Game Preview: Islanders at Hurricanes

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (42-30-5) AT CAROLINA HURRICANES (48-21-6) 

7:00 PM | LENOVO CENTER 

WATCH/STREAM: MSGSN 

LISTEN: 88.7FM | 103.9FM | ISLANDERS + UBS ARENA APP

With the Eastern Conference playoff race remaining razor close, the New York Islanders travel south to face the Carolina Hurricanes in a Metropolitan Division matchup on Saturday night. 

New York stumbled in a 4-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers at UBS Arena on Friday night. JG Pageau scored the Isles’ only goal and Ilya Sorokin made 17 saves on 21 shots in the loss. 

The Islanders have now lost three consecutive games in regulation for the first time since the initial three contests of the 2025-26 season. 

The Isles (89 points) are in third place in the Metro, one point up on the Flyers (88 points) and Columbus Blue Jackets (88 points), who both hold a game in hand on New York. The Isles will look to remain in front of both Metro teams, as well as the Detroit Red Wings (88 points) and Ottawa Senators (88 points) in the playoff picture.

PROJECTED LINES 

Head Coach Patrick Roy changed up the lines heading into the back-to-back set against the Canes.

Anders Lee – Bo Horvat – Emil Heineman 
Mathew Barzal – JG Pageau – Simon Holmstrom 
Max Shabanov - Brayden Schenn – Cal Ritchie
Ondrej Palat – Casey Cizikas – Marc Gatcomb  

Matthew Schaefer – Ryan Pulock 
Adam Pelech – Carson Soucy 
Isaiah George - Scott Mayfield

Ilya Sorokin
David Rittich 

GEORGE IN FOR BOQVIST

Isaiah George will play for the first tie since he was recalled on Mar. 26. He'll skate on a pair with Scott Mayfield.

The 22-year-old played two games for the Islanders this season on Jan. 24 against Buffalo and Jan. 26 against Philadelphia, recording one assist and averaging 13:18 TOI. In Bridgeport, George has 17 points (2G, 15A) and 50 shots on goal through 45 AHL games this season.

"I just want him to be himself," Roy said of George. "I'm not looking for him to do anything too complicated, just keep his game simple. He's a very good skater and defends well. He's been playing well in Bridgeport, I just want him to play his game."

SHABANOV IN, MACLEAN OUT

Max Shabanov will draw into the lineup for the first time since Mar. 13 and he'll play on a line with Brayden Schenn and Cal Ritchie. Kyle MacLean will be a healthy scratch as a result. 

Shabanov has 16 points (4G, 12A) through 42 games this season.

HOLMSTROM RETURNS TO THE LINEUP 

Simon Holmstrom returned to the Islanders’ lineup on Friday night. Holmstrom recorded one point (1A), three shots on goal and one takeaway in 20:09 TOI. It was the third time he has played more than 20 minutes in a game this season. 

The 24-year-old ranks fifth on the team with 40 points (19G, 21A) in the 2025-26 campaign. 

BARZAL BRILLIANCE 

Mathew Barzal hit 50 assists on the season with a helper on Pageau’s goal against the Flyers. He has now eclipsed the 50 assists mark three times in his career, including twice in the last three seasons. Barzal forward joined Bryan Trottier, Denis Potvin, Mike Bossy and Stefan Persson as the only players with three or more 50-assist seasons in franchise history. 

The Islanders forward is riding a three-game point streak, with four points (1G, 3A) in that span, and leads the Islanders with 69 points (19G, 50A) this season.

SEASON SERIES  

This is the second of three regular season meetings between the Isles and Hurricanes this year. New York is 0-1-0 in the season series. 

The third and final game between the two sides is the Islanders’ season finale on Apr. 14. 

HURRICANES NOTES 

The Hurricanes enter Saturday night as winners of their last two games, both against the Blue Jackets. Their most recent victory was a 5-1 win on Thursday night on home ice. Logan Stankoven (2G), Alexander Nikishin, Andrei Svechnikov and Jordan Martinook were Carolina’s goal scorers, and Frederik Andersen made nine saves on 10 shots in the win. 

The Hurricanes (102 points) lead the Metropolitan Division and clinched a playoff berth on Thursday night. They are 10 points ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins (92 points), who sit second place in the Metro. 

Sebastian Aho is riding a four-game point streak, with five points (5A) in that stretch. Aho has 25 points (8G, 17A) in his last 25 outings and leads the Hurricanes with 77 points (25G, 52A) this season. 

Andrei Svechnikov also enters Saturday night on a point streak, with four points (3G, 1A) in his last three games. Svechnikov ranks second on the Hurricanes with 65 points (28G, 37A) this season.  

Rounding out Carolina’s top line, Seth Jarvis has 10 points (2G, 8A) in his last 10 games. Jarvis is fourth on the team with 63 points (30G, 33A) in this campaign. 

The Hurricanes lead the NHL with 439 takeaways, which is 44 ahead of next closest team (Washington Capitals) at 395.  

Carolina also ranks first in the league with a league-low 23.9 shots against per game. They gave up just 10 shots in their most recent win over the Blue Jackets. 

The Hurricanes’ power-play (24.8%) is tied for the third best in the NHL and has converted seven times in their last five games.  

Carolina’s penalty kill (80.8%) ranks 12th in the league.