Game Preview: Islanders at Sabres

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (6-4-3) AT BUFFALO SABRES (4-4-2)
7PM | KEYBANK CENTER
WATCH: NBCSN | NHL.TV
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The New York Islanders begin a four-game road trip with a back-to-back set against the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center on Monday night.
The Islanders will face Buffalo for the first time this season and in the first of three meetings this month. Since the Islanders last road trip outside of the NYC area from Jan. 24-31, where the team went (0-3-2), the team has strung together a six-game point streak (3-0-3) and risen to fourth in the East Division standings.

The Islanders enter Monday night's matchup after soundly defeating the division leading Boston Bruins with a 4-2 result on Saturday night at Nassau Coliseum. The Islanders received diverse scoring with two even-strength goals from Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Jordan Eberle, a power-play goal from Mathew Barzal and a shorthanded goal to mark Pageau's second of the night. Semyon Varlamov made his fourth-straight start to earn his sixth win of the season with his 28 saves.
The win, which snapped Boston's 10-game point streak and handed them their second regulation loss - both to the Islanders, - was not just an important win in the standings, but provided the Islanders a confidence boost as they put forth a character win and played to their identity.
"We played an Islander-style playoff game against the Bruins," Head Coach Barry Trotz said. "We went through that stretch in the four-or-five games [during their five-game winless stretch in January] there where something would go wrong for us and we let it linger. I liked the fact that we just got back on the saddle."
Buffalo will be playing its first game since Jan. 31 due to the NHL's COVID Protocol. The Sabres had to postpone all of their previously scheduled games in that span, including two games against the Islanders originally set for Feb. 2 and 4. In their last game, Buffalo lost 5-3 to New Jersey. The Sabres are 4-4-2 through 10 games.

ISLANDERS NOTES:
• Barzal reached a new career-best as the 23-year-old extended his point streak to eight games, with 10 points (4G, 6A) over that span. The center leads the Islanders in scoring 14 points (6G, 8A) through 13 games and is tied with Eberle for the Islanders goal-scoring lead with six goals. His third-period power-play goal was the first of the season.
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• Eberle scored his sixth goal of the season, which is tied with Barzal for the Islander leaderboard. After going without a point for two games, the winger posted a two-point outing as he assisted on Barzal's PPG. Eberle's six goals through 13 games is his best goal-scoring start of his 11-year NHL career with nine points (6G, 3A).
• Pageau paced the Islanders in the win as he scored his third and fourth goals of the season and his third goal in the last two games. Along with his two goals, including the Islanders first shorthanded goal of the season, Pageau fired off a game-high of seven shots on goal and five hits. Through 13 games this season, the 28-year-old center has registered seven points (4G, 3A).
• Leo Komarov assisted on both of Pageau's goal marking his first multi-assist game since Jan. 2, 2016. Komarov's two assists were his first and second points through seven games this season.
• Ryan Pulock assisted on Pageau's first-period goal. The assist marked the defenseman's fourth point, all assists, in the last five games. Through 13 games this season, Pulock has totaled five points on five helpers.
• Varlamov improved his record to 6-2-2. The Russian netminder has a 1.98 GAA and a .930 SV%. In total, Varlamov has posted three shutouts this season and is tied with Anaheim's John Gibson for the most of all NHL goaltenders this season.
• The Islanders special teams had a perfect showing against the Bruins as the Islanders power play was 1-for-1 and their penalty kill was 2-for-2. In the NHL, the Islanders power play is ranked 15th (21.4%) and their penalty kill is ranked 12th overall (81.8%).
• With the Islanders win, President and General Manager Lou Lamoriello recorded his 1,300th career victory. Lamoriello ranks third on the NHL's all-time list behind Nashville Predators GM David Poile (1,421) and former Edmonton Oilers and New York Rangers GM Glen Sather (1,319).

SABRES NOTES:
• Through 10 games this season, Buffalo's captain Jack Eichel leads the team in points (11) and assists (nine).
• Victor Oloffson leads the Sabres in goal scoring with four goals through 10 games. The winger has totaled 10 points (4G, 6A) this season.
• The Sabres had an active offseason, signing former MVP Taylor Hall to a one-year deal, while also trading for veteran center Eric Staal. Hall is off to a hot start with nine points (1G, 8A) in 10 games, while Staal has five points (3G, 2A) in 10 games.
• Hall received a positive test for COVID-19 on Feb. 2 and was placed on the NHL's COVID-related absence list along with nine other Buffalo players. Fortunately, the winger has made a full-recovery - and 10 days of quarantine -
he joined the team for practice on Feb. 13 and is expected to play against the Islanders on Monday. 
• Linus Ullmark has received the most starts for Buffalo with six and has compiled a record of 3-1-2. Ullmark has a 2.56 GAA and a .914 SV%.
• Carter Hutton has earned four starts and recorded a record of 1-3-0. The veteran netminder has a 3.05 GAA and a .895 SV%.
• Buffalo's 55.9 FOW% is ranked second in the NHL, behind Boston (57.8%).
• The Sabres power play is ranked sixth overall (30.8) and their penalty kill is ranked 10th overall (82.6).
• The following players remain on the COVID-related absence list: forwards Dylan Cozens, Curtis Lazar, Casey Mittelstadt, and Tobias Rieder, Jake McCabe, Brandon Montour, and Rasmus Ristolainen.
• On Sunday,
the Sabres welcomed back the additions of Dahlin and their Head Coach Ralph Krueger.
Dahlin tested negative for COVID-19 but had to quarantine due to protocol and risking potential exposure, while Krueger tested positive for COVID-19 on Feb. 4 and has made a recovery.