About the Islanders - 12-29-10
A preview of the Islanders.
When and where: 7 p.m., Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
TV: FSN Pittsburgh, MSG Plus.
Record: 9-19-6, 24 points. The Islanders are in 14th place in the Eastern Conference and fourth place in the Atlantic Division.
Leading Scorer: John Tavares (right), 21 points (10 goals, 11 assists).
Last Game: 7-2 road loss to the Rangers, Monday. Dwayne Roloson made 45 saves for the Islanders.
Last Game against the Penguins: 3-2 road overtime loss, Oct. 15. Alex Goligoski scored in overtime for the Penguins.
Islanders Player We Would Bet Money On Scoring: Blake Comeau. He had two assists against the Penguins Oct. 15.
Ex-Penguins on the Islanders: Eric Cairns, player development; Mark Eaton, D; Matt Moulson, LW (Moulson was a Penguins draft pick but never actually played for the organization); Jon Sim, LW; Garth Snow, general manager.
Ex-Islanders on the Penguins: Arron Asham, RW; Mike Comrie, C; Dan Bylsma, head coach; Eric Godard, RW..
Useless Islanders Trivia Vaguely Related to the Penguins: Eaton is one of two former Penguins to wear No. 4 for the Islanders. The other was Joel Bouchard.
Best Islanders Video We Could Find: Mike Bossy's overtime goal in Game 1 of the 1982 Stanley Cup Final:
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(The part where Canucks goaltender Richard Brodeur smacks the camera on his way to the locker room always makes us laugh.)Probable goaltenders: Marc-Andre Fleury (17-8-1, 2.34 GAA, .917 SV%) for the Penguins and Rick DiPietro (4-6-4, 3.68 GAA, .880 SV%) for the Islanders.
Injuries: For the Penguins, forward Eric Godard (face) is questionable. Forwards Mike Comrie (hip), Jordan Staal (hand) and defenseman Alex Grant (wrist) are on injured reserve. For the Islanders, defenseman Radek Martinek (wrist) is day to day. Forwards Trent Hunter (knee), Kyle Okposo (shoulder) Doug Weight (back), defenseman Mike Mottau (hip) and Mark Streit (shoulder) are on injured reserve.
Potential lines and defensive pairings: The Penguins' primary lines and defensive pairings against the Thrashers last night were:
Chris Kunitz - Sidney Crosby - Pascal Dupuis
Matt Cooke - Maxime Talbot - Evgeni Malkin
Chris Conner - Mark Letestu - Tyler Kennedy
Mike Rupp - Craig Adams - Arron Asham
Brooks Orpik - Kris Letang
Paul Martin - Zbynek Michalek
Alex Goligoski - Ben Lovejoy
The Islanders' primary lines and defensive pairings against the Rangers were:
Matt Moulson - John Tavares - P.A. Parenteau
Blake Comeau - Rob Schremp - Jon Sim
Michael Grabner - Frans Nielsen - Josh Bailey
Matt Martin - Zenon Konopka - Trevor Gillies
Andrew MacDonald - Travis Hamonic
Mark Eaton - James Wisniewski
Jack Hillen - Milan Jurcina
Notes:
-Brent Johnson will return from his groin injury and will back up Fleury.
-Talbot has 49 career goals, 49 career assists and 98 career points.-Martin has 149 career assists.
-DiPietro is making his first start since going on injured reserve last week for a knee ailment.
-"You can't be surprised at anything he does. With his work ethic and god-given talent--the combination of the two--he never ceases to amaze." - Eaton on Crosby.
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(Photo: Harry How/Getty Images)