Game Preview: Islanders at Red Wings

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (7-4-0) AT DETROIT RED WINGS (5-3-2)
1 PM | LITTLE CAESARS ARENA
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The New York Islanders conclude their three-game Midwest road trip against the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m.
The Red Wings are coming off a tightly contested 3-1 win over the Washington Capitals on Thursday. Prior to that win, the Red Wings dropped an 8-3 decision to the Buffalo Sabres.

The Islanders are riding a five-game win streak, their longest since a nine-game run from Feb. 28 - Mar. 14, 2021, and are looking to end the trip on a high note. Their last two wins have come against the Chicago Blackhawks and the St. Louis Blues.
"I think (winning) leads to added confidence maybe, but I think it goes hand in hand," Head Coach Lane Lambert said. "I keep bringing that Florida trip up, but I thought we played well there. It's just trying to make sure that we maintain every day."

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ISLANDERS NOTES:

• Brock Nelson scored a goal and an assist on Thursday against the St. Louis Blues. The assist was Nelson's 400th career NHL point. It was his second consecutive multi-point game, and his fourth consecutive game with a goal. Nelson leads the Islanders in scoring with 13 points (5G, 8A).
  - Anthony Beauvillier earned his 100th career NHL assist with an assist on Anders Lee's goal on Thursday. Beauvillier has seven points (3G, 4A) so far this year.
  - The Islanders recorded their second four-goal period in three games with a four-goal second period on Thursday and a four-goal third against the Colorado Avalanche on Oct. 29. The Islanders had just two four-goal periods in the 2021-22 season.
  - The Islanders have won five consecutive games for the first time since a nine-game win streak from Feb. 28, 2021 to March 14, 2021.
  - Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored his first goal of the season on an empty-netter. For the first time in franchise history, the Islanders have scored an empty-netter in four consecutive games.
  - Anders Lee earned his second career Gordie Howe hat trick against the Blues with a goal, assist and fight. His first came on Dec. 12, 2019 against the Florida Panthers. Lee also passed Frans Nielsen to sit 16th on the all-time Islander games player leaderboard with 606 games.

RED WINGS NOTES:

• The Red Wings signed Dominik Kubalik as an unrestricted free agent in the offseason. Kubalik has gotten off to a hot start, with 12 points (4G, 8A) in 10 games so far this year. Kubalik was a Calder Trophy finalist in 2019-20 but scored just 32 points (15G, 17A) in 78 games with the Chicago Blackhawks last year.
  - Dylan Larkin leads the Red Wings in scoring with 13 points (6G, 7A). Larkin is on a three-game point streak, and has five points in those three games.
  - The Red Wings are missing forward Tyler Bertuzzi, who suffered an upper body injury on Oct. 15. The team announced he would be out 4-6 weeks on Oct. 17, and he will miss the game against the Islanders. The Red Wings are also missing forward Jakub Vrana, who entered the Player Assistance Program on Oct. 19. No timeline has been given for his return.
  - 2021-22 Calder Trophy winner Moritz Seider has struggled to get going offensively this year, with just two assists in 10 games after a 50-point (7G, 43A) rookie season.
  - David Perron signed a two-year contract with the Red Wings this offseason, the first time he'd signed a contract with a team that wasn't the St. Louis Blues. Perron is third on the team in points with seven (5G, 2A) so far this season.
  - The Red Wings also acquired goaltender Ville Husso from the St. Louis Blues in the offseason. Husso is 4-1-1 this season with a 2.17 GAA, a .934 SV% and a shutout and has won his last two starts. Last season Husso went 25-7-6 with the Blues, posting a 2.56 GAA, a .919 SV% and two shutouts.