Game Preview: Islanders vs Blue Jackets

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (10-7-7) VS COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS (8-14-5)

7:30 PM | UBS ARENA | BUY TICKETS

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The New York Islanders take on the Columbus Blue Jackets in the second match of a six-game homestand on Thursday night. 

The Islanders are coming off a 5-4 OT loss to the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday night at UBS Arena. Julien Gauthier, Brock Nelson (PPG), Mike Reilly (SHG) and Ryan Pulock (PPG) scored to give the Islanders a 4-1 lead in the final eight and a half minutes, but the Sharks rallied to put up four unanswered goals, culminating in William Eklund’s OT winner. 

“We need to get back to being aggressive,” Head Coach Lane Lambert said after Wednesday’s practice. “When you give up a few leads, human nature can be to back off a little bit. We need to get away from doing that and get back to being aggressive. 

The Blue Jackets are coming off a 4-3 OT loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday night, handing the Kings their NHL record-tying 10th consecutive road win to start the season. Kirill Marchenko, Johnny Gaudreau and Mathieu Olivier scored for the Blue Jackets to build a 3-0 lead through two periods, but the Kings pulled even in the third with goals from Phillip Danault (2G), Arthur Kaliyev , with Drew Doughty burying the overtime winner.

The Islanders have picked up points in nine of their last 10 games (5-1-4), including two consecutive wins over the Carolina Hurricanes and Carolina Panthers prior to Tuesday’s loss to the Sharks. 

“In the last couple of games on the road we found a way to close out those games, we just have to do the same at home,” Noah Dobson said. “We need to continue to build and learn.”

The Islanders lead the season series 1-0 after defeating the Blue Jackets 2-0 in Columbus on Oct. 28. The Isles are 7-0-2 in their last nine games against Columbus, including 4-0-0 at UBS Arena.

MORNING SKATE UPDATES

- Sebastian Aho (IR, upper-body) skated with the team for the third consecutive day but is ruled out against the Blue Jackets, per Head Coach Lane Lambert. 

- Semyon Varlamov was first off the ice for the Islanders on Thursday morning. The Russian netminder sports a 2.50 GAA and a .926SV% this season and has 10 career wins in 18 starts against the Blue Jackets.

- Patrik Laine is out with an illness and did not make the trip to Long Island with the team.

- Spencer Martin is the expected starter for Columbus. The 28-year-old netminder owns a .902 SV% and a 3.20 GAA this season and is 0-2 against the Islanders in his career.

ISLANDERS NOTES

- The Islanders blew a three-goal lead for the second time this season with Tuesday's 5-4 OT loss, allowing three goals to the Sharks in the span of 6:35. The Islanders have blown eight multi-goal leads this season and are 3-1-4 in those games.

- Julien Gauthier scored in his second straight game, marking the first time he’d scored in consecutive games in his career. The 26-year-old winger has four points (2G, 2A) in seven games.

-Mike Reilly had a two-point night (SHG, 1A) in his home debut for the Islanders. The veteran defenseman skated 12:22, recording three shots on goal, two blocks and two hits.

“He’s done a great job stepping in,” Dobson said. “He has great offensive instinct, he’s been a puck mover and moves pretty well. He’s fitting in really well and is a great guy off the ice.”

- Bo Horvat has six points (2G, 4A) in his last four games, including two consecutive multi-point games.

- Noah Dobson leads the team in assists (17) and played 25:30 on Tuesday, marking his sixth straight game skating at least 25 minutes.

- Per Islanders team statistician Eric Hornick, the Islanders have been outscored 39-18 in the third period and overtime this season and have been outscored 25-9 over the last fourteen third periods.

- With two power-play goals on Tuesday night, the Islanders own the league’s seventh best power play (25.4%).

- The Islanders penalty kill is a perfect 7-for-7 and 17-for-19 (89.5%) over the last eight contests.

BLUE JACKETS NOTES

- The Blue Jackets parted ways with winger Eric Robinson on Wednesday, trading him to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for a seventh-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft. Robinson, 28, played in parts of seven seasons with Columbus and recorded one point (1G) through seven games this season.

- The Blue Jackets placed three players on IR on Wednesday. Adam Boqvist (retroactive to Dec. 5) is expected to miss four weeks with a shoulder strain suffered on Tuesday against the Kings. The defenseman has three assists in 13 games this season for Columbus. Elvis Merzlikins (IR, retroactive to Dec. 5) is expected to be out with an illness for a week. The netminder has six wins through 19 starts this season, with a 3.10 GAA and a .910 SV%.
Cole Sillinger (IR, retroactive to Nov. 26) is considered day-to-day with an upper-body injury.

- The Blue Jackets recalled Emil Bemstrom on Monday in relief of Sillinger. The 24-year-old winger has four points (3G, 1A) through 12 appearances in his fifth season with the team, last drawing into the lineup on Nov. 14 against the Penguins. Bemstrom has 14 points (10G, 4A) through eight games with the Cleveland Monsters.

- In two emergency recall moves, Columbus brought up defenseman Nick Blankenburg and goaltender Jet Greaves from the Monsters.

- Zach Werenski leads the Jackets in points (19) and ranks fifth in the NHL with 18 assists in his eighth season with the team.

- Columbus’ penalty kill ranks fourth in the NHL (87.2%).