Game Preview: Islanders vs Sharks

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (2-3-0) VS SAN JOSE SHARKS (0-3-2)

UBS ARENA | 7 PM | BUY TICKETS

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The New York Islanders are back in action to take on the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday at UBS Arena, kicking off a two-game homestand.

The Islanders earned their first road win of the season on Saturday, defeating the Ottawa Senators 5-4. Anders Lee led the way with a three-point performance (2G, 1A) including the game-winner with 1:03 remaining in the final frame. Emil Heineman, Bo Horvat and Kyle Palmieri also put up goals in the win, while Ilya Sorokin turned aside 29 of 33 shots faced.

The Sharks are coming off a 3-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, where Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 24 of 26 shots against his former team. Tuesday’s game at UBS Arena is the first stop of a four-game road trip for San Jose.

MORNING SKATE UPDATES

Islanders projected lines:

Jonathan Drouin - Bo Horvat - Emil Heineman
Anthony Duclair - Mathew Barzal - Kyle Palmieri
Anders Lee - Jean-Gabriel Pageau - Max Shabanov
Max Tsyplakov - Casey Cizikas - Simon Holmstrom

Adam Pelech - Ryan Pulock
Adam Boqvist - Tony DeAngelo
Matthew Schaefer - Scott Mayfield

Ilya Sorokin

***Sharks projected lines:***

Tyler Toffoli - Macklin Celebrini - Will Smith
William Eklund - Alex Wennberg - Skinner
Collin Graf - Michael Misa - Adam Gaudette
Barclay Goodrow - Ty Dellandrea - Ryan Reaves

Dimitry Orlov - Mario Ferraro
Nick Leddy - Vincent Iorio
Sam Dickinson - Vincent Desharnais

Yaroslav Askarov

ROMANOV OUT, BOQVIST DRAWS IN

Alexander Romanov (day to day, upper body) was absent for morning skate on Tuesday and Head Coach Patrick Roy confirmed that the defenseman will miss his second consecutive game.

For the second straight game, Adam Boqvist will draw into the lineup in his place on a pair with Tony DeAngelo.

TSYPLAKOV TO DRAW BACK IN

Max Tsyplakov is expected to draw back into the lineup with Casey Cizikas and Simon Holmstrom after sitting for two games.

It’s a new combination and Roy said he’s tinkering with that line – Kyle MacLean drew in for Tsyplakov for the past two games – but the goal is to get different guys in the mix, which speaks to the team’s depth at forward.

“We’ve got a lot of good players, we’re going to rotate some guys,” Roy said. “Some guys are going to be in an out of the lineup. MacLean has been playing some good hockey but that’s the situation he’s in.”

As for Tsyplakov, Roy is looking for defensive responsibility and good decisions with the puck when he draws back in on Tuesday.

SOROKIN TO START VS SHARKS

Sorokin will be between the pipes on Tuesday, earning his second consecutive start.

The netminder is 1-3-0 this season, along with a 4.13 GAA and a .860 SV%. Against San Jose, Sorokin is 3-0-3 lifetime along with a .923 SV% and a 2.43 GAA.

RATTLING OFF TWO REGULATION WINS

The Islanders have won two consecutive games heading into Tuesday’s test against the Sharks. Though the win streak is a confidence-booster for the Isles, there are areas to tighten up defensively and they got a good practice in on Monday.

“We have some stuff to clean up from that Ottawa game, but thought we did a good job today looking at that and getting ourselves ready,” Lee said.

STRONG THIRD PERIODS

The Islanders haven’t allowed a goal in the third period for two straight games, locking it down in both wins. Resilience was on display Saturday, where the Isles dug their way out of 2-0, 3-2 and 4-3 deficits for the win.

“For the most part, we’ve been smart [in third periods],” Lee said. “We knew what we had to do in Ottawa and where that game was going. We corrected some things in the last 20 to put ourselves in a position to come back.”

SCHAEFER'S STREAK

Matthew Schaefer has already made history as the youngest defenseman to open his career with a five-game point streak, but if he hits the scoresheet again on Tuesday, he’ll join exclusive company.

If Schaefer extends his streak to six games on Tuesday, he will tie the longest point streak to begin an NHL career by a defenseman, which was set by Marek Zidlicky in 2003-04.

ALL ABOUT THE HITS

Emil Heineman leads the Islanders with 21 hits this season. Physicality is hard-wired into his game, as the 6’2,” 204 lbs. winger tied for the team lead in hits per game (2.79) in Montreal last season.

“Heineman is all-around, a heck of a player,” Drouin said. “He’s very good on the forecheck, he’s physical and skates well.”

CIZIKAS CLIMBING THE FRANCHISE LEADERBOARD

Casey Cizikas surpassed Brock Nelson in career games played for the franchise, skating in his 902^nd game on Saturday. The only three Islanders with more – Bryan Trottier, Denis Potvin and Josh Bailey – are all in the 1,000 games club.

SEASON SERIES

The Islanders swept the season series last year (2-0-0) and have a six-game point streak (5-0-1) against the Sharks in their last six matchups.

ACROSS THE ICE

The Sharks (0-3-2) are looking for their first win of the season. They have missed the playoffs for six straight years.

ATOP THE SHARKS LEADERBOARD

2024 first-overall pick Macklin Celebrini leads the Sharks with five points (1G, 4A) through the first five games of his second NHL season. The 19-year-old led San Jose in scoring last season with 63 points (25G, 38A) as a rookie.

Veteran winger Jeff Skinner leads the Sharks with three goals through his first five games with the team after he signed as a free agent over the offseason.

MISA MADE HIS DEBUT

The Islanders will get a look at the 2025 second-overall pick Michael Misa on Tuesday night. The 18year-old made his NHL debut for the Sharks on Oct. 14, skating 15:06 TOI. He was a healthy scratch for the first two games of the season.