UBS Keys to the Game: Islanders at Canadiens

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (34-30-9) VS MONTREAL CANADIENS (20-43-11)7 PM ET | CENTRE BELLWATCH: MSG+ | MSG GO | ESPN+LISTEN: 88.7FM | 103.9FM | 98.7FM
The New York Islanders travel up north to take on the Montreal Canadiens on Friday at Centre Bell.
The Islanders fell 6-3 to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night at PPG Paints Arena, dropping the season series 2-1. Zach Parise, Anders Lee and Zdeno Chara scored for New York in the loss. Jake Guentzel (2G, 2A) and Sidney Crosby (1G, 2A) led the way for the Penguins. Ilya Sorokin stopped 22-of-26 shots in the loss.

The Canadiens are coming off a 5-1 loss the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday night. Ryan Poehling scored the Canadiens' lone goal of the game on the power play, but the Blue Jackets' offense bulldozed the Canadiens for their third straight loss. Sam Montembeault stopped 26 of 31 shots in the loss, while Elvis Merzlikins made 20 of 21 saves in the win.
The season series between the Islanders and Canadiens is knotted at one. New York won 6-2 on Nov. 4 against Montreal, as Brock Nelson scored four goals in the feat, while Oliver Wahlstrom and Anthony Beauvillier also scored to lift the Islanders. Nelson also scored a goal in a 3-2 Islanders loss in a shootout on February 20 to push the game past regulation.

ISLANDERS NOTES:

• With Ilya Sorokin's playing on Thursday, Semyon Varlamov is expected to be in between the pipes on Friday against Montreal. Varlamov is 9-15-2 with a 2.86 GAA, a .914 SV% and two shutouts. Varlamov is 6-3-1 in his last 10 decisions. He has yet to face Montreal this season.
• Zach Parise is hot for the Islanders, burying three goals in the home-and-home series with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Parise now has 14 goals on the season and 407 in his career.
• JG Pageau ranks third on the Islanders in goals (15) with five goals in his last five games.
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• Kieffer Bellows stepped into the lineup in place of Oliver Wahlstrom in Thursday's bout with Pittsburgh. He recorded two shots and six hits in 11:31 total ice time. Bellows recorded an assist in the previous matchup against the Canadiens (Feb. 20).
• Zdeno Chara netted his first goal as an Islander since Jan. 12, 2001 on Thursday night, recording his 11th point on the season. His first point of the season came against the Canadiens (Nov. 4) with an assist in Nelson's second goal of the night.
• Chara's goal was the third and final goal scored for New York in the 6-3 loss against Pittsburgh, with 1:08 left in the game. "Too bad it wasn't earlier in the game," said Chara on his goal. "Hopefully the next one [will] help us win a hockey game."
• The Islanders penalty kill remains sharp, killing 27 of 28 in their last nine games. They sit fourth in the NHL on the penalty kill (85.0%).

CANADIENS NOTES:

• Nick Suzuki is riding a four-game point streak, recording his 56th point of the season in the 5-1 loss to the Blue Jackets. He leads the Canadiens in goals (19) and assists (37).
• The Montreal Canadiens are 12-13-4 since Martin St. Louis became the interim head coach.
• Since the first Canadiens' win under St. Louis on February 17, Cole Caufield boosted his play, scoring 15 goals and 13 assists in 26 games played, which is tied for 30th in the NHL over that span. Caufield netted four goals in his last six games.
• Josh Anderson scored his 100th career NHL goal on Wednesday night against the Winnipeg Jets. The goal was his 18th of the season, and 35th wearing a Canadiens uniform.
• Jeff Petry played in his 500th game as a Hab on Wednesday, and tallied his second point in two games. Notably, he opened up the scoring against the Islanders on February 20 in the 3-2 SO Islanders loss.
• Of their last eight games of the season, the Canadiens will play six of those matchups at home.
• Jake Allen suffered a season-ending groin injury on April 9. Allen was 9-20-4 this season a 3.30 GAA, a .905 SV% and two shutouts.