EAST MEADOW, NY -- With their ticket to the playoffs punched, the New York Islanders (38-27-16) conclude the 2023-24 regular season against the Pittsburgh Penguins (38-31-12).
Puck drop from UBS Arena is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
New York knocked off Pittsburgh in their last meeting on Feb. 20. Marcus Pettersson opened the scoring in the first period, but New York rallied three-straight goals in the second period from Brock Nelson, Mathew Barzal, and Simon Holmstrom.
Lars Eller cut the lead in half late in the second, but Mike Reilly restored the lead early in the third. However, Pittsburgh came back to tie with goals from Valtteri Puustinen and Drew O'Connor, forcing overtime. In the extra session, Adam Pelech wired a puck past Alex Nedeljkovic to win the game 5-4 for New York.
Neither team will have anything to play for in Wednesday's game. New York locked up the third seed in the Metropolitan Division on Monday, while Pittsburgh was eliminated with the Washington Capitals' win on Tuesday.
With the Islanders playoff-bound, the team will rest Mathew Barzal, Pierre Engvall, Hudson Fasching, and Sebastian Aho ahead of their playoff meeting with the Carolina Hurricanes.
Where They've Been:
Prior to their elimination on Tuesday, the Penguins successfully kept their season alive on Monday night against the Nashville Predators. Sidney Crosby and Erik Karlsson got Pittsburgh on the board in the first period, and the Penguins kept pace the rest of the way. Despite red lights from Gustav Nyquist and Filip Forsberg, Reilly Smith and Emil Bemstrom responded to the respective goals, helping Pittsburgh to a 4-2 win.
Players To Watch:
With Semyon Varlamov the projected starter for Game One, Ilya Sorokin will start his 55th game of the season in the finale (24-19-12, 2.99 GAA, .909 SV%). Sorokin started Saturday's game against the New York Rangers, making 41 saves in a shootout loss. Against Pittsburgh, he is 7-5-0 with a 3.14 GAA and .909 SV%, making 37 saves in their last meeting to earn the overtime win.
Kyle Palmieri continued his hot streak on offense on Monday, adding a goal and an assist. He now has points in six straight games, totaling five goals and four assists in that span. Palmieri needs one more goal to tie his career high of 30.
Brock Nelson has also heated up for New York in the homestretch. Entering Wednesday's game, he has a four-game point streak with three goals and three assists.
With his goal in their last meeting, Nelson has 20 goals against the Penguins' lifetime to lead active Islanders. He leads the Islanders across the board on offense, with 17 helpers and 37 points to top each of those categories.
Tristan Jarry will make his 49th start of the season for Pittsburgh on Wednesday (19-25-5, 2.91 GAA, .903 SV%). He took the loss against the Boston Bruins in relief on Saturday, letting up two goals on 12 shots. Against New York, he is 11-3-1 with a 2.28 GAA and .923 SV%, pitching a 22-save shutout back on Dec. 27.
Sidney Crosby has played terrific hockey in the second half, totaling 15 goals and 27 assists in the last 35 games. He enters play on a five-game point streak, totaling three goals and five assists in that span.
Lars Eller has goals in each of the last two meetings between the teams, including a two-goal meeting on New Year's Eve. He has 10 goals against the Islanders in his career. In his first full NHL season, Valtteri Puustinen has points in all three games with New York, totaling two goals and two assists.
A notable difference to the Pittsburgh lineup since the teams last met is the addition of Michael Bunting. The forward, acquired in the Jake Guentzel trade from the Carolina Hurricanes, has six goals and 11 assists since joining the team.
Crosby leads the Penguins in scoring against the Islanders, totaling 85 goals, 91 assists, and 132 points.
New York Islanders Projected Lines:
Casey Cizikas -- Bo Horvat -- Oliver Wahlstrom
Simon Holmstrom -- Brock Nelson -- Kyle Palmieri
Anders Lee -- Jean-Gabriel Pageau -- ?
Matt Martin -- Kyle MacLean -- Cal Clutterbuck
Alexander Romanov -- Sebastian Aho
Adam Pelech -- Ryan Pulock
Mike Reilly -- Robert Bortuzzo
Ilya Sorokin
Semyon Varlamov
*Lineup projected to change
Pittsburgh Penguins Projected Lines:
Drew O’Connor -- Sidney Crosby -- Bryan Rust
Michael Bunting -- Evgeni Malkin -- Rickard Rakell
Reilly Smith -- Lars Eller -- Valtteri Puustinen
Jansen Harkins – Jeff Carter – Jesse Puljujarvi
P.O. Joseph -- Kris Letang
Marcus Pettersson -- Erik Karlsson
Ryan Shea -- Jack St. Ivany
Alex Nedeljkovic
Tristan Jarry
How To Watch:
Wednesday's game will air on MSGSN. It is also available on the radio on 88.7 FM WRHU, 98.7 ESPN, and 103.9 LI News Radio.