Islanders vs. Avalanche Odds
| Islanders Odds | +125 |
| Avalanche Odds | -150 |
| Over/Under | 6 |
| Time | 9 p.m. ET |
| TV | ALT |
The New York Islanders had a huge win on Saturday night against the Vegas Golden Knights to end a three-game losing streak. Now the Islanders are looking to complete the season sweep against the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Colorado Avalanche.
The Avalanche enter this contest as winners in three of their last four games as they seek revenge against the Islanders. Right now, they don't appear to be the dominant team that we saw all last year, but a lot of that has to do with the adversity they are facing due to injury.
Ilya Sorokin hasn't been at his best lately for the Islanders. He has lost his last five starts, but they haven't announced if they will be starting him or Semyon Varlamov in net just yet.
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Can the Islanders Improve on the Power Play?
Even though the Islanders are coming off of a win that they very much needed, it could be argued that they didn't necessarily deserve it since they were not the better team. Varlamov had a very strong performance in goal, making 36 saves on 38 shots, and the Islanders might need a similar showing from whoever starts in goal for them tonight against a very strong Avalanche team.
New York hasn't announced a starter yet for tonight, but there is no denying the fact that as of late, Sorokin hasn't been at the top of his game. That being said, Stefen Rosner, a beat reporter for the New York Islanders, reported that the team has recalled Cory Schneider, so it is likely that Sorokin will get the nod. He was on fire to start the season and has fallen off in this recent stretch, but he has the ability to get back to being very dominant.
To their credit, the Islanders have found ways to score goals, but the question is if they can sustain that. They are skating to a 47.44 Expected Goals Percentage and are generating 11.99 High-Danger Chances per 60 minutes, which tells you that the goal scoring doesn't come so easy to them.
The Islanders have scored 12 goals in their last three games, but they haven't scored a power play goal in their last four games and have only converted once in their previous 14 attempts. Their struggles on the man advantage could be a massive crutch for them tonight.
Avalanche Looking for Revenge
The Colorado Avalanche's list of injuries has shrunk, but they are still missing some of their key pieces. Nonetheless, they have still squeezed out some victories, but it has definitely been more challenging without Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog.
Home ice is certainly an advantage for Colorado in this matchup considering that they have only lost to the Islanders once in the last seven meetings between these two teams in Denver. This season when they visited Long Island, they jumped out to an early 3-0 advantage, but they saw that lead evaporate as they eventually fell to the Islanders by the final score of 5-4.
The Avs will seek revenge tonight as they hope to keep the momentum going from their most recent game, a 3-1 win against the Nashville Predators on home ice.
Alexandar Georgiev is the expected starter for Colorado, and he has looked impressive in his first season with the team, skating to a 12-6-2 record with a .920 save percentage and a 2.59 Goals Against Average.
The goal scoring hasn't come easy for the Avs as of late, only scoring eight goals in their last three games, but they will definitely have their fair share of scoring chances tonight.
Islanders vs. Avalanche: Pick
The Islanders will be playing their third game in four nights, while the Avalanche are playing their fourth straight game at home. The road trip hasn't been all that great so far for New York, only winning one of the first three games, and it is very tough to go into Ball Arena and steal a game from Colorado.
At this very moment, the Avalanche have the better goaltending, and the Islanders' lack of success on the power play is a little alarming. I think this will be a close game, but in the end, this is the Avs' game to lose. I think Colorado gets the job done in regulation.
Pick: Avalanche 3-Way Moneyline (+105) |
