Game 1 Preview: Islanders at Hurricanes

NEW YORK ISLANDERS AT CAROLINA HURRICANES

GAME 1 | BEST OF SEVEN SERIES TIED 0-0

5 PM | PNC ARENA

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We meet again.

For the second time in two seasons – and third time in the past six – the New York Islanders will meet the Carolina Hurricanes in the postseason.

The Islanders are 0-2 against the Hurricanes in postseason play, falling last season in six games in the First Round, while also being swept in the second round of the 2019 playoffs.

The Islanders enter the series as the third seed in the Metro, using a 9-1-1 stretch to vault from outside the playoff picture to their current position. That makes the Isles one of the hottest teams down the stretch, though they’ll have to contend with a Hurricanes team that has been hot for over half the season.

Since Dec. 12, the Hurricanes have a 38-11-6 record, and have not lost consecutive regulation games. Carolina picked up points in 44 of their final 55 games of the season.

Both the Islanders and Hurricanes went 2-1-1 against each other this season, with the road team winning each contest.

“The way we've been playing [down the stretch] just helped us feel confident again,” Mathew Barzal said. “Obviously, we know we're playing a great team. This team is a serious contender for the Cup. It's going to be a war as it was last year and it's going be a heck of a series.”

A CLASH OF STYLES:

The Islanders and Hurricanes approach the game differently and that’s reflected in a few key stats.

The Isles are one of the most physical teams in the NHL, ranking sixth overall with 2,062 hits, while the Hurricanes are 32^nd with 1,383 body checks.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t any bruises when playing the Hurricanes, who are one of the most shot-happy teams in the NHL. In four meetings this season, Carolina sent 284 shot attempts towards the Islanders net (compared to 152 for New York), so the Isles better be prepared to block shots.

“This is a pressure team and we're going to have to be very good five-on-five,” Roy said. “This team shoots from everywhere, but that goes with the sacrifice, and we're going have to block shots. We're going to have good sticks on pucks and make sure that we squeeze them on their entry and try to keep them away from the net.”

INJURY UPDATES:

Noah Dobson skated with the Islanders during Friday’s practice and Head Coach Patrick Roy said he expects the defenseman to be available for Game 1.

Dobson missed the final three games of the regular season with an upper-body injury. Dobson recorded 70 points (10G, 60A) in 79 games this season, becoming just the third blueliner in team history to hit 70 points (Denis Potvin, Jean Potvin).

“I put in a lot of really good work the last week or so here just trying to get ready,” Dobson said. “I'm confident if I'm able to get back, I'll be good to go.”

JG Pageau (lower body) did not participate in Friday’s practice and is considered day-to-day. Pageau left Wednesday’s regular season finale in the first period and did not return.

For the Hurricanes, Jesper Fast left Carolina’s season finale with an upper-body injury and did not skate on Thursday or Friday. Hurricanes GM Don Waddell told reporters that Fast is only expected to be out a “matter of days.”

VARLAMOV IN NET FOR GAME 1:

Patrick Roy announced that Semyon Varlamov will start in Game 1 on Saturday. Varlamov went 8-1-1 from March 10 until the end of the season, with a 2.09 GAA, a .930 SV% and a shutout over that span. Varlamov won five straight games to end his season.

The Hurricanes have not revealed their goaltender for Game 1, but have two quality options in Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov, who alternated in 20 of the last 21 games of the season. Andersen missed over four months with blood clots during the season, but went 9-1-0 with a 1.30 GAA, a .951 SV% and three shutouts after returning. Kochetkov went 7-2-1 with a 2.09 GAA, a .915 GAA and a shutout in his last 10 games of the season.

WHO’S HOT?

Kyle Palmieri ended the season with a career-long seven-game point streak, with 10 points (6G, 4A) over that span. Palmieri scored goals in six of his last seven games, hitting the 30-goal mark in the last game of the season. Palmieri became the third 30-goal scorer on the team this season along with Brock Nelson (34) and Bo Horvat (33).

Nelson recorded eight points (4G, 4A) in his final five games of the season.

KEEPING AN EYE ON THE STORM:

The Hurricanes do a lot of things well, but special teams might be what they do best. Carolina’s penalty kill led the league at 86.4% this season and killed 94-of-103 power plays to end the season, holding opponents scoreless on the man advantage in 31 of their final 38 games. The Hurricanes power play finished second in the league at 26.9%, so the Islanders would be advised to play the game five-on-five.

Sebastian Aho likely needs no introduction, but the Finnish winger had another fabulous year, leading the team with 89 points, including 21 points in his final 15 games of the year.

Jake Guentzel has fit in perfectly alongside Aho – and Seth Jarvis – on Carolina’s top line since arriving via trade from Pittsburgh. Guentzel has 25 points in 17 games since being acquired and finished the season with an eight-game point streak, which was the longest of any Hurricanes player this season.

Andrei Svechnikov recorded 52 points (19G, 33A) in 59 games this season and finished the year with a four-game point streak (2G, 4A). Svechnikov did not play in the playoffs last season. Teuvo Teravainen finished the year with four goals in his final three games.

Brady Skjei (47 points), Brent Burns (43 points) and Jaccob Slavin (37 points) lead the Hurricanes in points on the blue line.