The Islanders for the first time this season come into tonight's game against the Carolina Hurricanes riding a three game winning streak. These are the games that they need to win to claw back into the division. The Isles have not faired well against Carolina and for some reason the Hurricanes always seem to matchup against New York quite well.
If you want to get on a win streak these are the games you must win. The team is showing signs of life with quality wins over the Wild, Bruins and Blackhawks but games like tonight are where the Isles have been shooting themselves in the foot.
In typical line up news, Matt Donovan was recalled to Long Island so naturally he will be a healthy scratch tonight. He must need some practice time with the team first or perhaps the team is concerned that the one hour drive around the sound may have caused jet lag or fatigue. Nevertheless, the lineup will remain the same with Josh Bailey still out with an upper body injury. Evgeni Nabokov will remain in net and with the way he is playing I only expect backup Kevin Poulin to see time on back to back nights.
This is a extremely important two points tonight. This is a serious chance for the Isles to string some wins together and start to feel good about themselves. If you want to save the season you have to start winning games within the division. Tonight would be a great time to start doing that.