PITTSBURGH PENGUINS vs NY ISLANDERS
When: 7:00 PM  ET, Thursday, November 1, 2018
Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York

TV: 7:05 PM
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: NY ISLANDERS , PITTSBURGH

Oddsmakers currently have the PITTSBURGH listed as -165-moneyline favorites versus the NY ISLANDERS, while the game’s total is sitting at 6.5.

The Pittsburgh Penguins answered a sweep of their four-game road trip with getting doubled up in the opener of a home-and-home series against the New York Islanders. The Penguins aim to regain their good fortune on the road Thursday when they vie for a split versus the Islanders, who have won three in a row overall and six straight versus Metropolitan Division rivals dating to last season.

“Mentally you know what to expect, knowing how they play, what the game looked like, tendencies,” captain Sidney Crosby said after scoring in his fourth straight contest in Tuesday’s 6-3 setback. “That’s probably the biggest thing just being able to envision what the game will look like and what to expect, and preparing for that.” Fellow former Hart Trophy winner Evgeni Malkin scored a goal to extend his point streak to eight games overall (five goals, 11 assists) and give him at least one point in 14 of his last 18 encounters versus the Islanders. Jordan Eberle tallied twice in the second period and Brock Nelson netted his fifth goal in five contests for New York, which scored five goals on its first 10 shots Tuesday. The Islanders have collected at least one point in seven of their last eight meetings (4-1-3) with the Penguins and are 5-1-1 in their last seven home games versus the division rival.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, AT&T SportsNet-Pittsburgh, Sportsnet360, Sportsnet East, Sportsnet Ontario, Sportsnet Pacific, MSG (New York)

ABOUT THE PENGUINS (6-2-2): A lower-body injury prevented Kris Letang from playing in the opener of the home-and-home set, but the offensive-minded defenseman was able to practice on Wednesday and will determine his availability for the finale based on how he feels Thursday morning. “I felt pretty good,” the 31-year-old said. “I tested it a little bit earlier to see if I was able to skate with the guys. It went pretty well after that. I was going hard.” Center Derick Brassard has been ruled out versus the Islanders after he failed to skate in Wednesday’s practice due to a lower-body injury.

ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (6-4-1): Thomas Greiss has turned aside 55 of 57 shots during his stints in the last three games, including 12 of 13 in the third period on Tuesday in relief of an injured Robin Lehner. The 32-year-old Greiss likely will get the nod on Thursday with coach Barry Trotz deeming Lehner as day-to-day with “a strain.” Fellow goaltender Christopher Gibson was brought up on emergency recall from Bridgeport of the American Hockey League while forward Tom Kuhnhackl was loaned to the Sound Tigers, one day after scoring his first goal of the season versus his former team.

OVERTIME

1. New York LW Josh Bailey set up a goal Tuesday, pushing his point and assist streaks to six and five games, respectively.

2. Pittsburgh D Jamie Oleksiak and Dominik Simon are both riding career-high four-game point streaks, with the former notching two assists on Tuesday while the latter scored his second goal of the season.

3. Islanders RW Cal Clutterbuck could draw back in the lineup on Thursday, Trotz announced.

PREDICTION: Penguins 4, Islanders 3

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NY ISLANDERS vs NY RANGERS
When: 2/8/2021 7:00 PM
Where:

TV: 7:00 PM
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: NY RANGERS , NY ISLANDERS

Oddsmakers currently have the NY ISLANDERS listed as -105-moneyline favorites versus the NY RANGERS, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.5.

The latest installment of the rivalry between the New York Islanders and New York Rangers began with the teams trading dominating shutout victories at Madison Square Garden in the first two games of the season.

Both teams have experienced inconsistent performances since but are looking to follow up on solid performances Monday night when the Islanders visit the Rangers.

The Islanders scored three times in the first period for a 4-0 win on Jan. 14 and the Rangers countered by scoring two times apiece in the first and second periods for a 5-0 win on Jan. 16.

