Islanders vs. Montreal: Odds, Lineups, Keys, TV and more

Keys to the Game

Hold the Blue Line

In the past two games the Islanders have struggled in their defensive zone. They have been stuck in their zone for minutes at a time and when that happens, when you finally do get the puck out, they have no legs for attack. So, they dump it in and change, then the other team breaks out quickly and then they are stuck in their d-zone again.

The Isles need to answer this by holding their blue line and stepping up right away. This may force turnovers or Montreal will have to dump the puck in.

If Montreal does dump it in, the Isles need good back pressure from their forwards. The forwards need to be coming back hard to be the first ones to the dumped in puck and make the first breakout pass.

This will allow the Islanders to spend less time in their defensive zone and more time on attack.

Shoot the Puck

Islander fans have been frustrated with the Islanders lack of shots in recent games. And it is something the Isles must change if they want to win more games.

As we all know, you have to shoot the puck to score.

We have seen it all over the NHL this year, bad angle shots have gone in. Whether it has hit off people in front of the net or the goalie misread the puck, it has found a way in.

The Islanders need to shoot more tonight. They need to get plenty of pucks and people to the net. This will give them plenty of opportunities to score both on the initial shot and any rebounds.