Game Preview: Down To A Skeleton Crew On The Blue Line, The Columbus Blue Jackets Face Mathew Barzal And The New York Islanders

NEW YORK ISLANDERS

9–6–0 (18 points)

7:00 P.M. – SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 12 UBS ARENA ELMONT, NY

Bally Sports Ohio ESPN+ (Out of Market)

Thursday's win came at a significant cost for the Columbus Blue Jackets. In their 5-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers, the home team would lose Zach Werenski for the season, Nick Blankenburg for several months, and all hope for any chance of a fairytale comeback. 

That's music to the ears of the New York Islanders, who are coming off a tough home loss to the Arizona Coyotes. Now, Columbus and New York face each other Saturday night in the beautiful UBS Arena in Elmont, New York. 

It was revealed Friday that a torn labrum and separated shoulder will require season-ending surgery for Werenski. Not long after Werenski's injury, Eric Gudbranson would take a weird hit into the corner boards and is listed as day-to-day but will not play Saturday night.

In the midst of their absences, Nick Blankenburg would fracture his ankle — though played the last two periods of hockey while being frequently double-shifted. He is expected to miss approximately two months.

The Blue Jackets also announced Friday that both Jakub Voracek and Sean Kuraly would join Werenski, Blankenburg, and Gudbranson on the injured list. Voracek's absence could be longer-term, while Kuraly is (like Gudbranson) listed as day-to-day. 

So, as short-handed as they've been in quite a while, the Blue Jackets are as ready as they'll get for a 7:30 p.m. puck-drop from Elmont.

TALKING POINTS: ISLES

• One season after being one of the biggest disappointments in the league, the Islanders are reminding the league why they should be taken seriously. They're off to a 9-6-0 start and have won seven of their last nine. Amongst those victories was a 6-2 win in Carolina, the worst loss of the season for the Cup-threat Canes.
   
• The Islanders weakness, at least as of late, could be their penalty kill. After a strong start, they've allowed three goals in the last seven opposition power plays and have given up a goal down a man in each of the last six games they've been tasked with killing a penalty.
   
• Don't be shocked if the short-handed Blue Jackets defense holds their own in the opening 20 minutes. New York has been a slow out of the gates all year long. The Islanders have scored just seven times in the first period of their 15 games. But they get better as the game goes along, scoring 16 second period goals and 26 in the final frame and overtime. 
   
• Prepare for a physical battle. No team in the NHL has doled out more hits than the Islanders 450 so far this season, and they 30 per game. By comparison, the Blue Jackets average 20 per 60-minute contest. 
   
• Mathew Barzal leads the Islanders in points without having scored a single goal yet this season. He has 15 points, and they're all assists. Only two other players in the league this year have double-digit assists without scoring — both defensemen. No other forward has more than seven assists without having at least one goal this year. Ten of the 15 assists have been the primary apple for Barzal, too. The guy can dish the puck.
   
• Both Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov have been between the pipes for the Islanders this year, to a fairly split role. Both have been solid, with the duo averaging a .928 save percentage and 2.36 goals against average.