Following the first two matchups, the Islanders won two straight but then went 0-3-2 in their next five games, a stretch that included blowing a three-goal lead through 20 minutes by allowing five goals in the second period of a 6-3 loss at Washington on Jan. 28. The skid continued with a pair of overtime losses at Philadelphia and then ended with a 4-3 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night in their first game following consecutive postponements due to COVID-19 issues with the Buffalo Sabres.

“It was a big win for us because we stopped a little bit of a slide here,” Islanders coach Barry Trotz said.

Jordan Eberle scored twice in the first period, giving him five goals so far this season, and the Islanders overcame a 3-2 deficit by getting the tying goal from Cal Clutterbuck and the go-ahead tally on a power play by Anders Lee.

Saturday marked the third time the Islanders scored more than three goals.

“In this short season, you don’t want to get too far behind,” Eberle said. “We need to get on a roll and get back into it.”

The Rangers have found a way to win lately, are seeking a third straight victory and are 3-0-1 in their past four games. New York’s recent improvement follows a four-game skid (0-3-1) where it lost each game by one goal.

The Rangers have been idle since posting a 4-2 win over Washington on Thursday. They had a game at New Jersey postponed on Saturday due to COVID-19 issues with the Devils.

After a 3-1 win over Pittsburgh on Monday, the Rangers took the lead 1:41 into Thursday’s game on a goal by Ryan Strome, who scored twice and has three of his goals in the past four games. Artemi Panarin added three assists and has nine points (three goals, six assists) over the past four games.

“I liked a lot about our game from the get-go,” Rangers coach David Quinn said. “I thought we were all dialed in. I thought we were mentally and physically ready to go.”

Panarin leads the Rangers with 15 points and is heating up while Mika Zibanejad is off to a slow start with a goal and two assists after scoring a career-best 41 goals last season.

Perhaps the most encouraging sign for the Rangers on Thursday was a second straight solid showing by goaltender Igor Shesterkin against the Capitals.

Shesterkin made 31 saves, including six of seven shots from Alexander Ovechkin. Since getting off to a shaky 0-2-1 start, Shesterkin has stopped 79 of 84 shots during a three-game winning streak and helped the Rangers kill off 10 penalties in the past two games.

Shesterkin started the first meeting with the Islanders while Alexandar Georgiev made 23 saves in the second meeting to improve to 6-2 in his career against the Islanders. Until the past two games, the Rangers alternated goaltenders.

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BUFFALO vs NY ISLANDERS
When: 2/2/2021 6:00 PM
Where:

TV: 6:00 PM
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: NY ISLANDERS , BUFFALO

Oddsmakers currently have the BUFFALO listed as 110-moneyline favorites versus the NY ISLANDERS, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.5.

A winless five-game road trip isn’t ideal at any time, but enduring it during the first month of a normal regular season is usually the least worst outcome.

Of course, there’s nothing normal about a pandemic-shortened regular season consisting entirely of divisional games, which means, to paraphrase Yogi Berra, it’s already getting late early for the New York Islanders.

The Islanders will hope to snap their winless streak Tuesday night, when they are scheduled to host the Buffalo Sabres in the opener of a three-game homestand in Uniondale, N.Y.

Both teams were off Monday after losing Sunday, when the Islanders ended their road trip with a 4-3 overtime loss to the Philadelphia Flyers and the Sabres fell to the visiting New Jersey Devils, 5-3.

Getting the point provided some short-term solace for the Islanders, who managed to double their point total for the trip by overcoming a two-goal third period deficit to force overtime.

“We’re sitting there after two periods and (with) the way the week has gone, we could’ve just said ‘Let’s get out of here’ and give up,” Islanders head coach Barry Trotz said. “We didn’t. We battled back. I thought they uplifted each other. I felt we were going to get two points. I really did.”

