PITTSBURGH PENGUINS NOTES:
LAST 2 GAMES
Dec. 23: Ottawa 5, Pittsburgh 4 (OT) – Canadian Tire Centre
PIT Goals: Eller, Rakell, O’Connor, Letang
Multiple Points: Letang (1G-2A), Smith (2A), Pettersson (2A)
Goalie: Nedeljkovic (21 saves, 26 shots)
Key Stats: Kris Letang recorded his first three-point night (1G2A) since Mar. 14, 2023.
PP: 1-7
PK: 4-4
Dec. 21: Pittsburgh 2, Carolina 1 (SO) – PPG Paints Arena
PIT Goals: Crosby
Multiple Points: None
Goalie: Nedeljkovic (23 saves, 24 shots)
Key Stats: Sidney Crosby tallied in regulation, giving him four goals in his last four games.
PP: 0-5
PK: 2-2
INJURIES
Position Player Status Consecutive Games Missed Total Games Missed
F Matt Nieto Lower-Body 10 10
F Bryan Rust Upper-Body 7 10
2023-24 Total Regular-Season Man-Games Lost: 89
Pittsburgh’s All-Time Record vs. Islanders: 130-105-35
In Pittsburgh: 74-42-20
In New York: 56-63-15
OT Record vs. Islanders: 22-6-20
Shootout Record vs. Islanders: 7-10
2022-23 Results: Pittsburgh went 0-3-1.
Penguins All-Time Point Leaders vs. ISLANDERS:
Sidney Crosby: 82 GP, 132 PTS (41G-91A)
Mario Lemieux: 72 GP, 131 PTS (50G-81A)
Evgeni Malkin: 74 GP, 85 PTS (32G-53A)
TONIGHT’S GAME -The Penguins hit the road to take on the New York Islanders at UBS Arena (TV: SportsNet Pittsburgh; Radio: 105.9 The X). -The Penguins are 4-3-2 in their last eight games against the Islanders. -Going back further, the Penguins are 8-4-2 in their last 14 games against the Islanders. -Pittsburgh has just five regulation losses in its last 21 matchups versus New York dating back to Nov. 1, 2018 (11-5-5). -Following tonight’s game, Pittsburgh will play four of its next five games at PPG Paints Arena.
QUICK HITS
1) Pittsburgh enters tonight’s game with points in five of its last six outings (4-1- 1).
2) Defenseman Kris Letang leads all active NHL blueliners in goals (13), assists (29) and points (42) versus the Islanders.
3) Reilly Smith has 17 points (7G-10A) in 22 career games against the Islanders, which includes seven points (3G-4A) in his last eight games against them.
4) Jake Guentzel has 26 points (8G-18A) in 27 career games against the Islanders. He has points in six of his last seven games (6G-5A) versus them.
5) Jeff Carter ranks fifth among active players with 50 points (23G-27A) in 58 career games against the New York Islanders. It’s the most points he’s accumulated against any one team.
NEW YORK ISLANDERS NOTES:
THE ISLANDERS VS. PITTSBURGH
LAST FIVE MEETINGS (4-1-0)
Mar. 9, 2023 PPG Paints Arena W/OT, 4-3
Feb. 20, 2023 PPG Paints Arena W, 4-2
Feb. 17, 2023 UBS Arena W, 5-4
Dec. 27, 2022 UBS Arena W, 5-1
Apr. 14, 2022 PPG Paints Arena L, 6-3
TEAM NOTES
TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
Tonight, the New York Islanders host the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first of four meetings between the two clubs this season. The last time these teams met was March 9, 2023, when Anders Lee scored twice and Brock Nelson recorded the game-winning goal in overtime to help the Islanders earn a 4-3 win at PPG Paints Arena. The Islanders swept their 2022-23 season series against Pittsburgh, 4-0-0, for the first time in franchise history. The Islanders enter tonight’s matchup with points in each of their last nine home games (6-0-3), their longest point streak on home ice since 2021. They have also collected points in six of their last seven meetings against a Metropolitan Division opponent (4-1-2). Tonight’s game is the third of five straight Metropolitan Division matchups for the Islanders, who will look to improve to 7-2-4 against division opponents this season.
#29 AGAINST PITTSBURGH Islanders forward Brock Nelson scored his team-leading 16th goal of the season on Saturday against the Hurricanes, and added an assist. It was Nelson’s 11th multi-point game of the season, and the Islanders improved to 10-0-1 when Nelson records an assist this season. The Warroad, MN native has scored 35 points (19 goals, 16 assists) in 39 career games against the Penguins, the most points he has ecorded against any single franchise in his career, and leading active Islander skaters against Pittsburgh. He has recorded multi-point contests in his last five straight meetings against the Penguins, totaling 11 points (five goals, six assists) against them since Apr. 14, 2022.
SHORTHANDED PRODUCTION The Islanders enter tonight’s matchup with eight team shorthanded tallies, tied with St. Louis for second-most in the league. Islanders forward Simon Holmstrom leads the NHL in shorthanded points (six) and shorthanded goals (five) through 32 games this season. Holmstrom extended his league-lead as he found the back of the net shorthanded in the Islanders’ last home game on December 19 vs. Edmonton. He is the first Islander since Frans Nielsen (seven, club record) in 2010-11 to record at least five shorthanded goals in a season. Dec. 13 against Anaheim, Holmstrom scored the go-ahead goal shorthanded with 1:33 remaining in regulation, the latest of its kind in franchise history. Holmstrom is the 20th player in NHL history (and second this season) to score a go-ahead shorthanded goal in the final two minutes of regulation and is the first Islander to do so. Islanders forward Jean-Gabriel Pageau has five shorthanded points this season, a new career-best, and is the first Islander with five shorthanded assists in a single campaign since Bryan Trottier and Billy Carroll each did so in the 1981-82 campaign. He leads the NHL is shorthanded assists (five), and is second in the league in shorthanded points, behind Holmstrom. It has been a productive month for the Ottawa, ON native. He reached the 300-point milestone on Dec. 5 vs. San Jose, recording an assist. On Dec. 9 vs. Los Angeles, he found the back of the net 13 seconds into overtime to help the Islanders earn their first overtime win on home ice this season. It was the second-fastest goal into overtime by an Islanders skater in club history, behind Pat Lafontaine’s game-winner 10 seconds into OT in November 1988.
SPECIAL TEAMS The Islanders have converted on the power play in eight of their last 13 games. Dec. 19 vs. Edmonton was the fifth time this season the Islanders have scored twice on the power play, matching their single-game high. They have converted on 30.9% of power plays since November 15 (17-for-55), leading the NHL in that span. This month, they have converted on 29% of their power plays, fifth in the league since December 1. They enter tonight’s matchup with a 24.7% success rate on the power play through 33 games this season, sixth in the league and fifth in the Eastern. Bo Horvat leads the Islanders in power play tallies, with five. Noah Dobson (one goal, 12 assists) and Mathew Barzal (three goals, 10 assists) are tied for the lead in power play points (13).
SCORING FIRST The Islanders are 10-2-7 when they score first this season. They have scored first in 19 of their 33 games in 2023-24, and have collected at least one point in 17 of those 19 games. The Islanders have also outscored opponents 30-19 in the first period through 33 games; Their 19 goals allowed in the first frame are second-fewest in the NHL (Boston, 16). Saturday night’s matchup vs. Carolina was the first time this season that the Islanders have scored three goals in the first period (Last: Apr. 14, 2022 vs. Pittsburgh). The Islanders are 6-6-0 this season when allowing the first goal, but have earned victories six of the last seven instances that they have allowed the first goal, including Tuesday night’s win over Edmonton.
