Game 3 Preview: Carolina Hurricanes @ NY Islanders, 04/25/2024

It would be almost understandable for the NY Islanders to fold it in and give up after the way they lost Game 2. Allowing the tying and winning goals within 9 seconds of each other after blowing a 3-0 lead is as brutal a loss as is possible this time of year. If they have anything left, they will have to show it tonight at UBS Arena during Game 3.

Ilya Sorokin is back in the crease for the Islanders, with an opportunity to steal a game or two and put the Isles back into this series. Additionally, Ruslan Iskhakov looks like he may be getting an opportunity to jump into the lineup tonight. The Islanders will be hoping that these changes can lead them to slow down the Hurricanes, because the Islanders are on the brink heading into tonight's Game 3.

LAST GAME

Re-live the disaster here if you must. If you need to be reminded, the Hurricanes defeated the Islanders 5-3 after coming back from a 3-0 deficit. They scored the game-tying and game-winning goals within 9 seconds of each other late in the third period. This series could be 2-0 Isles and should be even, but instead, the Isles head home in the dreaded 0-2 hole.

As they often do, the Islanders played the last half of the game basically like they were killing a penalty. This team has a tendency to lay off and "create defense," and that will never work against a team like the Hurricanes. If the Islanders can't maintain their forecheck, remain strong on the puck, and sustain some offensive zone time, this series will end quickly.

HISTORICAL MATCHUP

The Islanders are 2-10 against the Hurricanes in the postseason over the last six postseasons. This is the third series between the two teams. The recent history between these two teams is not very positive for the Islanders. Unless they can figure the Canes out soon, this is going to be another short postseason on Long Island.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

NYI: Ilya Sorokin- Who else? After the loss in Game 2, the Islanders will go back to Ilya Sorokin for Game 3. While Semyon Varlamov played well in Games 1 and 2, this is the right decision for a team that needs a spark to wake them up. Sorokin has proven capable of stealing games in the past, so perhaps getting some time off late in the season provides Sorokin a fresh start for the playoffs. Sorokin taking over this series is about the only hope the Isles have to advance.

CAR: Jaccob Slavin- With Brett Pesce out for the remainder of the series, the Slavin-Brent Burns pairing takes on even more importance than it usually does for the Canes. Tony DeAngelo is expected to enter the lineup for Pesce, which is an advantage for the Isles. Expect Slavin to play an enormous amount of minutes and take over the game in the defensive zone for Carolina.

PROJECTED LINES

NYI

Casey Cizikas- Bo Horvat- Mathew Barzal

Ruslan Iskhakov- Brock Nelson- Kyle Palmieri

Anders Lee- JG Pageau- Pierre Engvall

Simon Holmstrom- Kyle MacLean- Cal Clutterbuck

Adam Pelech- Ryan Pulock

Alexander Romanov- Noah Dobson

Mike Reilly- Robert Bortuzzo

Ilya Sorokin

Semyon Varlamov

CAR

Jake Guentzel- Sebastian Aho- Andrei Svechnikov

Teuvo Teravainen- Jesperi Kotkaniemi- Martin Necas

Jordan Martinook- Jordan Staal- Seth Jarvis

Jack Drury- Evgeny Kuznetsov- Stefan Noesen

Jaccob Slavin- Brent Burns

Brady Skjei- Tony DeAngelo

Dmitry Orlov- Jalen Chatfield

Fredrik Andersen

Pyotr Kotchetkov

Lines courtesy of Daily Faceoff.