Game Preview: Islanders at Bruins

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (14-18-7) AT BOSTON BRUINS (20-16-4)

6 PM ET | TD GARDEN

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HOW OPTIMUM SUBSCRIBERS CAN WATCH THE ISLES

The New York Islanders are back in action to take on the Boston Bruins in Beantown on Sunday to open a three-game road swing that also sees them head west to Las Vegas and Utah.

The Islanders are coming off a 2-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday which extended their losing streak to three games, which ties a season-long. Scott Mayfield scored the lone goal for the Islanders and Ilya Sorokin made 29 saves on 31 shots.

Though they haven’t gotten the results they’re looking for, the Islanders have been stingy defensively at five-on-five in their three-game losing skid, allowing four even strength goals over that span.

The Bruins are coming off a 6-4 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday, in the first half of a back-to-back set. Boston overcame two deficits, a 2-0 hole and also scored to tie the game at three apiece, but Toronto ultimately pulled off the win in the third period. Morgan Geekie, Trent Frederic and David Pastrnak (2G) found the back of the net for the Bruins, while Jeremy Swayman made 23 saves in the loss.

SEASON SERIES

The Isles lead the season series 1-0-0 after an explosive 6-3 win on Nov. 27 at UBS Arena. The Islanders have struggled on the road against the Bruins as they’re winless in their last seven trips to TD Garden. The two teams will wrap the season series in Boston on Feb. 27.

“It’s always a tough building to play in, going up to Boston, so we have to be ready,” Brock Nelson said. “They always try to come out hard and they get the crowd going. So for us, we want to be really solid at five-on-five and special teams obviously going be a big part of it again. So we want that in our favor.”

ISLES NOTES

- Isaiah George (day to day, upper body) will miss Sunday’s tilt after he sustained an injury on Thursday against the Maple Leafs. Dennis Cholowski will draw into the lineup in his place, which will mark his first game since Dec. 17 against the Carolina Hurricanes. Cholowski, who has eight points (3G, 5A) through 23 games for the Islanders this season, is an asset on the power play as the quarterback to the second unit.

“He's doing a really nice job on the power play,” Roy said of Cholowski. “He's moving that puck very well and that will be an asset for us, not that [Ryan] Pulock didn't do a good job, but I feel like [Cholowski] is allowing Pulock to rest and focus on playing against the top lines. But overall, that's the depth that we have, and we're lucky to have him.”

- Simon Holmstrom (day to day, upper body) is expected to miss his third consecutive game on Sunday. The Swedish winger has 22 points (9G, 13A) through 37 games this season.

- The Islanders rearranged a couple lines in Saturday’s practice in an effort to spark some offense. Notably, Nelson was moved to a line with Mathew Barzal and Anders Lee while Kyle Palmieri was placed on a line with Anthony Duclair and Bo Horvat.

- New York’s power play is 0-for-20 in its last 10 games and ranks 32^nd in the NHL overall (11.0%). Though the man advantage has been a struggle all season, Roy emphasized that the power play units – although not converting - are getting looks.

“We have plenty of chances,” Roy said. “Bo a lot of looks last game, [he had that] one timer in the pocket. I feel like we're moving the puck fast. I feel like the guys are seeing each other. I feel like the chemistry is there.”

BRUINS NOTES

- The Bruins have lost three straight games after Saturday’s loss which followed Thursday’s defeat to the New York Rangers in a 2-1 decision. The Bruins are 1-4-0 in their last five games and their 20-17-4 record ranks third in the Atlantic Division.

- Joonas Korpisalo will get the start for the Bruins after Swayman played on Saturday in Toronto. Korpisalo was acquired from the Ottawa Senators along with Mark Kastelic – who signed a three-year deal on Friday - and a first-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft in exchange for Linus Ullmark.

Korpisalo sports a 7-4-1 record in his first season as a Bruin, along with a 2.71 GAA and a .895 SV%. The Finnish netminder was between the pipes in the prior meeting with the Isles this season for a 6-3 victory for the Bruins.

- Joe Sacco is 12-8-1 in his first 21 games as interim head coach, since taking over for Jim Montgomery who was relieved of his duties after an 8-9-3 record to start the year.

- Oliver Wahlstrom might face his former team for the first time on Sunday after the Bruins claimed him off waivers on Dec. 14. The winger is without a point through six games played for Boston and missed three as a healthy scratch.

- The Bruins are without Hampus Lindholm (lower-body, IR), but Sacco provided an update on Thursday that the defenseman is getting closer to skating. Lindholm last played on Nov. 12 and has accumulated seven points (3G, 4A) in 17 games before sustaining the injury.

- His absence gave an opportunity to former Islander Parker Wotherspoon for more ice time - as the defenseman played 11 games since Lindholm went down – but Wotherspoon did not play in Saturday’s contest against the Maple Leafs.

- David Pastrnak leads the Bruins in scoring with 40 points and tied Brad Marchand for the team lead of 15 goals with a two-goal performance on Saturday.

- The Bruins are struggling on the power play this season (12.9%), which ranks 31^st in the league, which edges only the Islanders.