Still, an 0-3-2 trip put the Islanders into an early hole — entering Monday, they were seventh in the East Division, three points behind the fourth-place Pittsburgh Penguins — and made it clear they need to begin playing complete games sooner than later. New York squandered a three-goal lead in a 6-3 loss to the Washington Capitals on Thursday and had to overcome a multi-goal deficit to force overtime in Saturday’s 3-2 loss to the Flyers.

“When we’re successful, we see how we’re playing well and we need to translate that to a full 60 minutes,” Islanders defenseman Nick Leddy said Sunday night.

The Sabres will also be searching for some consistency Tuesday. The loss to the Devils snapped a five-game point streak for Buffalo, which produced its only set of back-to-back wins during the 3-0-2 stretch.

On Sunday, the Sabres fell behind 2-0 by giving up first- and last-minute goals in the first period. Goals late in the second by Curtis Lazar and Rasmus Dahlin had Buffalo on the verge of hitting the intermission in a tie game, but Miles Wood scored for the Devils by putting back his own rebound with a second left in the period.

The Sabres tied the score again when Rasmus Ristolainen scored on the power play 3:53 into the third before Michael McLeod put the Devils ahead for good just beyond the midway point.

“I don’t think we were working smart within the framework we want to work in,” Sabres head coach Ralph Krueger said. “I wouldn’t say we didn’t work. I thought the guys worked hard to get us back from down (2-0) and then down 3-2 again with the late, painful goal.”

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NY RANGERS vs NY ISLANDERS
When: 7:00 PM  ET, Thursday, November 15, 2018
Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York

TV: 7:05 PM
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: NY ISLANDERS , NY RANGERS

Oddsmakers currently have the NY RANGERS listed as 115-moneyline favorites versus the NY ISLANDERS, while the game’s total is sitting at 6.

In what was expected to be a rebuilding year for both franchises, the New York Rangers and New York Islanders are each battling for first place in the tightly contested Metropolitan Division. The Rangers are on a tear and will carry a seven-game point streak into Thursday’s matchup at the Islanders, who have dominated the rivalry since the start of the 2015-16 season.

The Rangers made it two straight with a 2-1 win over visiting Vancouver on Monday night, the team’s fifth one-goal decision during the 6-0-1 stretch. “We can beat any team in the league right now,” goaltender Henrik Lundqvist said. “There’s a few teams that are extremely consistent, and they’ve separated themselves a little bit. The rest of the pack is going to be a battle all year and we’re in it. That’s important.” The Islanders have move into first place in the division following a five-game winning streak, only to drop three in a row before routing the Canucks 5-2 on Tuesday night. The Islanders have dominated the Rangers over the past three seasons, winning 11 of 12 overall and all six meetings at Barclays Center.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, MSG-Plus2, MSG (New York)

ABOUT THE RANGERS (9-7-2): Rookies played a huge part in New York’s latest win as 20-year-old Brett Howden delivered the game-winning goal in the third period after Filip Chytil, 19, had tied it with his first career tally. “We don’t look at it as a rebuild year,” Howden said. “We believe we’ve got a great team here and we’re looking to build this year and be a contending team. We’re not looking for three years down the road.” Coach David Quinn changed his lines during Tuesday’s win, shifting Chytil from centering the fourth line to playing the wing on the No. 1 unit.

ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (9-6-2): New York could be short of bodies for Thursday’s matchup as both forwards Andrew Ladd (lower body) and Casey Cizikas (undisclosed) were not at practice Wednesday after leaving Tuesday’s game due to injuries. “They were a little nicked up, so they are being assessed,” Islanders coach Barry Trotz said. “We’ll see where they are tomorrow. Can’t confirm or deny they’re in or out because I haven’t heard yet.” Forward Matt Martin (upper body) practiced for the first time since he was hurt but Trotz ruled him out against the Rangers.

