Blue Jackets at Islanders
The New York Islanders look to take a significant step forward toward the playoffs on Thursday when they vie for a five-game season sweep of the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets. Speaking of sweeps, the Islanders brushed aside Carolina in a home-and-home set to move within three points of white-hot Pittsburgh for third place in the Metropolitan Division.
Kyle Okposo scored the decisive tally in the shootout of Tuesday's 2-1 triumph over the Hurricanes and collected two goals and an assist in a 3-2 overtime win over Columbus on Dec. 12. Although Okposo publicly complained about the ice conditions at Barclays Center, New York is a blistering 8-1-1 in its last 10 home contests to move a season-high 14 games over .500 in Brooklyn (23-9-4). While the Islanders are in line to secure their third postseason appearance in four years, the cellar-dwelling Blue Jackets look very much like a team playing out the string as they have dropped three in a row and seven of their last nine. Columbus has mustered only six goals in its four losses to New York this season.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSN Ohio (Columbus), MSG-Plus (New York)
ABOUT THE BLUE JACKETS (30-38-8): Nineteen-year-old forward Sonny Milano is about to experience a homecoming of sorts as he is expected to make his NHL debut on Thursday. The 16th overall pick of the 2014 draft, Milano was recalled from Lake Erie of the American Hockey League on Wednesday and hails from Massepequa, N.Y. - approximately 10 miles from the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, the former home of the Islanders. "It's obviously unbelievable," Milano told the Columbus Dispatch. "It's Brooklyn now, but it's where I'm from, so it's extra special. I'll have a lot of family and friends there."
ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (41-25-9): Okposo didn't mince words after Tuesday's tilt, telling the New York Post that the ice conditions were "awful" and that the NHL "can't have it like that. It's got to change. It's got to be better than that." Despite his concerns, the 27-year-old Okposo has recorded 31 (12 goals, 19 assists) of his 57 points at home. Fellow pending unrestricted free agent Frans Nielsen has just one assist in his last seven games after posting eight points (one goal, seven assists) in his previous seven.
OVERTIME
1. Islanders captain John Tavares, who notched his team-leading 59th point on Tuesday, has scored and set up two goals versus the Blue Jackets this season.
2. Columbus is 0-for-14 on the power play in the last five games overall and 0-for-13 with the man advantage versus New York in 2015-16.
3. Islanders C Anders Lee scored on Tuesday and also tallied in a 3-2 win over the Blue Jackets on Feb. 9.