SV% and three shutouts. His 57 starts are tied with Nashville's Juuse Saros for the second most in the league, one start back of Winnipeg's Connor Hellebuyck.