Islanders at Hurricanes
The Carolina Hurricanes will play host to the New York Islanders Sunday as they attempt to adjust to life without All-Star defenseman Dougie Hamilton. The Hurricanes lost their third straight game Friday - a 2-1 overtime setback to Anaheim - and barely held a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference entering the weekend.
Hamilton, who is among the league leaders in goals (14) and points (40) for defensemen, had surgery Friday to repair a broken leg he suffered in Thursday’s 3-2 loss to Columbus and is out indefinitely. “Anytime (Hamilton)’s out, we’re going to miss him,” Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin told reporters. “I think with the power play, Dougie makes that a heck of a lot better. Some of the offensive plays he has. He’s a shooter, he’s a great passer. His presence is missed all over the ice.” The Islanders took a 4-1 lead into the third period at home Saturday against Washington but surrendered five unanswered to the Capitals in a 6-4 defeat. “It’s a tough loss, no question,” Islanders forward Josh Bailey told reporters. “We put ourselves in a good position to win the game. We just needed to stick to our game like we talked about. That one stings.”
TIME: 5 p.m. ET. TV: MSG Plus, FS Carolina
ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (28-15-4): Defenseman Devon Toews had his first career three-point game (goal, two assists) against the Capitals and left wing Anthony Beauvillier set a career-high with his 16th assist after registering a pair in the first period Saturday. Center Brock Nelson netted his team-leading 19th goal while right wing Jordan Eberle scored his seventh and has four goals and two assists in his last six games. Goaltender Semyon Varlamov surrendered five goals on 29 shots Saturday and is 1-5-1 with a .900 save percentage and 3.12 goals against average in seven starts this month.
ABOUT THE HURRICANES (27-18-3): Carolina is expected to get a boost Sunday from the season debut of 38-year-old forward Justin Williams, who has scored 120 of his 312 career goals during his two stints with the franchise. “I’m nervous before every game I play. I’m going to have nerves, but the one thing you never question is your ability,” Williams told the media. “I’m going to go out there, work my tail off and let my instincts take over.” Sebastian Aho found the back of the net Friday for his team-leading 24th goal of the season while goaltender James Reimer stopped 35-of-37 shots and is 8-2-1 in his last 12 starts.
OVERTIME
1. The Islanders were 18-0-1 when leading after two periods before Saturday.
2. Slavin has four goals, 18 assists and a plus-27 rating this season, and will make his first All-Star appearance as an injury replacement for Hamilton.
3. The Islanders allow the sixth-fewest goals per game in the league (2.70) while the Hurricanes are tied for seventh (2.71).