Oilers at Islanders
THE STORY: For all the struggles that the Edmonton Oilers and New York Islanders have endured so far this season, both teams have actually fared well against their opponent's division. Something will have to give when the teams meet on Long Island in a Saturday matinee. The Oilers come in having dropped nine of their last 11 games, including consecutive losses in Vancouver and Minnesota to kick off a seven-game road swing. Edmonton is 2-0-0 against the Atlantic Division so far this season, with victories over the Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers. That spotless mark will be put to the test against an Islanders club that owns a 3-1-1 record against the Northwest Division. New York ended a three-game losing skid last time out, defeating the visiting Calgary Flames 3-1 behind a two-point effort from John Tavares. This is the first meeting between the clubs since Jan. 6.
TV: 1 p.m. ET, Rogers Sportsnet West, MSG
ABOUT THE OILERS (15-18-3): Edmonton can ill afford to struggle on Long Island, with its marathon trek about to get a lot tougher. The Oilers finish up with visits to Chicago, Buffalo, St. Louis and Dallas - a quartet of teams sitting a combined 29 games above .500 going into Friday night's action. Edmonton has the third-fewest road wins of any team in the conference (five), and sits 22nd in the league in road offense with 43 goals.
ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (12-17-6): Part of the reason for the Isles' struggles this season has been an inability to generate offense late in games. New York sits last in the league with just 21 third-period goals - by comparison, the Ottawa Senators have 51 third-period markers entering Friday while the defending champion Boston Bruins have scored 50 times in the final frame. It also can't help that the Islanders have allowed 41 third-period goals of their own.
OVERTIME:
1. The teams have split the past six meetings, with the home team prevailing each time.
2. The clubs are two of the worst when it comes to extra-time affairs. The Islanders are 2-6 in games decided in overtime or a shootout, while the Oilers are 1-3.
3. Since scoring eight times in a five-game span in late November and early December, Islanders forward Matt Moulson has tallied just twice over his last 10 contests.