Hurricanes Take On Islanders In Road Trip Finale

Thursday night’s matchup saw the Carolina Hurricanes’ winning streak come to an end against the New York Rangers.

Luckily, a short turnaround awaits, as they take on the New York Islanders in the final contest of a three game road trip on Saturday.

Carolina enters the contest at 6-5 overall, but with a 3-5 record on the road.

Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Seth Jarvis are tied for the team-lead with 10 points, while Teuvo Teravainen leads the way with eight goals.

Injuries hindered the Hurricanes in the early going, but they’re close to full healthy, as Brett Pesce, while a big component, is the lone skater injured.

His absence has caused a shift with the defensive pairings and brought forth multiple duos on the blue line.

The pairing of Dmitry Orlov and Tony DeAngelo resurfaced for Thursday’s contest, while Jalen Chatfield played alongside Brady Skjei.

With no morning skate, there is no indication whether or not the offensive defensive pairing of Orlov and DeAngelo will remain or who is expected in net.

If Carolina’s rotation continues, Antti Raanta would earn his first start since last Friday night, when he stopped all 20 shot attempts from San Jose en route to a 3-0 shutout win.

Welcoming Carolina to UBS Arena will be the Islanders, as the two matchup for the first time since their their clash in the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

New York enters play with 12 points through nine contests, matching the Hurricanes. The Islanders have won three of their last four games, including a 3-0 victory in Washington on Thursday.

Goaltenders Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov have turned into one of the best netminding duos in the NHL. They have combined for three shutouts on the season, which is first in the league, and a .932 save percentage, which ranks second behind Boston.

For a team like Carolina, who pesters the net, even with some low danger looks, it should pose a tough task for whichever goaltender is in net.

Defenseman Noah Dobson paces New York in points with nine on the season, while forward Brock Nelson leads the way with five goals.

While the Islanders have tallied just 24 goals in nine games, they have a +1 goal differential, highlighting the success of the goaltending duo.

For the Hurricanes, avoiding the penalty kill is a key to victory, as they rank third in the league with 156 penalty minutes, just one minute less than Arizona who sits second. They have stopped opponents on the power play 75.56% of the time, which ranks 21st in the NHL.

And on the opposite end, performing on the man advantage has been a recipe for success in the early going.

Carolina ranks 7th in the NHL with a 26.19% conversion rate, but drew just two power play chances on Thursday and three in the last two games.

Saturday night’s matchup marks the first of four games between the Hurricanes and Islanders, who both rank in the top four of the Metropolitan Division.

Puck drop is set for 7:30pm EST in Elmont.