Game Preview: Carolina Hurricanes @ NY Islanders

LAST GAME

The NY Islanders' losing streak extended to four with their loss to the NY Rangers on Sunday. After getting out to a first-period lead thanks to a Bo Horvat short-handed goal, the Rangers scored the next two just ten minutes into the second. Horvat's second of the game knotted things up at two, but it was all Rangers from there, as the Islanders' bitter rivals scored the next three on the road to a 5-2 victory.

The Carolina Hurricanes extended their win streak to three on Sunday, defeating the Ottawa Senators 7-2. Evgeny Kuznetsov scored his second goal since being traded from the Washington Capitals, and Jake Guentzel scored his first since his acquisition from the Pittsburgh Penguins.

HISTORICAL MATCHUP

The Isles are 2-0-1 in three games against Carolina this season, including a 5-4 victory on Dec. 23. Anders Lee finished the night with three points and Bo Horvat had two. The Islanders were outshot on the night 40-28, but fended off a strong Hurricanes push as they put 15 shots on target in the final stanza.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Mat Barzal has struggled during the Islanders' four-game losing streak, totaling just one point. If this team is going to make a final push toward the playoffs, he'll need to be at the forefront and the team's top forward.

Guentzel is becoming acclimated with his new teammates in Carolina and will look to make it two in a row with a goal tonight. A team already with Stanley Cup aspirations now has a deadly goal scorer and the Isles have been struggling to keep the puck out of their net.

PROJECTED LINES

ISLANDERS

Brock Nelson - Bo Horvat - Kyle Palmieri
Anders Lee - J.G. Pageau - Mat Barzal
Pierre Engvall - Casey Cizikas - Simon Holmstrom
Matt Martin - Kyle MacLean - Cal Clutterbuck

Adam Pelech - Noah Dobson
Alexander Romanov - Ryan Pulock
Mike Reilly - Sebastian Aho

Semyon Varlamov
Ilya Sorokin

Hurricanes

Jake Guentzel - Sebatian Aho - Seth Jarvis
Andrei Svechnikov - Evgeny Kuznetsov - Martin Necas
Jordan Martinook - Jordan Staal - Jesper Fast
Brendan Lemieux - Jesperi Kotkaniemi - Stefan Noesen

Jacob Slavin - Brent Burns
Brady Skjei - Brett Pesce
Dmitry Orlov - Jalen Chatfield

Pyotr Kochetkov
Fredrik Andersen