OVERTIME

1. The Islanders are 6-0-0 against the Metropolitan Division this season.

2. Lundqvist needs one win to move past Jacques Plante (437) for sole possession of seventh on the all-time wins list.

3. Islanders G Thomas Greiss is 3-0-1 in his last four starts overall and 3-0-1 in his last four versus the Rangers.

PREDICTION: Islanders 4, Rangers 3

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NY ISLANDERS vs TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING
When: 7:30 PM  ET, Thursday, November 8, 2018
Where: Amalie Arena, Tampa, Florida

TV: 7:35 PM
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: TAMPA BAY , NY ISLANDERS

Oddsmakers currently have the NY ISLANDERS listed as 180-moneyline favorites versus the TAMPA BAY, while the game’s total is sitting at 6.

The New York Islanders try to rebound from what first-year coach Barry Trotz called their “worst game of the year” when they begin a quick trip to the Sunshine State against the Eastern Conference-best Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday. The Islanders, who also visit Florida on Saturday, coughed up a two-goal lead before losing 4-3 in a shootout to Montreal on Monday but extended their point streak to seven (5-0-2).

“We didn’t do the things we should do. It happens,” New York right wing Leo Komarov told Newsday. “A good team has to lose some nights also and we’ve been playing good so far. A point is important but I think we had a good chance to get two. … We just need to be ready next game.” The Islanders have dropped five of the last six in the regular season against the Lightning, who rolled over Edmonton 5-2 for their third straight win Tuesday and sixth in eight contests at home in 2018-19. Tampa Bay goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy earned his eighth win of the campaign with 33 saves and captain Steven Stamkos told reporters, “(Vasilevskiy) is undoubtedly the reason why we win a lot of hockey games. He was outstanding again (Tuesday).” Center Brayden Point leads Lightning with nine goals, 19 points and a plus-12 rating after registering 10 points in the past five contests.

TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, MSG Plus (New York), FS Sun (Tampa Bay)

ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (8-4-2): Forward Josh Bailey saw his eight-game point streak come to an end Monday, but leads the team with 15 – two better than captain Anders Lee and three more than Calder Trophy winner Mathew Barzal. Goalie Thomas Greiss allowed five goals on 101 shots over the last three games and owns the same record (4-2-1) as Robin Lehner, who last played on Oct. 30. Jordan Eberle (four goals, three assists) did not practice Wednesday, but Trotz told reporters he is expected to be in the lineup against Tampa Bay, and fellow forward Matt Martin (upper body) did not make the trip.

ABOUT THE LIGHTNING (11-3-1): Stamkos and right wing Nikita Kucherov accounted for three goals in Tuesday’s victory and the two All-Stars have recorded eight points apiece in the last five games after relatively slow starts. “The last couple of games we’ve got back to playing with the puck,” Stamkos told reporters of playing with Kucherov. “We try to create room for each other out there. Obviously we’ve developed that chemistry. It was nice to have a couple nice plays and contribute to a win.” Forward Yanni Gourde (16 points) has scored in three straight games since signing a six-year contract extension.

OVERTIME

1. Tampa Bay D Victor Hedman (upper body) will likely miss his seventh straight game, but coach Jon Cooper told reporters the reigning Norris Trophy winner could return soon.

2. New York C Casey Cizikas scored twice Monday after managing two points (both assists) over the previous seven games.

3. The Lightning gave up three power-play goals in the last two games after allowing three total in the first 13 contests.

PREDICTION: Lightning 5, Islanders 2

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MONTREAL CANADIENS vs NY ISLANDERS
When: 7:00 PM  ET, Monday, November 5, 2018
Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York

TV: 7:05 PM
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: NY ISLANDERS , MONTREAL

Oddsmakers currently have the MONTREAL listed as -105-moneyline favorites versus the NY ISLANDERS, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.5.

The New York Islanders attempt to extend their winning streak to six contests when they wrap up their three-game homestand Monday against the Montreal Canadiens. New York, which has earned points in six straight (5-0-1), has allowed only two goals while posting victories over Pittsburgh and New Jersey during the string at home.

