The Vancouver Canucks (+180) are on the road to face the New York Islanders (-220), who will be looking to build on their winning streak, at UBS Arena on Thursday. The total is 6 (O: -125, U: +105)Vancouver (20-27-4) is playing the second of a back-to-back after suffering a 4-3 loss against the Rangers yesterday, their third defeat in a row away from home.
Elias Pettersson, Vasily Podkolzin, and Conor Garland each scored once for the Canucks. Quinn Hughes had two assists to lead the team in scoring. Spencer Martin saved only 17 of 21 shots against (.809%) in the loss. New York (27-22-5) won for the fourth straight game, beating the Kraken 4-0 on Tuesday.
Four players found the net for the Islanders. Jean-Gabriel Pageau had two assists to lead the team in scoring. Ilya Sorokin earned his fifth shutout of the season, most in the NHL, with 32 saves.
HEAD TO HEAD
The Islanders won the first meeting between the teams this season, a 6-2 victory in January. Mathew Barzal led New York with three points (1G 2A). Bo Horvat led Vancouver with two goals. Sorokin got the win, saving 24 of 26 shots (.923%).
FACING OFF
Vancouver is averaging 3.31 goals per game for the season, 11th in the NHL, and they are taking on an Islanders team that is allowing just 2.63 goals a game (5th). Meanwhile, New York has found the net 2.85 times a game on average, 25th in the league, and the Canucks are allowing opponents to score 3.94 goals per game (31st).
The Islanders will be looking to build on their 30th-ranked power play percentage of 15.79% against the Canucks, who are the league’s weakest penalty killing team (66.44%). Vancouver, meanwhile, has scored on 22.54% of their power play opportunities (13th), which the visitors will be aiming to improve on against New York’s third-ranked 83.44% penalty killing rate.
TOP PERFORMERS:
With 60 points this season, Pettersson is the top skater for the Canucks. He has 22 goals and 38 assists in 49 games. In the net, Thatcher Demko (3-10-2) is Vancouver’s top goaltender by goals against average.
He has a 3.93 GAA and a .883% save percentage. Martin (11-13-1) leads the Canucks in games played in goal. He has a GAA of 3.94 and a save percentage of .875%. Brock Nelson and Barzal lead the Islanders in scoring with 48 and 45 points, respectively.
Nelson has 19 goals and 29 assists in 54 games, while Barzal has 13 goals and 32 assists. Sorokin (17-16-4) has the best goals against average for New York at 2.31, fourth-best in the league. He has a save percentage of .926%, second-best.
HOME AND AWAY
Vancouver is 10-14-3 away from home this season. New York is pursuing a fourth straight home win this season. Meanwhile, the Canucks are 4-5 without a day off and 3-3 playing with a rest disadvantage. The Islanders are 3-3 with a rest advantage.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
NY Islanders (-225)
Want up to a $1K risk free bet for this pick?
Claim with 
today!
If you need more news, information and predictions, head over to our NHL hub page for all your hockey needs!
*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
