The New York Islanders (2-0-1) suffered their first defeat of the season on Friday night. Less than 24 hours later, the Islanders visit the Buffalo Sabres (1-3-0) in a rematch of the Islanders’ 3-2 win in their season opener.
BUFFALO, NY – The New York Islanders (2-0-1) suffered their first defeat of the season on Friday night. Less than 24 hours later, the Islanders visit the Buffalo Sabres (1-3-0) in a rematch of the Islanders’ 3-2 win in their season opener.
Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. at KeyBank Center.
In the final game of their first homestand, the Islanders fell 5-4 in overtime to the New Jersey Devils. Bo Horvat and Brock Nelson each scored twice, but a one-for-five performance by the penalty kill and Jack Hughes overtime winner proved to be the difference in a game where Ilya Sorokin stole the show.
New York Islanders Updates:
The Islanders did not hold a morning skate Saturday. Lane Lambert addressed the media at 4:45 p.m. and provided the following updates.
Scott Mayfield did not travel with the team, per head coach Lane Lambert.
The second-year head coach is also contemplating line changes, but we won't know until warmups.
After Ilya Sorokin started last night, Semyon Varlamov will make his season debut. Varlamov went 11-9-2 for the Isles last season with a 2.70 GAA and .913 SV%.
The Sabres held an optional skate on Saturday morning.
Goaltender Eric Comrie (9-9-1, .886 SV%, 3.67 GAA) was in the starter’s crease as he will make his first appearance of the season. Comrie is 1-1-0 with a .965 SV% and 1.03 GAA against the Islanders.
Buffalo head coach Don Granato said that rookies Devon Levi and Zach Benson will not play tonight due to lower-body injuries.
New York Islanders Lines (Projected):
Mathew Barzal - Bo Horvat – Julien Gauthier
Pierre Engvall –Brock Nelson – Kyle Palmieri
Anders Lee– Jean-Gabriel Pageau – Hudson Fasching
Matt Martin – Casey Cizikas – Cal Clutterbuck
Adam Pelech – Noah Dobson
Alexander Romanov – Ryan Pulock
Samuel Bolduc – Sebastian Aho
Semyon Varlamov
Ilya Sorokin
Buffalo Sabres Lines (Projected):
Jordan Greenway - Tage Thompson - Dylan Cozens
Jeff Skinner - Casey Mittelstadt - Alex Tuch
J.J. Peterka - Tyson Jost - Victor Olofsson
Zemgus Girgensons - Peyton Krebs - Kyle Okposo
Rasmus Dahlin - Mattias Samuelsson
Owen Power - Henri Jokiharju
Connor Clifton - Erik Johnson
Eric Comrie
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
Islanders Notes:
Bo Horvat had his first two-goal game as an Islander on Friday night. His nine games with a pair of goals last season all came with the Vancouver Canucks. Nelson’s two goals give him 31 two-goal performances lifetime.
Anders Lee leads active Islanders with 14 goals against Buffalo in his career. Casey Cizikas, who scored the game-winner in their first matchup, boasts the most points against the Sabres lifetime with 20.
Semyon Varlamov has a 13-4-1 record lifetime against the Sabres with a 1.93 goals-against average and a .937 save percentage. He lost his last meeting with Buffalo on March 25, a 2-0 defeat where he made 34 stops.
Sabres Notes:
The Sabres enter tonight’s game off a 4-3 loss to the Calgary Flames on Thursday. The two teams traded goals three times, but Adam Ruzicka scored the game-winner shortly after the Sabres tied it at three in the third period.
Tage Thompson notched his first goal of the season Thursday. Thompson tallied 47 goals last season and needs two points to reach 200 in his NHL career.
Jeff Skinner leads all Sabres players in every offensive category against the Islanders' lifetime, boasting 13 goals and 12 assists for 25 points.
Betting Corner:
The Sabres enter tonight’s game as the favorite, sitting at -125 on the money line. The Islanders are at +105. The over comes in at six goals at -110, with the under sitting at -110 as well.
All lines are courtesy of MGM Sportsbook
How to Watch:
Tonight’s game will be available on MSGSN. On the radio, tonight’s game can be found on 88.7 FM WRHU, 103.9 FM LI News Radio, and 1050 AM ESPN.