Josh Bailey notched a pair of assists in Saturday’s 3-0 triumph over the Devils to increase his team-leading total to 15 points and extend his streak to eight games (two goals, nine assists). Montreal is coming off a 1-2-0 homestand that concluded Saturday with a 4-1 loss to Tampa Bay. Max Domi scored 58 seconds into the contest, but the Canadiens were unable to muster any more offense and continued their trend of alternating victories and defeats since posting a three-game winning streak from Oct. 13-17. Montreal has earned at least one point in four of its five road contests this season (2-1-2), posting a 3-0 triumph at Boston on Oct. 27 in its last game away from home.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, TSN2, RDS (Montreal), MSG Plus 2 (New York)

ABOUT THE CANADIENS (7-4-2): Domi is proving to be a solid acquisition after coming over from Arizona for former 30-goal scorer Alex Galchenyuk in mid-June. The 23-year-old son of former NHL enforcer Tie Domi, who was drafted 12th overall by the Coyotes in 2013, leads Montreal with 13 points – notching at least one in eight of his last nine games – and has recorded a goal in six of his last eight contests. Carey Price has won three of his last five starts and is nine victories away from 300 for his career.

ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (8-4-1): Thomas Greiss, who posted his ninth career shutout on Saturday, has allowed only three goals on 105 shots in his last three starts. The 32-year-old German is tied with Chris Osgood and Kelly Hrudey for seventh place on the franchise list with six shutouts, is even with Glenn Healy for seventh with 66 victories and shares 10th place with Garth Snow at 127 games played. Scoring first has been key for New York, which is 7-0-1 when recording the initial goal and 1-4-0 when allowing it.

OVERTIME

1. Islanders C Brock Nelson’s goal on Saturday was his 106th, moving him past Ed Westfall and Benoit Hogue for 28th place on the franchise list.

2. Montreal has dominated the all-time series of late, winning nine of the last 12 meetings.

3. Bailey’s next goal will be his 128th and snap a tie with Jason Blake for 19th in franchise history.

PREDICTION: Islanders 3, Canadiens 2

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NY ISLANDERS vs FLORIDA
When: 7:30 PM  ET, Monday, December 4, 2017
Where: BB&T Center, Sunrise, Florida

TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, MSG Plus (New York), FSN Florida
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: Panthers 4, Islanders 2

Oddsmakers currently have the NY ISLANDERS listed as -110-moneyline favorites versus the FLORIDA, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.5.

SUNRISE, Fla. — The New York Islanders, who lead the NHL in scoring, expect to go up against one of the league’s all-time great goalies, Roberto Luongo, on Monday night when they face the Florida Panthers at the BB&T Center.

The Islanders (15-8-2) are led by center John Tavares, who ranks third in the NHL with 16 goals. His team is first in the league with an average of 3.72 goals per game.

ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (15-8-2): New York has one more player than Florida with at least 24 points, and the team’s top six scorers all are on hot streaks offensively. Josh Bailey leads the team with 30 points, including 12 in his last eight games, and captain John Tavares is one behind him while Anders Lee has scored four goals in his last three contests and rookie Mathew Barzal has notched 10 of his 24 points over his last eight matches. Defenseman Nick Leddy also has been on a roll with 11 points in his last nine contests while Jordan Eberle is riding a four-game point streak.

And even when the Islanders lose, they usually still score big, as was the case on Friday night when their four-game win streak was snapped in a 6-5 loss to the Ottawa Senators.

“It stings,” New York coach Doug Weight said after that defeat, “but it’s almost a good learning tool.”

Meanwhile, Florida (10-13-3) relies on Luongo, 38, who is aging gracefully. He ranks seventh in the league this season with a .928 save percentage. For his career, he is fourth in league history with 459 wins.

ABOUT THE PANTHERS (10-13-3): Barkov scored his third goal in four games Saturday and trails Trocheck (10) by one for the team lead while remaining one point behind Huberdeau (26) for the top spot on the club. With top-line forward Evgenii Dadonov (shoulder) out of the lineup, defenseman Keith Yandle (13) is the only other player on the team with more than 12 points. Nick Bjugstad scored his sixth goal of the campaign on Saturday, pulling within one of his total from 2016-17, when he missed 28 games due to various injuries.

