New York Islanders vs. Detroit Red Wings Pick & Prediction NOVEMBER 21st 2024
Preview and Prediction
The New York Islanders have been amassing points, even if they haven't been securing victories as of late. They are set to conclude a five-game road trip against the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday evening.
The Islanders have managed to earn at least one point in six of their last seven games (3-1-3), but they have suffered four losses in their last five outings. Two of those defeats came in overtime, while their most recent game was decided by a shootout.
Although they had won their previous two shootouts, they were unable to come out on top against the Calgary Flames on Tuesday, falling 2-1.
See also:
"Chicago's Defenseman Seth Jones Sidelined for 4 Weeks with Foot Injury"
See also:
"Injury Forces Capitals' Alex Ovechkin to IR with Lower Body Issue"
"It was a hard-fought game. I thought both teams played very well," stated head coach Patrick Roy. "I look at it like it's a point, and I wish we had more than one point."
The majority of the Islanders' games have been closely contested and low-scoring affairs. Only twice in their first 19 games has either team scored more than five goals.
Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov have been splitting goaltending duties for the Islanders.
Varlamov made 30 saves before the shootout on Tuesday, and he has allowed two or fewer goals in his last four starts.
However, the Islanders' offense struggled after Pierre Engvall's second-period goal.
"There wasn't a whole lot out there, both ways," said defenseman Noah Dobson. "In the third period, we had lots of great looks, just didn't capitalize. We've got to find a way to get that second one and extend the lead when we have those one-goal leads."
The Islanders will face off against the Red Wings twice in the next five nights, with the second game taking place on Monday night on the Islanders' home ice.
See also:
"Jets Triumph over Panthers with Mark Scheifele's Hat Trick: NHL Recap"
See also:
"Jim Montgomery Fired as Bruins Head Coach, Joe Sacco Named Interim Replacement"
Their first meeting on October 22nd was a frustrating night for the Islanders, as they outshot the Red Wings 30-11 but ultimately fell 1-0 on a first-period goal by Patrick Kane.
That was just one of three goals scored by the future Hall of Famer in 18 games this season, which is one of the reasons why the Red Wings currently have a losing record. Detroit has only won one of their last six games (1-4-1), with their lone victory coming in overtime against the Pittsburgh Penguins on November 13th.
That game marked the beginning of a four-game road trip for the Red Wings, who went 0-2-1 for the rest of the journey, including a 5-4 overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks on Monday.
"The whole game was missed opportunities," said captain Dylan Larkin. "We got one point (in the standings), but we could have had two and finished the road trip on a good note. We didn't do that."
The Sharks' Tyler Toffoli scored in the final minute of the second period to tie the game at 3, which Wings coach Derek Lalonde felt was the turning point.
"That one at the end of the period was a huge momentum goal," he said. "I give our guys credit to find a way to get a point on the road, but a big part of it was the momentum of that second-period goal."
The Red Wings have several issues that need to be addressed. They have relied heavily on their first line of Larkin, Alex DeBrincat, and Lucas Raymond, who are also their top three scorers. They have been outshot in the majority of their games and their defense has struggled, allowing 15 goals in their last three contests.
Additionally, the Red Wings' penalty kill unit currently ranks last in the NHL at 66.7%, just ahead of the Islanders (67.5%), as of Wednesday.
New York Islanders vs. Detroit Red Wings Recap JAN 31TH 2015
Red Wings 4, Islanders 1: Tomas Tatar and Gustav Nyquist each scored a power-play goal to help host Detroit defeat New York.
Defensemen Brendan Smith and Jonathan Ericsson also tallied for the Red Wings, who topped the Islanders at home for the first time since Nov. 28, 2003. Petr Mrazek made 22 saves after allowing at least four goals in each of his previous three appearances.
Blue-liner Lubomir Visnovsky tallied for New York, which was 2-for-4 on the penalty kill. Chad Johnson stopped 15 shots in his first start since Jan. 10.
Tatar opened the scoring by burying a wrist shot from the left faceoff circle 5:29 into the game. Smith doubled Detroit’s advantage in the final minute of the second period with a one-timer off a feed from Tomas Jurco.
Visnovsky halved the deficit 5:24 into the third with a shot from the slot while Smith served an interference penalty. Ericsson gave the Red Wings some breathing room 3:57 later with a point shot through traffic and Nyquist sealed the victory with 6:52 remaining.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Detroit’s league-best power play is 30-for-101 at home. … Islanders captain John Tavares saw his five-game point streak come to an end, finishing the contest with three shots in 19:56 of ice time. … Detroit improved to 10-3-2 against Metropolitan Division opponents.