The Arizona Coyotes (9-14-4) host the New York Islanders (17-12-1) at Mullett Arena on Friday. New York is coming off a 4-3 shootout loss against the Bruins on Tuesday. The Islanders conceded a power play goal while failing to take advantage of their own power play opportunities. Noah Dobson, Josh Bailey, and Casey Cizikas scored one apiece for the Islanders.
Semyon Varlamov only had 30 saves on 33 shots against (.909%) in the loss. Arizona fell 3-2 to the Sharks on Tuesday. Nick Bjugstad and Lawson Crouse both scored once for the Coyotes. Karel Vejmelka saved only 30 of 33 shots against (.909%) in the loss.
HEAD TO HEAD
The Coyotes won the first meeting between the teams this season, a 2-0 victory in November. Clayton Keller led Arizona with two points (0G 2A). Vejmelka saved 24 shots to earn the shutout win.
FACING OFF
New York is averaging 3.17 goals per game for the season, 15th in the NHL, and they are taking on a Coyotes team that is allowing 3.59 goals a game (26th). Meanwhile, Arizona has found the net 2.74 times a game on average, 28th in the league, and the Islanders are allowing opponents to score 2.77 goals per game (8th).
Arizona averages fewer shots (23.5) than any other team in the league, though the team’s 11.7% shooting percentage ranks third. New York has been up to the task of stopping shots, ranking No. 3 with a team save percentage of .922%.
Power play opportunities should be plentiful for the Islanders, as the Coyotes have been penalized 5.30 times a game, most in the NHL, for an average of 12.26 minutes (third-highest). The visitors are averaging 3.80 penalties (22nd) and 9.60 penalty minutes a game (15th).
The Islanders’ 22.22% power play percentage ranks 18th in the league, while the Coyotes are 20th with a conversion rate of 21.35%. When it comes to defending power plays, New York has the league’s seventh-ranked PK% at 81.32%, while Arizona is 21st at 76.32%.
TOP PERFORMERS:
With 30 points apiece this season, Brock Nelson (14G 16A) and Mathew Barzal (3G 27A) are the top skaters for the Islanders. Barzal is among the league leaders in assists (4th). In the net, Ilya Sorokin (10-9-0) is New York’s top goaltender by goals against average.
He has a 2.36 GAA, fifth-best in the league, and a .925% save percentage, also fifth-best. Keller leads the Coyotes in scoring with 27 points. He has 10 goals and 17 assists in 27 games. Vejmelka (8-7-3) has the best goals against average for Arizona at 3.07. He has a save percentage of .913%.
HOME AND AWAY
New York is 8-6-1 away from home this season. Arizona is 3-2-1 at Mullett Arena this season.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
NY Islanders (-185)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
