Islanders Battle Sharks In First Game Without Nelson: Lines & Notes

Brock Nelson was dealt to the Colorado Avalanche late on Thursday night.

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Mar 09, 2025

With the NHL Trade Deadline behind them, the New York Islanders (28-26-7) open up their California road trip against the San Jose Sharks (17-38-9).

Puck drop at SAP Center is scheduled for 10:00 p.m., and the game can be found on MSGSN.

The Islanders topped the Sharks 4-1 in their first meeting of the season on January 18. New York exploded for three goals in the second period, with four different players lighting the lamp in the win.

Saturday’s game is also the Islanders’ first since the trade of Brock Nelson to the Colorado Avalanche. The Islanders acquired Calum Ritchie, a conditional first-round pick in 2026, a conditional third in 2028 and defenseman Oliver Kylington, who was later flipped to the Anaheim Ducks for Future Considerations.

The Islanders will make a change on defense on Saturday, as Scott Mayfield will be a healthy scratch. Adam Boqvist will draw back into the lineup.

PROJECTED LINEUP:

Palmieri-Horvat-Duclair

Lee-Pageau-Holmstrom

Fasching-Cizikas-Tsyplakov

Engvall-MacLean-Gatcomb

Romanov-DeAngelo

Pelech-Dobson

Boqvist-Pulock

Sorokin

Skarek

Who’s Hot:

Bo Horvat enters Saturday’s game on a three-game point streak against the Sharks. The center has a goal and five assists for six points in that span, including a three-point game on the road on March 7, 2024.

Defenseman Noah Dobson has points in five straight games against San Jose, including goals in back-to-back games against them. In that span, he has two goals and four assists for six points. Fellow blueliner Ryan Pulock has a four-game point streak against the Sharks, notching three goals and an assist after a red light in their last meeting.

Anders Lee tops the Islanders in career goals against San Jose with 12 in 19 career games. Horvat has 20 assists and 31 points against the Sharks to lead the team in each category.

While Marcus Hogberg was on the ice on Friday and Saturday, Ilya Sorokin makes the start for New York. Sorokin picked up the win on Tuesday against the Winnipeg Jets, making 26 saves on 28 shots. Against the Sharks, he is 2-0-3 with a 2.52 GAA and .916 SV%, most recently picking up the win with 23 saves on 25 shots on March 7, 2024.

Opponents Notes:

William Eklund enters Saturday’s game on a four-game point streak, recording two goals and four assists for six points in that span. He had a goal and an assist against Colorado on Thursday.

Tyler Toffoli also enters play hot for the Sharks, owning points in four straight games. The forward has three goals and two assists for five points in that span.

Alexander Wennberg enters Saturday on milestone watch, sitting one goal short of 100 for his NHL career. In 771 career games, he has 99 goals and 265 assists for 364 points.

Alexandar Georgiev is projected to make the start for the Sharks on Saturday. He last started on

SAN JOSE SHARKS LINES: