Islanders Face Wild, Martin Returns To Lineup: Lines & Notes
The Islanders sit seven points back of the second wild-card spot with eight games to go.
ELMONT, NY — After six straight losses (0-4-2), the New York Islanders (32-32-10) return home to host the Minnesota Wild (43-25-5) in hopes of stopping their standings freefall.
Puck drop at UBS Arena is scheduled for 7:30 p.m., and the game can be found on MSGSN.
The Islanders fell to Minnesota on Feb. 8 in their final game before the 4 Nations Faceoff. The Wild rallied for five straight goals, with Matt Boldy scoring twice in the win.
LINEUP UPDATES:
The Islanders announced on Thursday that Anthony Duclair will be taking a leave of absence from the team. Matt Martin will slot into the lineup on Friday.
PROJECTED LINEUP:
Lee-Horvat-Palmieri
Tsyplakov-Pageau-Holmstrom
Engvall-Cizikas-Fasching
Martin-MacLean-Gatcomb
Pelech-Pulock
Romanov-DeAngelo
Dobson-Mayfield
Sorokin
Hogberg
Who’s Hot:
Kyle Palmieri and Max Tsyplakov each had two points the last time the Islanders and Wild met. Palmieri had a goal and an assist, while Tsyplakov had a pair of helpers.
Bo Horvat scored the Islanders’ lone goal on Tuesday with a shorthanded tally. He leads the team in goals against Minnesota with nine in 24 career games. Tony DeAngelo and Palmieri each have nine assists, while Palmieri leads the team in total points with 15 in 23 games.
Ilya Sorokin will start for the Islanders on Friday. He took the loss on Tuesday against the Tampa Bay Lightning, allowing three goals on 23 shots. Against Minnesota, Sorokin is 0-4-1 with a 3.21 GAA and .901 SV%, most recently allowing five goals on 37 shots in the loss in their last meeting.
OPPONENTS NOTES:
Since their last matchup, the Wild reacquired forward Gustav Nyquist from the Nashville Predators. Since rejoining the team, he has a goal and four assists for five points in 16 games.
Matt Boldy has a three-game point streak against the Islanders coming into Friday. After a three-point game in their last meeting, he has two goals and three assists for five points in that span. He is Minnesota’s leading scorer for the season across the board, notching 25 goals and 39 assists for 64 points in 76 games.
Brock Faber has points in each of his first three career games against New York, recording an assist in each one. Fellow defenseman Jared Spurgeon had two helpers in their last meeting.
Joel Eriksson Ek, Mats Zuccarello, and Marcus Foligno each have five goals against the Islanders in their careers to lead the Wild. Johansson has 20 assists and 23 points to lead the team in each category.
Filip Gustavsson will be in net for the Wild on Friday. He took an overtime loss to the New York Rangers on Wednesday with five goals against on 39 shots in his last outing. Against the Islanders, he is 3-1-0 with a 2.47 GAA and .918 SV%, most recently making 32 saves on 35 shots in their last meeting. New York will not face Marc-Andre Fleury, who’s skating in the final season of his 22-season career.
WILD LINES:
NOTES: Merrill in for Chisholm.
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I would put DuClair on waivers! Not sure if waivers are normal during this time of the season. A guy that leaves the team after getting criticized by the coach, give me a break. You don’t want to go to war with a guy like that. Lou and Patrick knew the red flags and the gamble they were taking.