The New York Islanders face the Edmonton Oilers with both teams looking to build off of promising seasons. The Islanders have a 22-15-2 record and with four wins in their last five games, they have leaped into the middle of the Metropolitan Division. The Oilers have a 20-17-2 record but are looking to bounce back from consecutive losses. Both teams are looking to improve within their divisions and leap into playoff position and the upcoming game looks to be a great one as a result.
The Islanders are having a great season with their offense stepping up and scoring 3.23 goals per game. Mathew Barzal, Brock Nelson, and Anders Lee have scored 39 goals and 68 assists to lead the top two lines but the rest of the offense has also stepped up. Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Anthony Beauvillier, and Zach Parise have combined for 29 goals and 28 assists while defensemen Noah Dobson and Ryan Pulock have added 12 goals and 27 assists from the point to open up the offense.
The offense has been great but the defense has carried the Islanders, allowing only 2.67 goals per game with only nine goals in the last five games. Ryan Pulock and Alexander Romanov have combined for 4.6 defensive point shares and 144 blocked shots while Noah Dobson, Scott Mayfield, and Sebastian Aho have combined for 5.1 defensive point shares to add depth to the unit. In addition, goaltender Ilya Sorokin is having a remark able year with a .926 save percentage and a 2.29 goals-against average on 835 shots.