UBS Keys to the Game: Islanders vs. Bruins

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (17-20-6) VS BOSTON BRUINS (24-16-4)7:30 PM ET | UBS ARENA | BUY TICKETSWATCH: MSG+ | MSG GO | ESPN+LISTEN: 88.7FM | 103.9FM | 1050 AM
Following a four-game road trip, the New York Islanders return home for two games beginning with a meeting against the Boston Bruins on Thursday night at UBS Arena.

It's an important matchup for the Islanders, who are in need of a win after going 1-3-0 in their four-game road trip. Their most recent loss featured a 6-3 result to the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday night.
Kyle Palmieri scored twice for the Islanders, while Anders Lee also got on the board, but the Sabres broke the 3-3 tie with 2:55 left to play and added two empty-net goals for good measure. Ilya Sorokin made 35 saves on 39 shots in the loss.
The Islanders boast an overall record of 17-20-6 and are chasing a team like Boston (24-16-4) for playoff positioning. In order to stay in the battle for a ticket to the postseason, the Islanders know they need to start collecting points at every opportunity available - especially against the teams ahead of them in the Eastern Conference.
"These are games that we have to start having," Lee said following the loss to Buffalo. "These are moments that we have to start being successful in. That's how we're going to have to start to be able to dig out of this. If this keeps happening, we're going to be looking on the wrong side."
Boston enters Thursday's contest on Long Island after collecting a point in a shootout loss to the New York Rangers on Tuesday night. Charlie Coyle scored the Bruins' lone goal in regulation as well as once in the shootout along with one from Jake DeBrusk, but the Rangers ultimately rose victorious in the ninth round of the shootout. Jeremy Swayman made 33 saves on 34 shots.
The Islanders and Bruins last played on Dec. 16, where the Islanders collected a 3-1 win.

ISLANDERS NOTES:

• The Islanders are 3-7-0 in their last 10 games.
• Palmieri scored his second and third goals of the season after being sidelined since Feb. 2. The veteran winger has nine points (3G, 6A) through 30 games.
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• Lee buried his 13th goal of the season. The Islanders' captain has 19 points (13G, 6A) through 38 games.
• Sorokin made his 30th start of the season and owns a 14-11-5 record, a 2.51 GAA, a .919 SV% and four shutouts.
• Sebastian Aho drew in the lineup in place of Andy Greene, playing for the first time since Dec. 19 vs the Vegas Golden Knights. Aho played 16:51 and blocked three shots.
• The Islanders relinquished a shorthanded goal against the Sabres which marked the sixth time this season that they've done so.
• They were 0-for-2 on the power play and 1-for-2 on the penalty kill. In the NHL, the Islanders' power play ranks 22nd at 18%, while their penalty kill ranks 11th at 82.1%.
• The Islanders also allowed a goal in the final minute of the period for the fourth time since Jan. 22. It also marked the third time in that span it has come in the last six seconds.
• Buffalo scored the opening goal, forcing the Islanders to constantly chase the game. The Islanders are 13-4-4 when scoring first and are 4-16-2 when allowing the opening goal.
• Goaltender Cory Schneider was recalled from the Islanders' AHL affiliate the Bridgeport Islanders on Monday morning as Semyon Varlamov remains in COVID-19 protocol back in Calgary, where he tested positive. As of Tuesday, Trotz did not have an update on Varlamov's return.

BRUINS NOTES:

• Coyle scored his 11th goal of the season and now has 22 points (11G, 11A) through 47 games.
• Swayman made his 19th start of the season and owns a 9-7-3 record, a 2.15 GAA, a .923 SV% and two shutouts.
• Defenseman Matt Gryzelcyk returned to Boston's lineup after being sidelined one game with an upper-body injury. Gryzelcyk skated alongside Brandon Carlo and logged 19:24 time on ice and fired off four shots.
• The Bruins were 0-for-1 on the power play and 1-for-1 on the penalty kill against the Rangers. In the NHL, Boston's power play ranks seventh overall at 25.2%, while their PK ranks 10th at 82.5%.
• Boston boasts is ranked fourth overall with a 53.7% faceoff win percentage (FOW%). However, they were bested in the circle against the Rangers, who won 55% of faceoffs.
• Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron has been sidelined since Feb. 9 due to a head injury but is set to return to the lineup against the Islanders
as confirmed by Bergeron himself following Boston's practice on Wednesday afternoon
. Bergeron is expected to center a line with Taylor Hall and David Pastrnak. Through 43 games, the 36-year-old has posted 35 points (12G, 23A). Bergeron's absence has had an impact in Boston's FOW, as the veteran centerman leads all NHL skaters with a 63.3 FOW%.
• Winger Brad Marchand traveled with the team to New York to appeal his six-game suspension for roughing and high-sticking Pittsburgh netminder Tristan Jarry on Feb. 8. So far, Marchand has served three games of his six-game sentence. Marchand leads the Bs in scoring with 49 points (21G, 28A) through 39 games.
• The Bruins' other netminder Linus Ullmark boasts a 16-7-1 record, a 2.78 GAA and a .909 SV%.