UBS Keys to the Game: Islanders at Blue Jackets

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (28-27-9) VS COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS (32-29-5)7:00 PM ET | NATIONWIDE ARENA WATCH| MSG+ | MSG GO | ESPN+LISTEN: 88.7FM | 103.9FM | 1050AM
The New York Islanders look to get back into the win column as they play the Columbus Blue Jackets in a home-and-home set beginning on Tuesday night at Nationwide Arena.

The Islanders lost their second-straight game on Sunday, dropping a 4-1 result to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Brock Nelson scored the Islanders' lone goal. Ilya Sorokin started the game and made 18 saves on 20 shots through two periods of play, but did not return for the final period due to an upper-body injury. In his place, Semyon Varlamov took over for the final 20 minutes and made 12 saves on 14 shots.
The Blue Jackets suffered back-to-back overtime losses with their most recent one featuring a 3-2 result against Minnesota on Saturday night. Jake Bean and Jakub Voracek scored in regulation, while Elvis Merzlikins made 35 saves on 38 shots.
In the first two meetings of the season series between the Islanders and Blue Jackets have been split with Columbus claiming the first one with an overtime win in October and the Islanders blanking them in the second game by a 6-0 score on March 10.

ISLANDERS NOTES:

• Nelson scored his team-leading 31st goal of the season just one day after he officially eclipsed the 30-goal mark for the first time in his career. The goal extended the centerman's goal streak to three games where he tallied four goals in that span. Nelson is tied with Minnesota's Kirill Kaprizov for the lead in the NHL for goals in the month of March with 12. He is also tied with Auston Matthews for the league lead in goals since Feb. 17 with 16 in that stretch. Nelson leads the Islanders in scoring with 46 points through 55 games.
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• With an assist on Nelson's goal, Adam Pelech recorded a career-high of 20 assists. Through 60 games, the defenseman has produced 23 points (3G, 20A), which is also a career-high.
• Sorokin made his 43rd start of the season and was confirmed by Islanders Head Coach Barry Trotz to be listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury. The 26-year-old Russian netminder owns a 22-14-7 record, a 2.30 GAA, a ,927 SV% and six shutouts this season.
• Through 23 games this season, Varlamov has a 6-13-2 record, a 2.87 GAA, a .913 SV% and one shutout.
• Anders Lee's three-game point streak came to an end where the Islanders captain had totaled seven points (2G, 5A) in that span. Through 58 games this season, Lee has compiled 38 points (25G, 13A).
• Grant Hutton was recalled from the Islanders' AHL affiliate the Bridgeport Islanders the day of the game. The defenseman replaced Sebastian Aho in the lineup. Hutton totaled 16:46 of ice time and threw one hit.
• The Islanders were 0-for-3 on the power play and 3-for-4 on the penalty kill against the Lightning. In the NHL, the Islanders' rank 18th on the power play at 20.5% and sixth on the penalty kill at 82.9%.
• The loss to the Lightning snapped the Islanders' six-game win streak on home ice.

BLUE JACKETS NOTES:

• Bean tallied his fifth goal of the season. The 23-year-old defenseman now has 18 points (5G, 13A) through 51 games.
• Voracek also buried his fifth goal of the season and extended his point streak to five games where the Czech winger has recorded as many points (2G, 3A) in that span. Through 63 games, Voracek has produced 48 points (5G, 43A).
• Merzlikins made his 42nd start of the season and owns a 22-15-5 record, a 3.39 GAA, a .903 SV% and two shutouts.
• Defenseman Zach Werenski left the game against Minnesota late in the first period with an upper-body injury. The 24-year-old leads Columbus' blueline in scoring with 42 points (10G, 32A) through 60 games.
• The Blue Jackets were 0-for-2 on the power play and 1-for-2 on the penalty kill against Minnesota. In the NHL, Columbus ranks 21st on the power play at 19.2% and 20th on the penalty kill at 77.5%.
• Patrik Laine and Oliver Bjorkstrand lead the Blue Jackets in scoring with 49 points each. Laine also leads the team in goals with 25, while Bjorkstrand ranks second with 23.
• Since Jan. 27, the Blue Jackets rank 10th in the league in points percentage at .615 (14-8-4).
• The Blue Jackets have set a new franchise record this year with 21 come-from-behind wins.
• On the injury front, Columbus is without goaltenders Joonas Korpisalo and Daniil Tarasov, who are both out for the remainder of the season after both undergoing hip surgeries, captain Boone Jenner, who is week-to-week with a back injury, and Alexandre Texier, who is out indefinitely on a personal leave of absence.