Mittelstadt a game-time decision vs. Islanders

Casey Mittelstadt will be a game-time decision for the Buffalo Sabres' game against the New York Islanders tonight at KeyBank Center. The rookie forward left the team's morning skate early and has been dealing with a lower-body injury, coach Phil Housley said.
C.J. Smith will dress in the event that Mittelstadt is unable to play. The rest of the lineup will remain unchanged from Sunday's loss to Winnipeg, save for Linus Ullmark getting the start in net.
The Sabres are looking to rebound from that 3-1 loss on Sunday, a game in which they outshot the Jets, 36-29, and played the same tight-checking style that had earned them a win over Detroit one day prior, only to see the Jets break a 1-1 tie with 3:55 left in regulation.

"We made a mistake at a critical time and it cost us the game," alternate captain Kyle Okposo said. "But that's how we have to play defensively. The last couple games we've done a really good job.
"We can't lose sight of the fact that that's going to give us long-term success. I think we really have to take that to heart and keep playing like that."

Ullmark is coming off a 28-save effort in the win over the Red Wings, his 50th NHL appearance. He's posted a .914 save percentage in that span, the best mark in franchise history among goalies who have played their first 50 games for Buffalo.
Coverage on MSG-B begins at 6:30 p.m. with the GMC Game Night pregame show, or you can listen live on WGR 550. The puck drops at 7.

Scouting the Islanders

The Islanders have won three straight games and are 7-1-2 in their last 10. They've ascended to the top of the Metropolitan Division behind a structured, defense-first style implemented by coach Barry Trotz, allowing a league-best average of 2.44 goals per game.
Okposo still has relationships with many of the players on his former team and talked about their success following the Sabres' morning skate.
"They just said that Trotz has demanded them to play a certain way and they're really buying into that," Okposo said. "Their structure is very, very solid and there's not going to be a lot of room out there. They're all going to be in the right spots, and you've got to win your one-on-one battles. That's going to be the name of the game tonight."
The Sabres lost their first meeting with the Islanders, 3-1, despite earning a 40-33 edge in shots on Dec. 31.
"Last time we played them when we were breaking out, which I thought we did a really good job against their forecheck, but they were stripping a lot of pucks from behind," Housley said. "We have to be aware of that because they come back into their own zone and they have a big commitment to their own end.
"There's a reason why they're number one overall 5-on-5 goals against and just overall in general goals against. We're going to have to grind it out, fight for everything that we get with space in the offensive zone. But I thought we played a really strong game against them."
Former Sabre goalie Robin Lehner is expected to start in net for New York.

Projected lineup

53 Jeff Skinner - 9 Jack Eichel - 29 Jason Pominville
43 Conor Sheary - 37 Casey Mittelstadt* - 23 Sam Reinhart
17 Vladimir Sobotka - 71 Evan Rodrigues - 72 Tage Thompson
28 Zemgus Girgensons - 22 Johan Larsson - 21 Kyle Okposo
6 Marco Scandella - 55 Rasmus Ristolainen
26 Rasmus Dahlin - 48 Matt Hunwick
24 Lawrence Pilut - 19 Jake McCabe
35 Linus Ullmark
40 Carter Hutton
\Game-time decision (lower body)*