UBS Keys to the Game: Islanders at Sabres

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (17-19-6) AT BUFFALO SABRES (15-24-8)
7 PM ET | KEYBANK CENTER
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The New York Islanders wrap up their four-game road trip with their final stop against the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday night at KeyBank Center.

After losing two straight, the Islanders are in need of a win and are looking to finish off their road trip with a .500 record.

"We all know where we are in the standings and we try to make every trip positive," Brock Nelson said. "If we can take this one and go .500, which isn't the best, but at the same time we played two solid games to star the trip. [We had] a big win in Vancouver. I thought we played a pretty good game in Edmonton but didn't get the result. If we can finish it off here, collect two points and head back home for a couple of games that'd be huge. We'd try to use that to springboard us and get some wins."
Their most recent loss was a 5-2 defeat to the Calgary Flames. Noah Dobson scored a power-play goal, while Jean-Gabriel Pageau also scored. Semyon Varalmov was the expected starter but was pulled prior to puck drop due to a positive COVID-19 test. In his place, Ilya Sorokin made 24 saves on 29 shots in the loss.
The Sabres enter the matchup coming off a 5-3 win over the Montreal Canadiens on Sunday afternoon. The win featured a four-goal and five-point performance by Jeff Skinner and a power-play goal by Tage Thompson. Craig Anderson made 29 saves on 32 shots.
The Islanders and Sabres last met on Dec. 30, 2021, where the Islanders picked up a 4-1 win. The Islanders are 10-1-1 in their last 12 meetings with Buffalo.

ISLANDERS NOTES:

Morning Skate Updates: Kyle Palmieri will draw into the lineup on Tuesday after missing the past three games.
• Dobson scored his seventh goal of the season and his second power-play goal. The 22-year-old leads the Islanders' blueline in scoring with 19 points (7G, 12A) through 40 games. Dobson also tied a career-high with seven blocked shots in Saturday's loss.
• Pageau scored his sixth goal of the season and now has 14 points (6G, 8A) through 40 games. Pageau's goal was his first since Dec. 19.
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• Sorokin made his 29th start of the season while his record dropped to 14-10-5. The Russian netminder has a 2.46 GAA, a .920 SV% and four shutouts this season.
• The Islanders are 13-4-4 when scoring first and are 4-15-2 when allowing the opening goal.
• Mathew Barzal recorded an assist and leads the Islanders in scoring with 30 points (11G, 19A) through 39 games.
• The Islanders' power play ranks 22nd in the NHL at 18.4%, while their penalty kill ranks ninth at 82.7%.
• The Islanders rank eighth in the NHL in FOW% at 51.8%.
• For the first time in four weeks, the Islanders fell two games below NHL-.500 (17-19-6).
• The Islanders allowed the first goal for the eighth time in nine games.

SABRES NOTES:

• The four-goal effort marked a new career-high for Skinner, who has six-career hat tricks. Skinner finished the game with five points (4G, 1A). The winger has a team-leading 34 points (20G, 14A) through 45 games.
• Thompson scored his 15th goal of the season and his fifth power-play goal. The winger extended his point streak to four games with five points (1G, 4A) over that span. Through 43 games, Thompson has 33 points (15G, 18A).
• Alex Tuch posted three assists against Montreal. The winger now has 17 points (6G, 11A) and a three-game point streak with five points (2G, 3A) during that span. Tuch has 17 points in 15 games since making his Sabres debut on Dec. 29.
• Dahlin dished out an assist and leads the Sabres d-men in scoring with 30 points (8G, 22A) through 46 games.
• Anderson made his ninth start of the season and improved his record to 6-3-0. The veteran netminder has a 2.67 GAA and a .916 SV%.
• The Sabres' power play ranks 17th in the NHL at 19.5%.
• Casey Mittlestadt did not play against Montreal due to an upper-body injury.
• Vinnie Hinnostroza (lower body) and Zemgus Girgensons (undisclosed) are on injured reserve and are expected to be sidelined until Feb. 15.
• The Sabres rank 32nd in the NHL in FOW% at 46.1%.