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The struggling Hurricanes take on the Islanders who find themselves in a similar position. With just a month left until the playoffs, today’s matchup is as big of a “4 point game” as the Hurricanes will play this season.
Vital Statistics
| Category | Hurricanes | Blue Jackets |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Hurricanes | Blue Jackets |
| Record | 21-7-3 | 13-13-7 |
| Goals/Game | 3.23 | 2.54 |
| Goals Against/Game | 2.48 | 3.12 |
| Shots/Game | 31.52 | 28.70 |
| Face Off Win % | 54.4% | 46.2% |
| Power Play % (Rank) | 30.6% (1st) | 14.8% (26th) |
| Penalty Kill % (Rank) | 82.9% (9th) | 74.0% (26th) |
| ES Corsi For % | 53.04% | 46.16% |
| ES PDO | 100.96 | 99.42 |
| PIM/Game | 07:21 | 06:43 |
Goaltender #1
| Category | James Reimer | Joonas Korpisalo |
|---|---|---|
| Category | James Reimer | Joonas Korpisalo |
| Record | 12-4-1 | 8-10-5 |
| Save % | 0.909 | .900 |
| GAA | 2.68 | 2.98 |
Goaltender #2
| Category | Alex Nedeljkovic | Elvis Merzlikins |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Alex Nedeljkovic | Elvis Merzlikins |
| Record | 7-2-2 | 5-3-2 |
| Save % | .930 | .912 |
| GAA | 1.96 | 2.91 |
Game Notes
- The Hurricanes and Islanders are meeting for the third of four matchups this season. The Canes will round out the season series with a game in the Barclays Center in Brooklyn on March 22nd.
- The Hurricanes lead the season series with a 2-0-0 record in 2019-20.
- The Canes picked up a 5-2 win over the Islanders on October 11th in PNC Arena, with Dougie Hamilton and Andrei Svechnikov leading the charge with two points each. The picked up the second game in the season series with a 2-1 shootout win against New York in Raleigh on January 19th. Justin Williams scored the shootout-deciding goal in his first game of the season.
- The Hurricanes and Islanders are both struggling to keep up in the fast paced Eastern Conference playoff race. Both teams have had a rough stretch lately, with the Hurricanes posting a 3-5-2 record in their last 10 games, while the Islanders are 2-6-2 with three straight losses in regulation.
Lines and Rosters
Hurricanes
The Hurricanes are expected to shuffle a few lines today, most notably with Svechnikov sliding up onto the Aho and Teravainen top line. Nino Niederreiter and Ryan Dzingel will be slotted down onto the fourth line centered by Jordan Martinook. Petr Mrazek was on the ice this morning getting work, and is nearing a return to the lineup. Anton Forsberg will get the start today.
Andrei Svechnikov - Sebastian Aho - Teuvo Teravainen
Warren Foegele - Vincent Trocheck - Martin Necas
Brock McGinn - Jordan Staal - Justin Williams
Ryan Dzingel - Jordan Martinook - Nino Niederreiter
Joel Edmundson - Jaccob Slavin
Haydn Fleury - Brady Skjei
Jake Gardiner - Trevor van Riemsdyk
Anton Forsberg
Alex Nedeljkovic
Injuries and Scratches: Dougie Hamilton (IR leg), Brett Pesce (shoulder), Petr Mrazek (concussion), James Reimer (lower-body), Sami Vatanen (leg)
Islanders
The Islanders are another Metropolitan Division team that is struggling down the stretch. They’ve lost five straight and nine of their last 11 matchups. They were soaring through October and November, but have posted a 19-20-6 record since their long 17-game point streak ended on November 24th. They banked a lot of points early in the season, but need to pick up their pace to remain in playoff contention through March. Cal Clutterbuck will be a game-time decision for the Islanders after leaving Thursday’s game against the Ottawa Senators with an undisclosed injury.
Anders Lee - Mathew Barzal - Jordan Eberle
Michael Dal Colle - Brock Nelson - Derick Brassard
Anthony Beauvillier - Jean-Gabriel Pageau - Josh Bailey
Matt Martin - Otto Koivula - Cal Clutterbuck
Andy Greene - Ryan Pulock
Devon Toews - Scott Mayfield
Nick Leddy - Noah Dobson
Semyon Varlamov
Thomas Greiss