Game Preview: Islanders at Flames

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (7-7-4) AT CALGARY FLAMES (9-6-3)

9 PM EST | SCOTIABANK SADDLEDOME

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The New York Islanders are in Alberta to take on the Calgary Flames on Tuesday night, which concludes the Canadian portion of their five-game road trip.

The Isles are 1-1-1 on the road trip thus far, as a 3-2 loss to the Seattle Kraken on Saturday afternoon halted their point streak of five games (3-0-2). Jamie Oleksiak’s goal broke a 2-2 tie with 3:13 left in the game after Pierre Engvall and Brock Nelson (SHG) scored for the Islanders. Ilya Sorokin made 24 saves in the losing effort.

“We’ve done a pretty good job on this trip so far, obviously dropped a game that felt like we could have won in Seattle, but we have to find a way to get two [points] tomorrow,” Matt Martin said after Monday’s practice.

The Islanders will face a well-rested Flames team, as Calgary had three days between games after they shut out the Nashville Predators 2-0 on Friday. Daniil Miromanov and Blake Coleman powered the offense for the Flames, while Dustin Wolf made 29 saves.

SEASON SERIES

The Islanders went 1-1-0 in the season series last year, with their lone win coming in a 5-4 shootout victory on Nov. 18 at Scotiabank Saddledome. After Tuesday’s road tilt, the Isles will host the Flames on March 22nd at UBS Arena.

ISLES NOTES

- Mike Reilly will undergo a heart procedure on Tuesday to address a pre-existing heart condition, unrelated to the injury he suffered in Buffalo on Nov. 1. There is no timeline for the defenseman’s return is to be determined but is expected to return to hockey after recovering from the operation, per Isles President and GM Lou Lamoriello.

"[His quality of life will be] 100% and he will be able to play once this procedure is done," Lamoriello said. "It takes quite a bit of time. It could be several months before he's back, because of the type of procedure."

- On the other hand, some positive news broke on Monday with updates on the rest of the injured group. Alexander Romanov (day to day, upper body) participated in Monday’s practice, as the defenseman was a full participant in his second straight practice. He missed 10 of the last 11 games.

- Anthony Duclair (LTIR, lower body) is expected to begin skating by the end of the week. The 29-year-old winger has not played since Oct. 19 when he sustained the injury against the Montreal Canadiens.

- Mathew Barzal and Adam Pelech will begin skating after clearance from medical staff, but their timetable for return is still unknown, per Lamoriello. Barzal has missed eight consecutive games since he suffered an injury in Columbus on Oct. 30, while Pelech has missed seven contests since he left the game on Nov. 1 in Buffalo.

- Brock Nelson’s shorthanded goal against the Kraken was his second of the season and fourth in his career.

- Pierre Engvall scored goals in consecutive games for the first time since he did so last season (Nov. 30 and Dec. 2). The Swedish winger has three points (2G, 1A) in his last four contests.

- The Isles’ PK went a perfect 2-for-2 on Saturday.

FLAMES NOTES

- The Flames took a blow to their forward group, as Anthony Mantha is out for the season after undergoing ACL surgery. The former Washington Capital suffered the injury on Nov. 5. The 30-year-old signed a one-year contract with the Flames over the offseason.

- Jonathan Huberdeau leads the team with six goals this season. His 52 points last season tied for fourth in scoring on the Flames, Huberdeau hasn’t been able to replicate similar success to his 2021-22 campaign, where he put up 115 points (30G, 85A) for the Florida Panthers. The 31-year-old forward is one assist shy of 500 for his career.

- Rasmus Andersson leads the Flames with 11 points (4G, 7A) in his seventh full season with the club, though he has not hit the scoresheet since Nov. 1 when he tallied an assist in a 3-0 win over the New Jersey Devils.

- Dustin Wolf recorded his first career NHL shutout on Saturday in a 2-0 win over the struggling Nashville Predators. The 23-year-old is seeing consistent playing time this season, with a 6-2-1 record in nine starts, along with a .921 SV% and a 2.53 GAA.

- A key departure in the offseason was Jacob Markstrom, who spent four years with the Flames before he was traded to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for Kevin Bahl and a 1st-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft. Bahl, 24, has six assists through his first 18 games for Calgary.