Devils at Islanders
THE STORY: The New Jersey Devils snapped a four-game losing streak with a 5-0 victory at the Washington Capitals on Friday, moving into a tie for fifth in the Eastern Conference. Captain Zach Parise took a stick in the face against the Caps but is expected play Sunday against the host New York Islanders. The teams will play three games in seven days. The Islanders ended a three-game losing streak by beating the defending Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins on Saturday.
TV: 3 p.m. ET; MSG, MSG-Plus.
ABOUT THE DEVILS (36-23-5): Parise registered his second career hat trick against Washington in just 9:36 and took over the team lead in goals with 27. Parise passed Ilya Kovalchuk (25), who has not scored a goal in eight games but has six assists in that span. Patrik Elias has 21 goals and 61 points – second on the team behind Kovalchuk (62) – and recorded the Devils’ league-leading 14th shorthanded tally Friday. Defenseman Marek Zidlicky has gone without a point in his first four games with his new team. Goaltender Martin Brodeur got Friday off after going 0-3-1 in his previous four starts.
ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (27-29-9): After losing five of six games, the Islanders fought back for a 3-2 victory at Boston. John Tavares had the game-winning goal and an assist to push his total to a team-leading 63 points. Goalie Evgeni Nabokov came up big as well. Anders Nilsson backed up Nabokov, with Al Montoya out injured. Matt Moulson also had a goal, moving him within two of his third consecutive 30-goal season. Josh Bailey has four goals in the last three games after going nine contests without a goal. The Islanders have killed just 20 of the last 30 power plays they’ve faced the last nine games.
OVERTIME:
1. The Islanders broke a five-game losing streak against the Devils on Nov. 26 with a 3-2 victory.
2. New Jersey is second to last in the league in faceoff percentage (46.4).
3. The Islanders have 14 home wins. Only two teams (Montreal and Columbus) in the league have less)