Islanders at Sabres
THE STORY: The New York Islanders travel to Buffalo to take on
the Sabres on Tuesday for the fourth and final meeting. The Sabres will
try to avoid a fourth consecutive home defeat to the Islanders. New York
is playing the second game of a back-to-back after being blanked 6-0 by
the Ottawa Senators on Monday. It is the ninth time the Islanders have
been shut out this season.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, MSG Plus (Islanders), MSG Buffalo (Sabres)
ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (25-26-8):
The Islanders have alternated wins and losses in their last 10 games
and have yet to win back-to-back contests this month. Goaltender Evgeni
Nabokov missed his third straight game because of the flu on Monday and
won’t make the trip to Buffalo. The Islanders will surely miss him as he
has posted a 5-1-0 record with a 0.98 goals against average and two
shutouts in his last six road starts.
ABOUT THE SABRES (25-27-7): Buffalo trails the Islanders by one
point in the Eastern Conference standings and is playing the third of a
four-game homestand. The Sabres disposed of the Pittsburgh Penguins 6-2
on Saturday to snap a four-game losing streak. Derek Roy netted two
goals and has five points in three games, one more than his point total
from his previous 19 contests. After Tuesday’s tilt with the Islanders,
Buffalo hosts the Boston Bruins on Friday before embarking on a
five-game road trip with stops in New York to play the Rangers, Anaheim,
San Jose, Vancouver and Winnipeg.
OVERTIME:
1. The
Islanders have the worst goals for/against differential in the Eastern
Conference (minus-35). Only the Columbus Blue Jackets have a worse
differential in the NHL (minus-59).
2. Buffalo captain Jason Pominville has six goals and four assists in his last eight contests.
3.
Buffalo has played seven games this season against opponents who had
played the day before while the Sabres had the day off. They’re 6-1-0 in
those games.