Game Preview: Islanders at Wild

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (5-2-2) AT MINNESOTA WILD (7-3-0)
8 P.M. ET | XCEL ENERGY CENTER
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The New York Islanders 13-game road trip continues in Minnesota on Sunday, but for Zach Parise, it'll be a homecoming.
Parise is returning to Minnesota for the first time since being bought out by the team over the summer. Parise spent nine seasons with the Wild, racking up 400 points (199G, 201A) in 558 games. He's third in goals and points, seventh in games played and eighth in assists in Wild history.
"It'll be a little weird, a lot of different feelings and emotions going there as a visitor now," Parise said earlier in the week. "Seeing all of the people you're so familiar with and spent a lot of time with the last 10 years. You want to go in, get the win and get out, but it's going to be a lot of different feelings throughout the day."

Parise hastwo points in nine games for the Islanders, playing on a line with JG Pageau and Oliver Wahlstrom. Parise, who signed a one-year deal with the Islanders in the offseason, had one of these homecoming experiences before, returning to New Jersey after spending seven years with the Devils. This time is a little different he points out, since he was bought out by the Wild in the offseason, a place he assumed was going to end his career when he signed a 13-year deal in 2012. That's not on his mind though, as he insists he's turned the page and is focused on contributing to the Islanders.
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"I've moved on," said Parise, who picked up his first two points as an Islander on Thursday in Montreal. "I love where I'm at. We've got a great hockey team here. It's a really fun group of players to be around and that's made the transition that much easier. I've moved forward, moved on and am having a lot of fun playing hockey here."
There's still a little unfinished business for Parise, whose last game in Minnesota was in front of a reduced 4,500-person crowd, given the COVID restrictions on gathering size. He's looking forward to playing in front of a packed house, a chance to say thanks and goodbye.
"I think it's going to be great," Parise said. "They have such a good fanbase there, loyal fans, they love the team and the fanbase was always great to my family and I when I was there. I'm excited to play in front of them again, it's been a long time unfortunately since they could have those same sold-out crowds we're used to."
The Islanders know what a win would mean to Parise on Sunday, so they're looking to get him another good memory in the familiar confines of Xcel Energy Center.
"I'm excited for him to get back and play in front of his family and have a good night for him and to back him up," Edina, MN native and Islanders Captain Anders Lee said. "It's always nice, we have a few Minnesota guys too, so anytime you can play in front of family, it's a good night."

ISLES NOTES:

• The Islanders extended their point streak to seven games (5-0-2) with a 2-0 shutout win over the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday night. Ilya Sorokin stopped 24 shots for his third shutout of the season, while Anders Lee and Brock Nelson scored for the Islanders.
  - With his goal, Nelson has five goals in the past two games. He leads the team with seven goals and nine points this season.
  - Josh Bailey and Kyle Palmieri each picked up an assist against the Jets. Both skaters now lead the team with helpers with five (5) assists each.
  - The Islanders are playing the second half of a back-to-back set. They are 1-0-0 on the second night of a back-to-back this season. Per Eric Hornick:
  Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 22-4-4 (.800) in back-ends. This is by far the best record of any NHL team in back-ends during this stretch. Tampa Bay has the next best record: 21-9-3 (.682).
  - The Islanders are now 5-1-2 when scoring first.
  - Semyon Varlamov is expected to make his season debut, as Head Coach Barry Trotz said he planned on splitting the back-to-back set.

WILD NOTES:

• The Wild are also playing the second night of a back-to-back set, after a5-4 shootout win against Pittsburgh on Saturday night. Like the Islanders, the Wild also had to travel to Minnesota after Saturday's game, so neither team will have the advantage of being rested. Ryan Hartman scored with three seconds on the clock to send the game into OT, while Kirill Kaprisov, Joel Eriksson Ek, Jared Spurgeon also scored in regulation. Cam Talbot made 35 saves on 39 shots in the victory.
  - Kaprizov posted a two-point (1G, 1A) outing and leads the Wild in scoring with 10 points (2G, 8A) in as many games. The Russian winger has goals in back-to-back games and four points (2G, 2A) during that span.
  - Eriksson Ek scored his fourth goal of the season and now has six points through 10 games.
  - Spurgeon registered his second goal of the season and has compiled five points through 10 games.
  - Hartman notched his team-high fifth goal of the season. The winger has scored in three of his last four games.
  - Talbot improve his record to 7-2-0 in his ninth start of the season. He now has a 2.85 GAA and a .904 SV%.
  - Alex Goligoski returned to the Minnesota lineup on Saturday night after missing three games with an upper-body injury.The defenseman recorded one assist, one shot, one hit and three blocks in his 20:15 of ice time.
  - Mats Zuccarello could return to the Wild lineup on Sunday night after being placed on the COVID-19 protocol list on Oct. 28 and missing the team's last four games. The winger had seven points (3G, 4A) in six games prior to being put on the COVID-19 list.