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Isles Host Devils

December 15, 2014, 5:31 PM ET [484 Comments]
Dan Petriw
New York Islanders Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
The Islanders return to home ice tonight, as they face off against the New Jersey Devils. The Isles snapped a three game losing streak, with a dramatic 3-2 win over the Blackhawks on Saturday night. The team hopes to start a new streak tonight and Casey Cizikas will return to the Islander lineup. Cizikas will replace Michael Grabner who was banged up Saturday night and is listed as day to day with a lower body injury.

In some surprising news, the Isles will face Keith Kincaid this evening. This will only be Kincaid’s second start in net as the Devils have been puzzlingly stubborn, playing Cory Schneider until he drops. Kincaid will face off against Jaroslav Halak who will be between the pipes for the Islanders. The Isles backup goalie situation is becoming cloudier as Chad Johnson’s play has been significantly underwhelming. With the Isles having to play back to back games this weekend, Johnson will get a start and he really needs to step up and put forth a solid effort. He doesn’t necessarily have to win his next start, but he does need to look like a NHL goalie and not give up 4 plus goalies while ending up in the net for many of them. With the Islanders off to an impressive 20 wins and only 10 losses through 30 games, there isn’t a ton to complain about but backup goalie is a legit concern right now.

Casey Cizikas will return to centering the fourth line. Ryan Strome will move back up to his role on the third line, but it seems, right now, wherever Strome is playing, that line is the best on the ice, night in and night out. This makes me ask the question, why not try Strome with Tavares and Okposo? The first line did have a solid game on Saturday but I’m still looking for that spark. Perhaps Strome is the person that can ignite that line.

The defensive pairings will remain the same tonight. I was very impressed by Griffin Reinhart’s play against Chicago as I think he played his best game as a pro so far. The play of Matt Donovan has also been encouraging. Yes he is still making some mistakes but his play has improved over last year and he is being more aggressive in the offensive end. Donovan is never going to be a shutdown defenseman, however he does look to be a solid option as the seventh dman on this team and right now he looks to be a better option than Brian Strait. I know Islander’s head coach Jack Capuano disagrees with me as he is very critical of Donovan but even Stevie Wonder can see that this Islander team is better with Brian Strait out of the lineup.

The Islanders’ need two points tonight as their weekend foes include the Red Wings and the Lightning. Tonight will be a good chance to get after a team that has been struggling. The Devils always prove a tough matchup in style for the Islanders. If the Isles can get on the board first, the Devils are a team that has not shown a consistent ability to light the lamp. Two points are up for the taking and if the Isles can carry over their effort against Chicago, they should be able to walk away with points. As always, for more on all things hockey please follow me on twitter at @DanDanNoodles78.
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