First Look: New York Islanders

After advancing all the way to the Eastern Conference Final last year, the New York Islanders were defeated in six games by the eventual champion, the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Islanders came into this year looking to build off of last year's success, making just a few changes to their roster this offseason.

And while the Islanders got off to a hot start, they have failed to win any of their recent games, going 0-3-2 in their last five. They currently rank last in the East division with a 3-4-2 record for eight points.
And just like Pittsburgh, New York comes into this game following an unexpected break, as their previous two games against Buffalo were postponed due to the NHL's COVID protocols.
Here is their projected lineup…
Anders Lee-Mathew Barzal-Josh Bailey
Dmytro Timashov-Brock Nelson-Jordan Eberle
Michael Dal Colle-Jean-Gabriel Pageau-Austin Czarnik
Matt Martin-Casey Cizikas-Cal Clutterbuck
Adam Pelech-Ryan Pulock
Nick Leddy-Scott Mayfield
Andy Greene-Noah Dobson
Semyon Varlamov
Ilya Sorokin
FORWARDS: With the exception of the addition of Dmytro Timashov, a 24-year-old forward acquired from Detroit in the offseason, New York's top-six is unchanged from last year.
Mathew Barzal has been driving the offense, as the skilled young star has already posted four goals and 10 points. He and his linemates all had good showings in the Islanders' last postseason run - as Josh Bailey led the team with 20 points in 22 games, Barzal ranked second with 18 and Anders Lee scored seven goals - and have been building on that thus far.
The second line is centered by Brock Nelson, who tied for first on the Islanders with nine goals in the playoffs after scoring a career-high 26 during the regular season to go along with 54 points in only 68 games. Like Lee, Nelson is the definition of a power forward and is always difficult to play against. The Islanders are hoping that veterans like him and Jordan Eberle can help Timashov find his footing in the league after bouncing around to a few different teams.
While the Islanders bottom-six hasn't found the back of the net quite as much, they have some reliable veterans that are great at forechecking and applying pressure. In fact, the Islanders' fourth line of Matt Martin, Casey Cizikas and Cal Clutterbuck has played together for a while and is one of the best in the NHL at what they do.
DEFENSE: Last year, New York's defense was one of their greatest strengths. This year, they lost veteran Johnny Boychuk after he suffered a career-ending eye injury last March. To help offset that, the Islanders signed Andy Greene, who had been the longtime captain of Devils before they traded him to the Islanders at the last deadline, to a one-year deal.
At 38, Greene is the oldest player on the Islanders roster. He's been paired with Noah Dobson and is serving as a mentor to the 21-year-old, in his second NHL season after being the 12th overall pick in the 2018 draft.
Adam Pelech is back and anchoring the top pair after his 2019-20 season was limited to just 38 games due to an Achilles injury. His partner Ryan Pulock is one of the team's most versatile defensemen, scoring 10 goals last year after reaching the mark a couple seasons before that.
Nick Leddy and Scott Mayfield, who are both in their seventh season with Islanders, make up the second pair.
GOALTENDERS:New York is backstopped by Russian goaltender Varlamov, who's beginning only his second year with the Islanders but 13th overall in the NHL. He shared the workload with Thomas Greiss during the regular season before taking over in playoffs, starting in 19 of their 22 postseason contests.
After the German netminder signed with Detroit in the offseason, Varlamov has continued to handle the majority of the starts. The 32-year-old has gotten six thus far and posted some rather impressive numbers, going 3-2-1 with a .924 save percentage and 2.00 goals-against average.
His fellow Russian Ilya Sorokin hasn't fared as well, as he has yet to earn his first NHL win. The 25-year-old, drafted by the Islanders in the third round in 2014, spent the next few years in the KHL before coming to North America for this season. Sorokin has played in three NHL games so far, with a record of 0-2-1, a 3.65 goals against average and a .871 save percentage.
SPECIAL TEAMS: Like the Penguins, the Islanders power play has struggled to get shots on net. New York has successfully converted only 15.8% of their power plays, which leaves them 20th in the league. Their first power-play unit is Lee, Barzal, Eberle, Czarnik and Dobson.
New York's penalty kill has faced similar difficulties, killing only 77.8% of their penalties so far, which ranks 21st in the league.