The Park Chat With Goring & Trottier After over 50 games of waiting, the New York Islanders [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/latest-news/bo-horvat-new-york-islanders-stadium-series-patrick-roy-new-york-rangers] (22-18-13) and New York Rangers (35-16-3) collide in the Stadium Series for their first meeting of the season. Puck drop from MetLife Stadium is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. The Islanders head outside off back-to-back losses, most recently dropping a 2-1 shootout decision to the Seattle Kraken. Matty Beniers opened the scoring for Seattle just under six minutes into the game, as the Islanders couldn’t find their footing early. Kyle Palmieri continued his hot play in the second period, getting the Islanders even on a power play goal. Neither team lit the lamp before the end of regulation, setting the stage for overtime and, eventually, a shootout. Beniers scored the lone goal for the Kraken in the skills contest, handing New York the loss. MORNING SKATE UPDATES: Neither the Islanders nor the Rangers skated this morning ahead of the early start time. Ilya Sorokin was in the starter's crease for New York throughout the week, as he will make his 38th start and 39th appearance of the season on Sunday (16-12-10, 3.04 GAA, .911 SV%). Sorokin is 3-2-0 with a 2.40 GAA, .926 SV%, and a shutout in five career matchups with the Rangers, most recently surrendering four goals on 33 shots in a 4-3 loss on Dec. 22, 2022. Igor Shesterkin backed up Jonathan Quick in their last contest on Thursday, meaning he will likely 35th start of the year at MetLife (21-12-1, 2.78 GAA, .902 SV%). The All-Star netminder is 2-7-1 in 10 games against the Islanders with a 3.13 GAA and .881 SV%, most recently besting them with 15 saves on 18 shots in their last meeting. Blake Wheeler was ruled out for the season after sustaining a leg injury on Thursday. Matt Rempe is probable to take his place and become the first skater in NHL history to make his debut in an outdoor game. NEW YORK ISLANDERS LINES (PROJECTED): 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 - Ryan Pulock Alexander Romanov - Noah Dobson Mike Reilly - Scott Mayfield Ilya Sorokin Semyon Varlamov NEW YORK RANGERS LINES (PROJECTED): Chris Kreider - Mika Zibanejad - Jimmy Vesey Artemi Panarin - Vincent Trochek - Alexis Lafreniere Will Cuylle - Jonny Brodzinski - Kaapo Kakko Adam Edstrom - Barclay Goodrow - Matthew Rempe Ryan Lindgren - Adam Fox K'Andre Miller - Jacob Trouba Erik Gustafsson - Braden Schneider Igor Shesterkin Jonathan Quick ISLANDERS NOTES: With his goal in Tuesday's game, Palmieri extended his point streak to six games, totaling four goals and three assists in that span. Mathew Barzal added the primary helper on the goal, padding his own six-game point streak with three goals and five assists. Noah Dobson enters Sunday's game with 48 assists. A pair of helpers can make him the fourth Islanders defenseman to have a 50-assist season, joining Denis and Jean Potvin, and Stefan Persson. Brock Nelson enters Sunday's game as the Islanders' top goal-scorer against the Rangers, owning 15 in his career. Barzal leads in assists and points with 24 and 33, respectively, and has a six-game point streak against the Rangers entering the game, totaling two goals and six assists in that span. RANGERS NOTES: The Rangers enter Sunday's game off a decisive win over the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday. Jake Evans tallied the lone goal in the first period for Montreal, but the Rangers opened the floodgates in the middle frame. Chris Kreider scored bookend goals, with Mika Zibanejad and Will Cuylle scoring in the middle, to give the Rangers a 4-1 lead. A pair of goals from Cole Caufield and one from Juraj Slafkovsky attempted to start a comeback, but the Rangers had answers for each goal, with Vincent Trochek and Kaapo Kakko lighting the lamp and Kreider finishing the hat trick en route to a 7-4 win. The Islanders bested the Rangers in their season series last year with a 2-1-0 record, but the latter earned the win in their last meeting on Dec. 22. The teams traded goals throughout the first two periods, with Anders Lee, Barzal, and Alexander Romanov scoring for the Islanders and Artemi Panarin and Julien Gauthier for the Rangers. However, the Rangers found a way to pull it out in the third, with Barclay Goodrow tying it, Kakko giving the Rangers a late lead, and Trochek sealing a 5-3 win on an empty net goal. Following his strong performance against Montreal, Kreider will face an Islanders team he leads active Rangers in goal-scoring against with 15 red lights. Panarin leads in assists and points with 23 and 34, respectively. BETTING CORNER: As the New York hockey rivals take the big stage, it's the Rangers who enter as the favorite at -145 on the money line; the Islanders start at +120. The over/under starts at 6.5 goals, both starting at -110. All lines are courtesy of MGM Sportsbook. HOW TO WATCH: The Stadium Series will air on ABC and ESPN+. On the radio, the game is available on 88.7 FM WRHU, 103.9 LI News Radio, and 1050 AM ESPN.
