The New York Islanders are set to face the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena on Monday night as their road trip continues on the west coast. The Islanders, who currently have a 25-17-5 record, are looking to recover from a recent 4-2 loss against the Calgary Flames. So far, they hold a 2-2-1 record on this road stretch.
“It’s a long road trip and we still have a chance to finish it on a high note,” said Tony DeAngelo following Saturday’s defeat. “[We’re] .500 right now and obviously want to be better than that and still have time to do it.”
The team practiced in Vancouver on Sunday, focusing particularly on reducing turnovers in the offensive zone. Captain Anders Lee commented, “We let up too much last game. We focused on coming back, kind of resetting on some of our structure and thought process there, getting back into our D zone. At the end of the day, we just got to take care of the puck a little bit more sometimes.”
Ilya Sorokin will start in goal for New York after being announced by Head Coach Patrick Roy during Sunday’s practice. Sorokin recently posted a shutout with 35 saves against Edmonton and currently leads the league with five shutouts this season. He has played 281 games for the Islanders so far; his next appearance will tie him with Chico Resch for third-most games played by an Islanders goalie.
In terms of lineup changes, Max Tsyplakov is expected to return after not playing since January 10th in Minnesota, replacing Max Shabanov. Tsyplakov has struggled offensively this season but is being given another opportunity alongside Cal Ritchie and Emil Heineman.
“I want him to play his game,” Roy said regarding Tsyplakov’s role in the lineup. “He’s a guy that will bring pucks to the net, a guy that plays really well defensively. To me, that’s his DNA, and I want him to play that game. I don’t need him to be like fancy with the puck. I know he will, which is fine with me at times, but what I really want to see with him is net presence. I mean, do a great job in the D zone and stuff like this and I know he can do it.”
Monday’s matchup also holds significance for Marc Gatcomb who previously spent two years within Vancouver’s organization at Abbotsford but never appeared in an NHL game for them until now at Rogers Arena as an Islander.
“You know, the city here is awesome. It’s very pretty, driving in the rink, see the mountains, stuff like that,” Gatcomb said about returning to Vancouver as an opponent. “I still have a bunch of close friends on the other team that I stay in touch with pretty frequently. So catch up with them tonight, grab dinner, but yeah it’s good to be back.”
The Islanders trail their season series against Vancouver after losing 4-1 when they last met at UBS Arena in December; however New York has not lost in regulation over its last nine visits (6-0-3) to British Columbia since January 2015.
Vancouver comes into Monday’s contest amid significant struggles: they are winless over their past ten games (0-8-2), holding both league-worst scoring rates—averaging only 1.7 goals per game while allowing 4.5—and sit last overall with just 37 points this season according to recent results.
Goaltender Kevin Lankinen will start for Vancouver as Thatcher Demko remains out due to injury since January 10th; Lankinen has recorded six wins across twenty-three starts so far this year while posting below-league-average statistics between goals-against average (3.37) and save percentage (.887). The Canucks also recently traded Kiefer Sherwood for draft picks and defenseman Cole Clayton as part of roster adjustments amid their current slide.
Elias Pettersson leads all Canucks skaters offensively while Filip Hronek tops assists among defenders; meanwhile Marco Rossi—acquired via trade—is sidelined due to injury.