Luongo, who has battled injuries again this season, is 6-6-1 with a 2.62 goals-against average. He has been even better lately, allowing just 18 goals in his past nine games.

This will be Luongo’s first game against the Islanders this season. Last season, he went 2-1-0 with a 2.30 GAA against New York.

Of course, the Islanders’ offense has improved since last season, when they missed the playoffs and averaged 2.91 goals, 10th in the league. They have scored five or more goals 12 times in 25 games this season.

Weight, brought in last January after Jack Capuano was fired, went 24-12-4 last season and has his team off to a good start.

Yet even with all the good things happening with the Islanders, there is turmoil within the organization. Team owners are primed to end their association with Barclays Center, hoping to get a new arena built at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

The other big New York story line involves captain Tavares, 27, who will be a free agent after this season. He is a franchise center and his departure — should it happen — could wreck the Islanders.

That’s why the Monday game — and, frankly, every New York contest — is so important. The Islanders likely need to make a deep playoff run to convince Tavares to stick around past this season.

The Panthers don’t face that kind of pressure. This is shaping up as a rebuilding season under first-year head coach Bob Boughner.

Florida has lost two games in a row, both by one goal. A 3-2 setback at the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday was particularly painful as the Panthers allowed the winning goal with just two seconds left in overtime.

“It was a heartbreaker,” Boughner said after the defeat.

Now the Panthers start a three-game homestand.

Florida center Aleksander Barkov, who scored with 1:56 left in the third period to send the Carolina game to overtime, leads the Panthers’ top line along with Jonathan Huberdeau.

Center Vincent Trocheck and wingers Nick Bjugstad and Radim Vrbata power the second line.

Florida’s Evgenii Dadonov (shoulder) is out at least four weeks, leaving a gaping hole on the front line that is currently being filled by 21-year-old Denis Malgin.

The Islanders’ biggest injury concern is center Casey Cizikas (four goals, four assists). He has missed two games in a row due to a lower-body injury.

OVERTIME

1. Florida RW Radim Vrbata has gone two games without a point since returning from a facial injury that caused him to miss almost two weeks.

2. The Islanders placed C Casey Cizikas (lower body) on injured reserve, retroactive to Nov. 25.

3. Barkov needs four points to become the 13th Panther to reach 200 in his career.

STATS AND RECORDS

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NY ISLANDERS vs LOS ANGELES
When: 10:30 PM  ET, Sunday, October 15, 2017
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California

TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, MSG Plus (New York), FSN West (Los Angeles)
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: Kings 4, Islanders 1

Oddsmakers currently have the NY ISLANDERS listed as 125-moneyline favorites versus the LOS ANGELES, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.5.

LOS ANGELES — The New York Islanders will attempt to end their lone West Coast road trip on a winning note when they face the Los Angeles Kings at Staples Center on Sunday.

New York (2-2-1) is in the midst of a challenging schedule with five of its first seven games away from Brooklyn’s Barclay Center and are in a stretch of 13 of 15 games against Western Conference opponents.

They conclude their road swing against a more familiar foe — the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Thursday.

OVERTIME

1. Kings D Oscar Fantenberg notched an assist against Buffalo for his first point in four career contests.

2. Islanders C John Tavares has been kept off the scoresheet in four of his five games this season, including each of the last three.

3. Los Angeles LW Kyle Clifford (upper body) was placed on injured reserve while D Paul LaDue was assigned to Ontario of the American Hockey League.

Both teams are playing the back end of consecutive games. The Islanders defeated the San Jose Sharks 3-1 while the Kings used a decisive third period power-play goal from Drew Doughty in a 4-2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday.

