Game Preview: Islanders at Canadiens 

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (20-16-11) AT MONTREAL CANADIENS (19-21-7)

7 PM ET | CENTRE BELL

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The New York Islanders are looking to pick up an important road win against the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night at Centre Bell.

The Islanders dropped a 3-2 decision to the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday, but put forth a solid effort, limiting the opposition to 27 shots while recording a season-high 42 shots on goal. Brock Nelson and Jean-Gabriel Pageau (SHG) scored for the Islanders, but Vegas had the edge with goals by Ivan Barbashev, Sheldon Rempal (PPG) and Nicolas Roy (GWG, 1A). Ilya Sorokin made 24 saves in his 10th straight start and 15th consecutive appearance.

"We created a lot of scoring chances last night but just fell unlucky," Alexander Romanov said. “We had a chance to win.”

The Canadiens are looking to snap a three-game winless skid after losing 4-1 to the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday night. Johnathan Kovacevic scored the lone goal for the Habs, while Jake Allen made 24 saves in the loss.

The Islanders fell 5-3 to the Canadiens in the opening game of the season series on Dec. 16 at Centre Bell. Brock Nelson had a pair of goals in the loss – including a shorthanded goal – while Semyon Varlamov made 36 saves.

“It’s always a tough game in their building as we saw last time we were there,” Noah Dobson said after Wednesday’s practice. “They’re a good team, they’re fast and they have some very skilled players. We’ll have to be ready from the start, it’ll be a good challenge and opportunity for the group.”

MORNING SKATE UPDATES

- Semyon Varlamov is expected to start against Montreal on Thursday, per Roy. The Russian netminder backed up Ilya Sorokin on Tuesday after he was activated off IR on Monday. Varlamov has not played since Jan. 2 and missed eight games with a lower-body injury. Varlamov is 6-2-2 lifetime against the Canadiens with a .917 SV% and a 2.70 GAA.

- Pierre Engvall is expected to draw into the lineup for the first time after missing four games. The Swedish winger has 14 points (5G, 9A) through 41 games.

- Per Canadiens Head Coach Martin St. Louis, Sam Montembeault wil start between the pipes against the Islanders on Thursday. The 27-year-old netminder is 2-2-2 against the Islanders in his career, with a .929 SV% and a 2.31 GAA.

ISLANDERS NOTES

- The Islanders hit the ice on Wednesday for their first full practice under Head Coach Patrick Roy before taking on the Canadiens on Thursday at Centre Bell.

"To finally get a full one under our belt, it definitely feels good," Bo Horvat said. "We're still working on the kinks and little things that we need to get better at. But overall, it was a great day today and we've got to carry that into tomorrow."

- Montreal is a special place for Roy, who won two Stanley Cups with the Canadiens in 1986 and 1993. Though he has returned to Montreal as a head coach during his tenure with the Colorado Avalanche, he will visit for the first time with his new team on Thursday night in his second NHL head coaching opportunity.

- Brock Nelson recorded his 500th career point on Tuesday night against the Vegas Golden Knights. He became the 12th player in franchise history to reach 500 points, while drawing within 13 points of Bobby Nystrom (513) for 11th place on the franchise all-time points list. The goal also extended Nelson’s point streak to three games (2G, 1A) and accounted for his team-leading 21st goal and 38th point of the season.

- With a primary assist on Nelson’s goal, Alexander Romanov extended his point streak to three games (1G, 2A). The 24-year-old defenseman has 13 points (5G, 8A) through 47 games with a +13 rating.

- Simon Holmstrom took the NHL lead in shorthanded points (7) with a primary assist on Jean-Gabriel Pageau’s shorthanded tally against Vegas on Tuesday night. Pageau is tied for second in the league in shorthanded points (6) with Calgary’s Yegor Sharangovich.

Per Islanders team statistician Eric Hornick, Pageau is one of four active players with career 20 shorthanded goals and is the 87th player in NHL history to record 20 or more career shorthanded tallies.

- Noah Dobson is one of four defensemen in the NHL playing at over a point-per-game pace with 48 points (6G, 42A) through 47 games. He ranks third in points among all defensemen, behind only Quinn Hughes and Cale Makar.

CANADIENS NOTES

- The Canadiens have been outscored 19-7 in their three-game losing streak, most recently falling 4-1 to the Senators on Tuesday night. The Habs stand sixth in the Atlantic Division with 45 points and a record of 19-21-7. Montreal is one of seven teams in the league with a home record below the NHL-.500 with a record of 9-12-3 at Centre Bell. 

- Tanner Pearson returned on Tuesday after missing 19 games with a upper-body injury. The 31-year-old forward skated 11:26 and recorded one shot on goal on Tuesday in his first game since Dec. 9.

- Cole Caufield leads the Canadiens with 12 goals, while Nick Suzuki leads the team in assists with 27 assists and 39 points.

- The Canadiens announced on Wednesday that Lucas Condotta has been recalled from the Laval Rocket, Montreal's AHL affiliate. The 26-year-old forward collected 13 points (5G, 8A) in 37 AHL games this season. He will play his second NHL game and make his season debut if he slots into the lineup on Thursday against the Islanders. 

- Montreal loaned Joshua Roy to the Rocket on Wednesday. The 20-year-old winger was recalled on Jan. 12 and scored his first NHL goal and an assist over the span of six games.