Islanders Head Home To Face Boston Bruins
The New York Islanders are home for the first time this season as they take on the Boston Bruins. Last season, New York went 1-1-1 against Boston with a 3-2 shootout win on the road, a 3-2 overtime loss at Barclays Center and a 4-0 loss at Nassau Coliseum on Butch Goring’s banner raising.
Last Time Out
The Islanders (1-1-0) were shut out by the New York Rangers 5-0 at Madison Square Garden on Jan. 16. After Semyon Varlamov was injured by a puck in warmups, Ilya Sorokin had to step in and make his NHL debut with 15 minutes of notice. The Russian made 27 saves in the loss.
The Bruins (1-0-1) began their season with two games in New Jersey. After a shootout win on opening night, Boston lost in overtime 2-1 on Jan. 16. Patrice Bergeron scored shorthanded for the Bs, who have yet to score five-on-five, and former Islander Jaroslav Halak made 29 saves in the loss.
Coliseum One-Off
The Bruins are the only team the Islanders will face this season that will not play back-to-back games at Nassau Coliseum. On the other hand, the teams will square off at TD Garden in back-to-back games twice: March 25 and 27 and April 13 and 16.
New Captain
After 14 seasons with the Bruins, captain and former Islander Zdeno Chara left for Washington in free agency. Boston named Patrice Bergeron the new captain in his absence. Bergeron has 21 goals and 34 points in 47 career games against the Islanders.
Injury Report
For the Islanders, Arthur Staple reported on Jan. 17 that Semyon Varlamov’s injury is a jaw issue. He is, however, available to play.
Trotz: Varlamov is feeling better, available to play tonight.
— Arthur Staple (@StapeAthletic) January 18, 2021
Michael Dal Colle remains on injured reserve.
For Boston, David Pastrnak is out until mid-February after undergoing hip surgery in October. Ondrej Kase sustained an upper-body injury in Saturday’s game and his status is unknown. Neither he nor Craig Smith practiced on Sunday. Smith missed the Bruins’ first game with a lower-body injury but played 17:07 on Saturday.
Prediction: Boston 3, Isles 1
After scoring just three total goals in two games against New Jersey, the Bruins are going to be hungry. Tuukka Rask will likely get the start and he was sharp in his first appearanceence. The Islanders will likely see some lineup changes and there will be some adjustment. New York is also 1-3-2 against Boston with Barry Trotz behind the bench.
