Game Preview: Islanders vs Panthers

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (11-3-1) VS FLORIDA PANTHERS (7-3-5)
1 PM | BARCLAYS CENTER | BUY TICKETS
HOCKEY FIGHTS CANCER GAME
WATCH: MSG+ | MSG GO
LISTEN: 88.7FM | 103.9FM | 1050AM
The New York Islanders 10-game winning streak may be over, but the Isles still bring an 11-game point streak into Saturday's matinee against the Florida Panthers.
The Isles (11-3-1) are coming off of a 4-3 overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night that ended their winning streak at 10 games. The Islanders fell to the Pens after relinquishing a 3-0 lead and allowing three-straight, third-period goals before losing with 1:35 remaining in overtime. Casey Cizikas, Cal Clutterbuck and Adam Pelech scored in the loss, Semyon Varlamov made 35 saves.

The Panthers are also coming off of an overtime loss, falling 5-4 to the Washington Capitals on Thursday. Frank Vatrano, Brett Connolly, Aleksander Barkov, Evgeni Dadonov scored for the Panthers. Sergei Bobrovsky had 26 saves.
The Islanders and Panthers will face each other for the second time this season.

ISLES NOTES:

• Cizikas scored his second goal of the season on Thursday, giving him goals in back-to-back contests. Cizikas has five points (2G, 3A) through 10 games this season.
  - Clutterbuck scored a shorthanded goal on Thursday for his second goal of the season, which was also his second goal in as many games. Clutterbuck's goal was the Isles second shorty in back-to-back games.
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  - Pelech's goal midway through the second period was his first goal of the season. Pelech finished the night with two points as he assisted on Clutterbuck's shorthanded goal. Pelech has five points (1G, 4A) through 15 games.
  - Varlamov made 35 saves in his eighth start of the season. Varlamov has a record of 5-2-1, a goals against average of 2.37 and a save percentage of .924.
  - Varlamov has split the pipes this season with Thomas Greiss, who is the expected starter on Saturday. Greiss is ranked fourth in the league for goals against (among goaltenders who have played at least five games) of 2.00. Through eight games, Greiss has a record of 7-6-1, a 2.00 GAA and a .937 SV%, which is ranked third highest in the NHL.
  - Leo Komarov (IR - illness/neck), Jordan Eberle (IR - lower body) and Nick Leddy (DTD - lower body) practiced with the Islanders on Friday. Head Coach Barry Trotz suggested that one or more could take warmups, but did not commit to their status for Saturday.
  - Otto Koivula was recalled from the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Friday afternoon.
  - Mathew Barzal assisted on Pelech's goal giving him 12 points this season. Barzal and Josh Bailey lead the Isles in both goals (6) and points (12). Barzal is ranked fifth in the league for plus/minus with a plus-10 rating.
  - The Isles power play went 0-for-1 against the Pens. In the NHL, the Islanders power play is ranked 15th with a conversion of 20%. The Isles have drawn a league-low number of penalties at 25.
  - Against Pittsburgh, the Isles PK was 2-for-2. Overall, the Isles PK is ranked seventh at 86%.
  - The Isles lead the league in goals against at 34 and an average of 2.27.
  - Through the Isles' 11-game point streak 16 different players have scored a goal.
  - The Isles are 11-3-1; their 23 points matches the third-highest total through 15 games in the club history (24 points in 1976-77 and 2001-
  02).
  - Throughout the last eight games, the Isles have killed 24-of-25 penalties and scored two shorthanded goals. During that span, the Isles are 1-for-13 on the power play and have allowed a shorthanded goal.

ISLES VS. PANTHERS:

• The Isles last defeated the Panthers 3-2 in a shootout on Oct. 12th. Anders Lee and Josh Bailey scored for the Isles and Denis Malgin and Dadonov scored for the Panthers in regulation. Brock Nelson scored the shootout winner.
  - The win was the first victory of the Islanders 10-game winning streak.
  - The Isles are 3-1-1 in the last five games against Florida but are 0-3-1 in their last four Barclays Center games against the Cats.

PANTHERS NOTES:

• The Panthers held a 3-1 lead early in the second period, but allowed four of the next five goals in their OT loss. Tom Wilson who also scored the OT winner for the Capitals.
  - Brett Connolly has scored goals in back-to-back games for the Panthers. Through 15 games this season, Connolly has 11 points (6G, 5A), including one power-play goal.
  - Aleksander Barkov scored his third goal of the season. Barkov has six points (3G, 3A) in the past three games and is riding a three-game goal/point streak. Through 15 games this season, the 24-year-old center has 19 points (3G, 16A). Barkov is second in the league for assists with 16, behind Connor McDavid, John Carlson and Brad Marchand who are tied for a league-high 18 assists. Barkov's 19 points is seventh best in the NHL.
  - Jonathan Huberdeau is tied with Barkov for the Panthers team-high 19 points (9G, 10A) and seventh best in the NHL.
  - Vincent Trocheck is expected to return to the Panthers lineup on Saturday. Trocheck has missed the past seven games with a lower-body injury.
  - Evgenii Dadonov leads the team in power-play goals with three. Through 15 games, Dadonov has 13 points (7G, 6A).
  - Sergei Bobrovsky made his 12th start of the season with his new club. Through 13 games this year, Bobrovsky posted a record of 6-2-4,
  a goals against average of 3.50 and a save percentage of .878.
  - Against the Caps, the Panthers power play went 1-for-5. In the NHL, Florida's PP is ranked 10th with a conversion percentage of 21.7%.
  - The Panthers penalty kill went 3-for-4 against Washington. In the League, Florida's penalty kill is ranked ninth at 85%.