Thomas Griess came up big for the Islanders by stopping 40 San Jose shots, including 29 in the final two periods. Brock Nelson scored the decisive goal in the second period and Cal Clutterbuck added an empty-net goal to support Griess’ second victory of the season.

“We bent, but we didn’t break,” Islanders coach Doug Weight said. “We needed some big saves from Thomas and he was great in net.”

Nelson like the way his team responded after a 3-2 loss in Anaheim on Wednesday.

“It was a good road win for us,” Nelson said. “Greiss played well and made a lot of big saves. It is a good bounce back from Anaheim and it is nice to come out on top.”

Los Angeles (3-0-1) has taken advantage of a friendly schedule that keeps them in California until its Oct. 21 matchup at Columbus. The Kings will play the second of eight consecutive games against the Eastern Conference.

The three power-play goals they registered in the Buffalo win were their first of the season after starting the season on an 0-for-16 run.

The fast start is rare for the Kings. It is the first time since 1995-96 they have registered points in each of their first four games.

“It’s important. We think you’ve got to get seven points a segment if you’re going to be in the playoff hunt,” Kings coach John Stevens said. “To get points early in the season, it doesn’t matter what time of the year it is, those points are extremely important, especially when you’ve got some new people here, you’ve got some young guys in our lineup, you want to get off to a good start, get some points in the bank and hopefully build a little confidence in the group, so I think it’s extremely important.”

Doughty agreed with Stevens that a strong start is important to a team that has missed the playoffs in two of the last three seasons.

“We want to start the season off right,” Doughty said. “Right now, if we had lost the first three games or lost a couple of them, the mood in the room wouldn’t be where it is right now. We are at a high right now.

“We are really confident in each other and in the team, and we just feel good about ourselves. That all changes if we start losing, so we got to keep pushing forward and keep winning, and we are going to continue having fun if we win.”

Dustin Brown continued his strong start against Buffalo registering a power-play goal for his fourth tally in four games. After scoring only 25 goals in the past two regular seasons, Stevens has made Brown a fixture on a wing for Anze Kopitar and the partnership has paid off.

“Brown has been terrific. He’s getting back to his power game,” Stevens said. “We’re trying to make that a part of our identity as a hockey team and he’s leading the charge. He likes being there.

“The defensemen were shooting pucks and he stood down there in front of the net tipping pucks for a good five or 10 minutes at the end of practice today. He understands the value of being there, he wants to be the guy there, and I think it’s a great example for everybody else to kind of lead the charge of getting more people to the front of the net.”

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Florida Panthers vs New York Islanders
When: 7:00 PM ET, Wednesday, January 11, 2017
Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York

TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSN Florida, MSG-Plus (New York)
PREDICTION: Panthers 3, Islanders 2

Oddsmakers currently have the FLORIDA listed as 115-moneyline favorites versus the NY ISLANDERS, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.

NEW YORK — The last time the New York Islanders hosted the Florida Panthers was April 24, when Islanders captain John Tavares authored the most dramatic hockey moment the Barclays Center has seen by scoring in double overtime to give New York a series-winning victory over the Panthers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals.

Tavares’ dramatic goal will seem a lot further away than a mere 270 days Wednesday night, when the reeling Islanders host the Panthers in the lone game between the teams this season at Barclays Center.

The Islanders fell to the Arizona Coyotes 2-1 in a shootout Saturday. It was the second straight 2-1 loss to a Western Conference also-ran for New York (15-15-8), which lost in overtime to Colorado on Friday.

The losing streak has stalled the momentum the Islanders created before their “bye week,” which they entered off a 4-1-0 stretch. New York has the fewest points in the Eastern Conference a season after reaching the conference semifinals for the first time since 1993.

“Before the break, everything seemed to be going in for us,” Shane Prince told Newsday following Saturday’s loss. “It’s obviously frustrating to get two points and only score two goals.”

