After Wild Letdown, Can Islanders Rebound At MSG Against Rival Rangers; Brock Faber On Matthew Schaefer
After a sluggish game to finish off their homestand, the New York Islanders (6-6-2) look to turn the page 24 hours later against the rival New York Rangers (7-6-2).
It was wild how out of sync the New York Islanders (6-6-2) were at UBS Arena on Friday night.
Against a Minnesota Wild team that was on the second of a back-to-back, the Islanders had no answers, falling 5-2. They were off from the get-go, disconnected completely, and the Wild pounced all over them.
Patrick Roy tried to shake up the lines, ending the game like this:
Heineman-Horvat-Barzal
Duclair-Drouin-Palmieri
Lee-Pageau-Holmstrom
Ritchie-Cizikas-MacLean
“It did not really work. I mean, that’s the kind of night we had,” Roy said on his mid-game lineup tweaks.
Now, the Islanders embark on a seven-game road trip, with the first stop at Madison Square Garden against the New York Rangers (7-6-2) — a team, like them, that is on the second of a back-to-back.
The Rangers defeated the Detroit Red Wings 4-1 to improve to 7-1-1 on the road.
However, you can’t call it home cooking when they’ve been cooked at home this entire season. At MSG, they are 0-5-1, having been shut out in four of those six games.
The Islanders, who have been average on the road this season (2-3-1), have yet to shut an opponent out so far.
So, either the Rangers explode — goal department-wise — or the Islanders shut them out. I don’t think there’s any in-between.
For the Islanders, things get extremely tough after the Rangers: New Jersey, Vegas, Utah, Colorado, Dallas, Detroit. Beating the Blueshirts would do wonders for confidence before that gauntlet.
Puck drop from Madison Square Garden is scheduled for 7:00 p.m., and the game can be found on MSGSN.
The Rangers picked up a season series sweep of the Islanders last season in four matchups, outscoring their opposition 23-5 in the process. Their last meeting was a 9-2 Rangers rout, with Artemi Panarin scoring twice in the win.
LINEUP UPDATES
Ilya Sorokin (3-4-2, 3.33 GAA, .879 SV%) will start in goal for the Islanders.
He returns to the crease after allowing three goals on 27 shots in a shootout loss against the Boston Bruins.
We will see if there are any lineup changes when we speak with Roy at 5:45 PM.
ISLANDERS NOTES
Bo Horvat extended his point streak to four games with an assist on Friday night.
He has 3 G & 2 A = 5 PTS in that span and enters one assist shy of 300 career assists.
Anders Lee is the Islanders’ top goal scorer against the Rangers, with 15 goals in 41 games.
Mathew Barzal leads the team in career assists and points against the Blueshirts (15 A, 25 PTS in 31 GP).
Sorokin owns a 3-6-2 record (3.46 GAA, .894 SV%) in 11 career games vs. the Rangers.
His last outing against them came on March 3, allowing three goals on 26 shots.
OPPONENT’S NOTES
Like the Islanders, the Rangers are also playing the second game of a back-to-back after a 4-1 win in Detroit on Friday.
Four different goal scorers found the net, with rookie Noah Laba netting the game-winner.
Captain J.T. Miller has a nine-game point streak vs. the Islanders (4 G, 9 A = 13 PTS).
Adam Fox, the Jericho native, rides a three-game point streak against New York (5 A).
Artemi Panarin had a three-point night (1 G, 2 A) Friday in Detroit—his second of the season—after a three-point performance (2 G, 1 A) in the teams’ last meeting.
In 38 career games vs. the Islanders, Panarin has 18 G and 29 A = 47 PTS.
Igor Shesterkin (4-5-2, 2.26 GAA, .915 SV%) will start in goal.
Against the Islanders, he’s 9-8-1 with a 2.68 GAA and .910 SV%, most recently stopping 44 of 46 shots in their previous matchup.
Wild’s Brock Faber On Matthew Schaefer:
“I mean, I haven’t watched much. Tonight, obviously, you see that he’s so gifted. His skating, first off, that’s what sticks out, right? It’s like, you watch him skate, and you’re like, wow, that’s incredible. And then the way he plays the game, he doesn’t force plays. He doesn’t take unnecessary risks, which I love about his game. So gifted, so talented, and he still is all over the ice, making a positive impact. And he’s definitely a guy who is hard to play against. He’s gonna have what seems like a long, long, really successful career, hopefully just not against the Wild.”