As many people know, the New York Islanders have become one of the top teams in the National Hockey League so far this season. With a strong 11-0-2 record at home, they own the title of best home record and are the only team to be undefeated in regulation at home. After coming off of 3 straight games against the Buffalo Sabres, with all of the final scores being 5-2 in favor of the Islanders, they were climbing the standings. Currently, the New York Islanders hold the first place spot in the MassMutual East Division. The Isles are said to be one of the hottest teams in the league at the moment, and it’s only becoming an upwards trend from here. Tonight, the Isles look to continue their 6 game win streak in the first of a 3 game series against the New Jersey Devils.
One player worth mentioning for the Islanders is Brock Nelson. In his last 4 games, Brock has tallied 3 goals and 1 assist for a total of 5 points. He currently sits at 10 goals on the season and hopes to add to that in the next coming games. Another important player that has been nothing less than sensational would be Goaltender Semyon Varlamov. Through his last 6 games, Varlamov has a .936 SV% and a 1.95 GAA.
Due to the Pandemic, there have been no fans for a while in arenas to watch NHL games. Recently, many arenas have been letting fans in at limited capacity with precautionary measures in place. As a way to thank frontline workers that have worked endlessly to help keep everyone safe, there will be 1000 Northwell Health frontline staff members in the crowd cheering on the Islanders. In all of sports, fans play a big role in giving the players energy. Teams including the Islanders thrive off of their fans' support. Having fans in the arena will benefit the Isles in so many ways.
Through 22 games, the Devils sit at 7th place in the East Division with a record of 8-11-3. The Devils newly appointed captain Nico Hischier is out due to injury, the Devils are in a tougher position if they want to have the chance of beating the Islanders. The Devils are coming off of a 5-4 OTL against the Capitals. They had a 3 goal comeback to send the game to overtime, but the Washington Capitals ended up taking the win. Through 26 games, the Islanders sit at 1st place in the East Division with a record of 16-6-4. There are no injuries that are keeping any players out for the Islanders at the moment which is always a good thing. The Isles are coming off of a 2-1 W in the shoot out. It all sprouted off of Brad Marchand going after New York Islanders Rookie Oliver Wahlstrom. He was given a double minor penalty for instigation. On the powerplay, the Isles capitalized with a Tic-Tac-Toe goal ending with Brock Nelson putting the puck past Jaroslav Halak. After that goal, the score was at a standstill through OT. The game ended up going to a shootout, where the Islanders ultimately ended up winning.