Game Preview: Islanders vs Oilers

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (34-17-6) VS EDMONTON OILERS (24-28-5)
7 PM | BARCLAYS CENTER | BUY TICKETS
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MORNING SKATE UPDATES | GAME NOTES

Video: Morning Skate 2/16: Lou Lamoriello

ISLANDERS NOTES:

• The Islanders (74 points) lead the Metropolitan Division with 74 points, three points up on the Washington Capitals (71 points) and seven points up on the Columbus Blue Jackets and Pittsburgh Penguins (67 points).
  Click here for the full NHL standings.
  - Saturday's game will be the 143rd regular season game in Brooklyn and the final regular-season game this season. After Saturday, the Isles' final 12 home games will all be at NYCB Live - Nassau Coliseum. The Islanders are 77-47-18 all-time at Barclays, including an 11-6-2 record in Brooklyn this season.
  Saturday may not be the final game at Barclays Center this season, as the team announced its arena plans for the playoffs on Friday. Should the team qualify for the postseason, first round games will be played at NYCB Live, while any further rounds would be played in Brooklyn.
  Click here for more details and the full announcement.
  - Casey Cizikas has three goals in his last two games. Cizikas netted two goals - including the game-winner - in the Isles 3-0 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Islanders forward has career-high 15 goals this season.
  - Thomas Greiss recorded a 31-save shutout on Thursday night, his third shutout in his last five starts. Greiss is 5-0-1 in his last six games and has stopped 185-of-188 shots over that span. The Islanders goalie has the NHL's best save percentage (.930) while Robin Lehner is second with a .929 SV%. Lehner leads the NHL with a 2.08 GAA, while Greiss is second with a 2.20 GAA.
  Read: Lehner and Greiss Leading NHL Goalies
  Video: Morning Skate 2/16: Barry Trotz
  - After beating a Metro Division rival on Thursday, the Islanders next five games will all be against Western Canadian opponents (vs Edmonton, at Calgary, at Edmonton, at Vancouver, vs Calgary).
  - The Islanders have won four of their last five games, most recently beating the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-0. The Isles are 6-2-2 in their last 10 and 20-5-2 in their last 27 games.
  - With a win, the Islanders (34-17-6) can match their win total from all of last season (35-37-10).
  - Andrew Ladd and Thomas Hickey both participated in the Islanders practice on Friday. Barry Trotz did not offer any updates regarding their respective returns, but said both players are getting closer.
  "It's the first time I've seen them not look really rusty," Trotz said. "They're getting real close and confident they're getting close. We'll see where we go from here."
  UPDATE: Ladd and Hickey were loaned to Bridgeport on a conditioning stint on Saturday morning, as well as placed on long term injured reserve (LTIR). The Sound Tigers host Hartford at 7 p.m. on Saturday and host Charlotte at 3 p.m. on Sunday. Read more at Isles Day to Day.

OILERS NOTES:

• With 53 points, the Oilers are sixth in the Pacific Division and are seven points back of the second wild card in the Western Conference. It's a crowded field, with eight teams separated by eight points vying for the final playoff spots, so the Islanders should expect a desperate Oilers team on Saturday.
  - So far, it's been a tumultuous season in Edmonton, as the Oilers fired both Head Coach Todd McLellan on Nov. 20 and General Manager Peter Chiarelli on Jan. 23. Ken Hitchcock replaced McLellan as Head Coach and is 15-18-4 behind the bench with the Oilers. The Oilers are 1-4-2 since Chiarelli's dismissal. Keith Gretzky is serving as interim GM.
  - The Oilers made a late-night trade on Friday, sending goalie Cam Talbot to Philadelphia for goalie Anthony Stolarz. Stolarz, 25, was 4-3-3 record, a 3.33 GAA and a .902 SV% for the Flyers this season. Talbot was 10-15-3 this season for Edmonton with a 3.36 GAA and a .893 SV%
  - As a result of the trade, Mikko Koskinen gets the start for the Oilers, one night after playing in Carolina. Koskinen is 14-13-2 for the Oilers this season with a 2.86 GAA and a .907 SV%. The Finnish goalie is also a former Islander, drafted by the team in 2009 (R2, P31) and played four games with the team in the 2010-11 season, going 2-1-0.
  - The Oilers are playing the second half of a back-to-back set - with travel - on Saturday after losing 3-1 to the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday night in Raleigh. Edmonton has lost three straight games.
  - Connor McDavid leads the Oilers with 82 points (31G, 51A) in 56 games this season. McDavid is the two-time, defending Art Ross Trophy winner, but his reign as the NHL's scoring leader is being threatened by Tampa's Nikita Kucherov, who leads the league with 92 points.
  The Isles have been relatively good at keeping McDavid in check, as the Oilers superstar has four points (3G, 1A) in six career games against the Islanders - his fewest points against any team, albeit a team he does not play as frequently.
  - Leon Draisaitl is also having a strong statistical season for Edmonton, with a career-high - and team-leading - 34 goals this season. Draisaitl is tied with Patrick Kane for the third-most goals in the NHL this season.
  UPDATE:The Oilers acquired forward Sam Gagner from the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday morning for Ryan Spooner. Gagner previously spent seven seasons in Edmonton, recording 295 points (101G, 194A) in 481 games. The veteran center had three points (1G, 2A) in seven games with the Canucks this season. Spooner had three points (2G, 1A) in 25 games with the Oilers after being acquired from the New York Rangers for Ryan Strome on Nov. 16.
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  *Graphic courtesy of Islanders PR