Islanders Host Senators to Conclude Brief Homestand

EAST MEADOW, NY -- In the final game of a two-game homestand, the New York Islanders (2-2-1) host the Ottawa Senators (3-3-0) Thursday night. 

Puck drop at UBS Arena is set for 7:30 p.m.

"Very similar to what we've seen so far this year," Islanders head coach Lane Lambert said. "Talented young team that is high octane, have offensively transitioned the puck well, [and have] great speed."

The Islanders enter tonight’s game on a three-game losing streak (0-2-1). The team couldn’t get out of their own way in a 7-4 loss to the Colorado Avalanche Tuesday, getting outshot 17-6 in the first period and yielding two goals in the final minute of the second. 

Despite rallying to tie the game three times, Mikko Rantanen’s third-period goal proved the difference.

Ilya Sorokin was the first goalie off the ice at the morning skate, he will start tonight

Scott Mayfield remains absent from practices due to an ankle injury, as he will miss his fifth-straight game. 

Alexander Romanov missed the skate due to maintenance. 

The Ottawa Senators held an optional skate at UBS Arena on Thursday and we will update accordingly. 

Anders Lee - Bo Horvat - Mathew Barzal

Pierre Engvall - Brock Nelson - Kyle Palmieri

Simon Holmstrom - Jean-Gabriel Pageau - Oliver Wahlstrom

Matt Martin - Casey Cizikas - Cal Clutterbuck

Adam Pelech - Noah Dobson

Alexander Romanov - Ryan Pulock

Samuel Bolduc - Sebastian Aho

Ilya Sorokin

Semyon Varlamov

Brady Tkachuk - Tim Stützle - Claude Giroux

Mathieu Joseph - Ridly Greig - Vladimir Tarasenko

Dominik Kubalik - Josh Norris - Drake Batherson

Parker Kelly - Rourke Chartier - Mark Kastelic

Jake Sanderson - Thomas Chabot

Jakob Chychrun - Travis Hamonic

Erik Brannstrom - Jacob Bernard-Docker

Joonas Korpisalo

Anton Forsberg

The Islanders went 1-1-1 against the Senators last season. In their last meeting at UBS Arena, Ottawa took the game 3-2 in a shootout. 

The teams traded goals twice, with Brock Nelson getting the game even before overtime. However, the shootout once again proved to be the Islanders’ Achilles heel, as they couldn’t beat Kevin Mandolese for his first NHL win.

Noah Dobson tallied two assists on Tuesday, and Mat Barzal added one of his own. Both extended their point streaks to four games.

Anders Lee tallied his first goal of the season against the Avalanche. He owns the most goals against Ottawa's lifetime of active Islanders with nine. Brock Nelson leads all Islanders in points against the Sens with 17.

Ilya Sorokin has earned a point in all three matchups against the Senators in his career. Lifetime, he is 2-0-1 with a .936 save percentage and 1.95 goals against average.

The Senators enter tonight’s off back-to-back losses, most recently a 6-4 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday. Ottawa fell behind 5-1 after the second period but made a furious comeback attempt in the final five minutes of regulation Despite the late push, it wasn’t enough as the Sabres held on for the victory.

Jake Sanderson is enjoying a strong start to his sophomore season. The defenseman and former fifth-overall pick is enjoying a five-game point streak, with three goals and four assists in that span.

Claude Giroux has tremendous numbers against the Islanders in his career. The former Flyer boasts 25 goals and 47 assists against New York lifetime, leading all Senators by a lengthy margin.

Jonas Korpisalo will start for Ottawa. He owns a 1-2-0 record, 3.63 GAA, with a .872 SV%. He owns a 4-4-3 record against the Islanders, with a 2.67 GAA, a .920 SV% and one shutout. 

He stopped all five shots he faced in relief Tuesday night. 

Shane Pinto has been suspended 41 games for violating the NHL's sports gambling policy. 

Former Islander Travis Hamonic will skate in career game No. 800 tonight. When the Islanders traded Hamonic to the Calgary Flames in 2017, the return was three draft picks.

Those picks became Noah Dobson, Ruslan Iskhakov, and Samuel Bolduc. 

Do you think the Islanders will beat the Senators? The Islanders enter the game at -120 on the money line, whereas Ottawa sits at +105. The over/under comes in at six goals, with the over at -120, while the under enters at +105.

All lines courtesy of MGM Sportsbook.

Tonight’s game will be available on MSGSN. On the radio, tonight’s game can be found at 88.7 WRHU, 103.9 LI News Radio, and 1050 AM ESPN