Streaking Islanders host Red Wings
NEW YORK -- The New York Islanders are suddenly playing with confidence, and that may help them escape from the bottom of the Eastern Conference. The Islanders will try to extend their longest winning streak of the season to four games Sunday night when they face Frans Nielsen and the Detroit Red Wings for the first time this season. New York (9-10-4) opens a three-game homestand looking for its fifth win in eight games versus Detroit. The Islanders went 1-2-0 against the Red Wings in 2015-16 with the only win coming Feb. 15 in Brooklyn. Brock Nelson opened the scoring in a three-goal second period and Thomas Greiss stopped 28 shots in the 4-1 victory. During the Islanders' current streak, Griess has turned away 56 of 60 shots en route to wins over the Calgary Flames and Pittsburgh Penguins. But Jaroslav Halak delivered his finest performance of the season on Thursday, making 38 saves for his first shutout of the season and 40th of his career in a 3-0 win against the Washington Capitals. "To be able to string three in a row together -- especially with back-to-back against two of the best teams in the league -- is huge for us," said Shane Prince, who had the game-winner against the Capitals. "We've got to build off it and keep going." The Islanders may have a better chance of achieving that with Griess starting over Halak. In his last three starts against Detroit, Halak has struggled, posting a 1-2 record with a 4.40 goals-against-average and .825 save percentage. Greiss has made two starts among three career appearances versus the Red Wings, and has a 2.31 GAA and .913 save percentage. The Islanders, last in the Metropolitan Division as well as in the East, are still struggling to generate offense as they have been held to three goals or less 19 times, including 10 games at the Barclays Center (3-4-3). Facing Detroit may be what John Tavares needs to snap out of a season-long slump. Tavares has a goal and five assists in a four-game points streak versus the Red Wings, and is averaging better than a point per game in his career against them (12 games, four goals, 11 assists). Tavares, who has averaged 29.5 goals per season coming into 2016-17, has just six in 23 games to tie Nelson for the team lead. As for Nielsen, he played 606 games over 10 seasons with the Islanders, totaling 119 goals and 230 assists. Nielsen told Newsday that he expects to be nervous at first when facing the team that selected him in the third round in 2002 NHL Draft. "After a couple of shifts, it should be okay," he said. "I still have a lot of friends over there and I want to see them do well. Hopefully we'll both be where we want to be by the end of the season." Needing a replacement for longtime star Pavel Datsyuk, who returned to Russia, the Red Wings signed Nielsen to a six-year, $31.5 million contract in July. A native of Denmark, Nielsen's best season came in 2013-14 when he set career highs with 25 goals and 33 assists in 80 games. A two-time 20-goal scorer, Nielsen scored his third goal in five games and sixth of the season Saturday, but Detroit (11-11-3) squandered a two-goal lead after two periods and fell 5-3 to the Penguins. "One thing I always took pride in when I was in New York was my consistency, being able to do that same things every night on the ice," Nielsen told Newsday. "That's been a little too up and down here. Maybe it's from overthinking a bit, getting used to a new style of play." With Jimmy Howard day-to-day with a groin injury and Jarred Correau having lost his NHL debut Saturday, the Red Wings are likely to go with Petr Mrazek in goal. Mrazek is 6-5-3 with a 2.83 GAA and .907 save percentage. One of his career-high 27 wins last season came in Brooklyn, where he stopped 27 shots in a 4-2 win on Jan. 25. |