Game Preview: Islanders vs Penguins

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (19-14-2) VS PITTSBURGH PENGUINS (19-9-5)
7:30 PM | UBS ARENA | BUY TICKETS
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After three days off, the New York Islanders are back in action, as they take on the Pittsburgh Penguins at UBS Arena.
The Islanders are coming off a 5-1 win over the Florida Panthers on Friday night, while the Penguins are coming off a 4-3 OT loss to the Metropolitan Division leading Carolina Hurricanes. The Islanders come back from the break with 40 points, two points back of the Washington Capitals for the second Wild Card spot, with one game in hand. The Penguins have 43 points and currently sit in third place in the Metro Division.

This marks the first meeting between the Islanders and Penguins this season. Last season the teams split a pair of game at UBS Arena, with the COVID-depleted Islanders falling 1-0 on Black Friday, while winning 5-4 in a shootout on April 12.
The Islanders are 10-5-3 in their last 18 home games against Pittsburgh.

ISLANDERS NOTES:

UPDATE: Brock Nelson and Casey Cizikas both participated in Tuesday's morning skate. Head Coach Lane Lambert said while both players are "game-time decisions" they "seem to be okay."
Simon Holmstrom, who left Friday's game in the second period, did not participate on Tuesday. Kyle Palmieri and Cal Clutterbuck are both skating on their own, but have not rejoined the team, per Lambert. There were no updates on Semyon Varlamov or Adam Pelech.
- Brock Nelson and Simon Holmstrom both left Friday's win over Florida and did not return. Head Coach Lane Lambert did not have an update on either player after the game, so any clarity on their status will come after morning skate.
Nelson leads the team with 34 points. Holmstrom has two points (1G, 1A) in 14 games.
They join a growing list of injured Islanders. Casey Cizikas missed Friday's game with an upper-body injury, while Adam Pelech (upper body), Kyle Palmieri (upper body), Cal Clutterbuck (upper body) and Semyon Varlamov (lower body) were all on IR ahead of the holiday break.
- Aatu Raty scored his first NHL in his first NHL game on Friday. Per Eric Hornick, Raty is the 391st player to score a goal, the 21st Islanders player to score a goal in his NHL debut and his first to score in his first game since Alan Quine on April 9, 2016 vs Buffalo.
- Ilya Sorokin snapped a seven-start winless streak with his win on Friday. Sorokin's victory was his first since Black Friday, though the Islanders goaltender was credited with a 46-save shutout during his stretch between wins. He is the 13th Islanders netminder to win 50 games for the club.
Sorokin started both nights of the Islanders back-to-back with Varlamov out nursing a lower-body injury. Sorokin's next game will be his 100th NHL appearance.
Sorokin is 2-3-0 lifetime in regular season play against the Penguins with a 2.91 GAA, a .902 SV% and one shutout. He is 4-0 with a 1.95 GAA and a .943 SV% in postseason action vs the Pens.
ISLES VS PENGUINS
ISLANDERS ARTICLES
3 Takeaways: Islanders 5, Panthers 1
The Islanders Holiday Album
Questions and Isles: Beach or Lake
Talkin' Isles: Barry Landers
GAME EXTRAS
Hockey With A Heart: Guide Dog Foundation
Pucks and Paws
Reverse Retro Jersey
Talkin' Isles
Isles Season Tickets
Getting Here
Parking
- Anthony Beauvillier scored a pair of goals against the Panthers, netting the 100th and 101st goals of his NHL career - becoming the 32nd player in team history to score 100 goals. Beauvillier's two-goal outing was his first multigoal game since May 1, 2021. With an assist on Raty's first-career goal, Beauvillier notched his first three-point game of the season.

PENGUINS NOTES:

• Sidney Crosby leads the Penguins with 43 points (19G, 24A) in 33 games. Sixteen of Crosby's goals have come at even strength, as have 33 of his total points. The Penguins captain has only been held off the scoresheet in 10 of the Penguins 33 games so far this season.
  - Since Nov. 16, the Penguins have been one of the hottest teams in the NHL with a 13-2-2 record. The Penguins are tied with the Boston Bruins with 13 wins and an .824 points percentage over that span. The strong stretch came on the heels of an 0-6-1 slump.
  - The Penguins 94.1% penalty kill leads the league since Nov. 16 and are currently tied with the San Jose Sharks for the top PK in the league at 84.8% over the season.
  - Tristan Jarry is currently tied for fifth in the league with 15 wins this season. The Penguins goaltender is 15-3-4 overall with a 2.67 GAA, a .920 SV% and one shutout.
  - The Penguins have three players scoring at a point-per-game in Crosby, Jake Guentzel (33 points in 29 games) and Evgeni Malkin (33 points in 33 games). Malkin's nine-game point streak (3G, 10A) was snapped vs Carolina on Thursday.
  - Defenseman Kris Letang played in the Penguins last six games, returning to the lineup after suffering the second stroke of his career. Letang returned to practice 10 days after suffering the stroke and only missed five games. He has 16 points (2G, 14A) in 27 games this season.