Islanders Host Hurricanes in First Metro Division Matchup

The New York Islanders host the Carolina Hurricanes at 7 p.m. EST Thursday at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York — the first meeting between the teams this season.

Carolina enters with a 12-3-2 record. The Hurricanes are 4-1-0 against Metropolitan Division opponents and have gone 11-0-1 this season when scoring three or more goals. They average 3.7 goals and allow 2.1 per game over their last 10 contests.

New York stands at 7-5-2 overall and is 1-1-0 against Metropolitan Division opponents. The Islanders have a +1 goal differential (39 goals for, 38 against) and are 5-3-2 over their last 10 games, averaging 2.6 goals and allowing 2.8 per contest.

Islanders center Brayden Schenn has four goals and five assists this season. Forward Matthew Schaefer has four goals and seven assists over his last 10 games. For Carolina, forward Logan Stankoven has 10 goals and six assists, while Jesperi Kotkaniemi has four goals and one assist over his last 10 games.

New York will be without five players due to injury: center Mathew Barzal (knee), forward Matias Maccelli (lower body), defenseman Ryan Pulock (upper body), forward Calum Ritchie (lower body) and defenseman Alexander Romanov (ACL). Carolina is missing forward Taylor Hall (upper body), forward Jordan Staal (calf) and defenseman Alexander Nikishin (not injury related).

Photo: All-Pro Reels from District of Columbia, USA / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
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