Game Preview: Islanders vs. Flyers

NEW YORK ISLANDERS VS. PHILADELPHIA FLYERS
7 PM | NASSAU COLISEUM
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The New York Islanders host the Philadelphia Flyers in the second-to-last meeting between the two East Division clubs on Thursday night. It'll be the first leg of a back-to-back set for the Islanders, who will take on the New York Rangers on Friday night.

The Islanders earned their third win in as many games to open a six-game homestand, as they edged out the Washington Capitals 1-0 on Tuesday night. Brock Nelson sealed the victory with a late third period goal, while Semyon Varlamov made 29 saves in the shutout. With the win, the Islanders are now tied with the Caps for first place in the East Division as both teams have earned 54 points.
Philadelphia suffered a 4-2 loss on Tuesday night to the Boston Bruins. Despite evening the score 2-2 in the second period with goals from Jakub Voracek and Shayne Gostisbehere, special teams deemed to be detrimental as the Flyers went 0-for-3 on the power play and 1-for-2 on the penalty kill. Carter Hart made 22 saves in the loss.
The Islanders and Flyers last meeting took place on Saturday night as the Islanders outlasted Philadelphia with a 3-2 shootout win. Anthony Beauvillier scored both of the Islanders goals in regulation, while Claude Giroux duplicated a two-goal effort as well. Mathew Barzal netted the only goal through four rounds in the shootout. Ilya Sorokin earned the win with 30 saves on 32 shots, while Hart made 22 stops on 24 shots.

ISLANDERS NOTES:

*Update: Islanders Head Coach Barry Trotz confirmed that both Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac will join the lineup against the Flyers.
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The Islanders made a huge splash ahead of Monday's trade deadline as they acquired forwards Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac from the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday night
in exchange for forwards A.J. Greer, Mason Jobst, the Islanders first round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft and a conditional fourth round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. New Jersey agrees to retain 50% of both Palmieri and Zajac's salaries. Neither Palmieri nor Zajac will have to undergo any quarantine period due to being local. Both will be able attend the Islanders morning skate ahead of Thursday's game against Philadlephia. Islanders Head Coach Barry Trotz will address the media regarding their status and the Islanders lineup.
• Nelson overtook the Islanders lead in goals as he buried his 14th of the season and his second goal in the last three games. The veteran center now has 23 points (14G, 9A) through 39 games.
• With the primary assist on Nelson's game-winner, Josh Bailey earned his 18th assist (24th point) of the season and his 500th career point. The milestones continue for the veteran winger, who eclipsed 900 games in March and with his 500th point, Bailey became the 489th player of the 7,263 skaters to appear in an NHL game to accomplish such a feat.
ISLANDERS VS FLYERS
ISLANDERS ARTICLES
5 Takeaways: Islanders 1, Capitals 0
Islanders Acquire Palmieri and Zajac from the Devils
Isles Adding for Playoffs with Palmieri and Zajac Acquisitions
Zajac and Palmieri 'Excited' for 'Chance to Win'
ISLANDERS VIDEO
Pregame Video: Barry Trotz
Pregame Video: Andy Greene
GAME EXTRAS
Arena Safety FAQ
Fan Cutout Gallery
Hockey With a Heart
• Varlamov secured his fourth shutout of the season to double the amount of perfect games he had last season (2). The Russian netminder improved his record to 16-7-3, has a 2.17 GAA and a .922 SV%.
• With the win, Islanders President and General Manager Lou Lamoriello earned his 1,319th career win as an NHL GM and tied Glen Sather for second place on the League's all-time list.
• Kieffer Bellows drew into the lineup for the first time since March 27, taking the place of Ross Johnston. The 22-year-old winger skated alongside Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Oliver Wahlstrom.
• Cal Clutterbuck threw a game-high of seven hits against Washington. The veteran winger is tied for fifth overall in the league, with Chicago's Nikita Zadorov, with 134 hits. His linemate Matt Martin is tied for eighth-most hits in the NHL with Washington's Garnet Hathaway with 124 hits.
• Barzal, who was named the NHL's First Star of the Week ending April 4, had his four-game point streak come to an end. During that stretch, the 23-year-old center compiled nine points (4G, 5A). Barzal leads the Islanders in scoring with his 34 points (13G, 21A) through 39 games.
• The Islanders penalty kill was a perfect 2-for-2 against the Caps for the first time during the regular-season series. Having killed off the last five-straight penalties - including three against Philadelphia on Saturday - the Islanders PK now ranks 11th in the league (80.6%).
• Johnston fought Philadelphia blueliner Samuel Morin in the early minutes of the first period of Saturday's game. Johnston skated in one shift after dropping the gloves with Morin and then did not return for the remainder of the game. Johnston has since joined the team at practice on Monday, but did not play on Tuesday night.

FLYERS NOTES:

*Update: Head Coach Alain Vigneault confirmed that Carter Hart will start in net for the Flyers.
• With the loss, the Flyers are currently tied with the Rangers for fifth place in the East Division with 41 points.
• Voracek scored his sixth goal of the season and recorded a two-point (1G, 1A) night. The Czech winger is now tied with James van Riemsdyk for Philadelphia's scoring lead with 31 points (6G, 25A) through 35 games.
• Gostisbehere also scored his sixth goal of the season. The defenseman was placed on, and cleared, waivers just a week prior to the game. Gostisbehere now has 12 points (6G, 6A) in 28 games for the Flyers.
• With the sole assist on Voracek's goal, Travis Konecny extended his point streak (1G, 3A) to three games. The winger has totaled 25 points (8G, 17A) through 32 games this season.
• Ivan Provorov assisted on Gostisbehere's goal and he leads the Flyers' blueline in scoring with 21 points (6G, 15A).
• Hart made his 22nd start of the season while his record fell to 8-10-4. The 22-year-old netminder has a 3.88 GAA and a .871 SV%.
• Oskar Lindblom returned to the lineup after missing one game to manage workloads as noted by Philadelphia Head Coach Alain Vigneault.
• Philadelphia's penalty kill is ranked second-to-last in the NHL at 72.8%. The Flyers have given up the second-most power-play goals against with 31, behind only Nashville (34).
• On the power play, Philadelphia went 0-for-3 and relinquished one shorthanded goal against Boston. The Flyers power play is 21st in the league and is tied with Chicago and Boston for the most shorthanded goals against in the NHL at five.
• The Flyers are still one of the top teams in the faceoff circle and are ranked third in the league with a FOW% of 53.1%. Philadelphia captain Giroux leads his team with a 58.2 FOW%.