The Islanders won’t be alone Wednesday in feeling as if last spring happened long ago. The Panthers, who reached the playoffs in 2015-16 for only the second time in the last 15 seasons, are two points out of third place in the Atlantic Division. But Florida (18-16-8) is only 7-7-7 since Tom Rowe replaced Gerard Gallant, who was fired following an 11-9-1 start.

The Panthers are coming off a 3-0 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Monday, when goalie Roberto Luongo moved into fifth place on the NHL’s all-time list by earning the 448th victory of his career.

Afterward, Luongo was more concerned with the Panthers’ perilous standing in the Eastern Conference than his place in NHL history.

“I think right now, I just want to get some wins,” Luongo said. “Our goal is to make the playoffs, so that’s what my focus is on, 100 percent. The other things will take care of (themselves) and we’ll reflect on them when it’s all said and done. But as a group, we have one goal in mind, and that’s to play good every night, keep collecting some point and try to get back in this thing.”

Luongo is likely to oppose Thomas Greiss in a rematch of the starting goalies in last spring’s playoff series. Greiss, who became the Islanders’ unquestioned starter when Jaroslav Halak was waived Dec. 30 and eventually assigned to Bridgeport of the American Hockey League, stopped 63 of the 66 shots he faced in regulation and overtime of New York’s last two defeats.

The game Wednesday is the first of two straight between the Islanders and Panthers, who oppose each other in Sunrise, Fla., on Friday.

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St. Louis Blues vs New York Islanders
When: 7:00 PM ET, Thursday, December 8, 2016
Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York

TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSN Midwest (St. Louis), MSG-Plus (New York)
PREDICTION: Islanders 3, Blues 2

NEW YORK — The New York Islanders have spent the last week proving they can play with the best teams in the Eastern Conference. On Thursday night, the Islanders will get a chance to see how they stack up against the red-hot St. Louis Blues, who are the second-best team in the Western Conference.

The Islanders will host the Blues for the only time this season when the two teams square off at Barclays Center. Both clubs won Tuesday, when New York extended its point streak to five games with a 4-2 win over the New York Rangers while St. Louis kept rolling with a 3-2 overtime win over the East-leading Montreal Canadiens.

The Islanders (10-10-5) have gone 4-0-1 in their last five games — a stretch in which they’ve beaten the Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals, all of whom currently occupy a playoff spot — to climb out of the NHL basement and move to the fringe of the East playoff race.

“It gives our guys a little bit of confidence that we can play with some of the top teams, record-wise, in the East,” Islanders head coach Jack Capuano said.

Despite the recent surge, the Islanders still have a long road ahead if they want to reach the playoffs for the third straight season. New York is eight points behind the Capitals and Philadelphia Flyers, who are tied for the two wild card berths.

“Means we’ve got a lot of work still to do,” Islanders center and captain John Tavares said. “We’ve had some ups and downs and some frustration to start the year, some results we didn’t get and some things maybe not go our way. Certainly playing a lot better hockey and we know we can still be a lot better.”

Results-wise, it’s hard to fare much better than the Blues (15-7-4) have lately. St. Louis is 8-1-1 in its last 10 games dating back to Nov. 15 to move within three points of the Chicago Blackhawks, who lead both the Central Division and the Western Conference.

Much like the Islanders, the Blues are looking to see if their recent play is sustainable. The game Thursday begins a four-game road trip for St. Louis, which is just 3-6-1 away from Scottrade Center. Six of its final nine games before the Christmas break will be on the road.

“It’s going to be a real test for us,” Blues goalie Jake Allen said. “Obviously, things haven’t gone great for us on the road this year. It’s a great opportunity to keep this thing going we had on our homestand.”

The Blues would like to keep it going without the drama that accompanied the 4-0-1 homestand that concluded Tuesday. Four of the five games went to overtime.

“My biggest fear is we’ve had to put a lot of energy into these games. a lot of overtimes, a lot of 3-on-3 stuff, a lot of anxiety, a lot of close games,” Blues head coach Ken Hitchcock said. “We’ll see where our energy is. We’ve got to be really careful with ourselves right now.”

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