ST. LOUIS BLUES NOTES:
CURRENT INJURIES
Scott Perunovich – Shoulder (Re-evaluated in 6 months, announced on Oct. 4)
Marco Scandella – Right Hip (Re-evaluated in 6 months, announced on Sep. 20)
Logan Brown – Upper-Body (Placed on IR on Nov. 9)
2022-23 Total Man Games Lost: 93
Recent Transactions
December
3 – Recalled forward Will Bitten from the Springfield Thunderbirds (AHL)
2 – Assigned forward Jake Neighbours to the Springfield Thunderbirds (AHL)
BLUES VS. ISLANDERS
-This will be the second of 2 matchups between the Blues and Islanders this season
-The Blues lost to Islanders in the first matchup of the season, 2-5 on Nov. 3 in St. Louis
-The Blues are 2-2-2 in their last 6 games against the Islanders
-The Blues are 1-1-2 in their last 4 trips to visit the Islanders
-The Blues are also 3-2-3 in their last 8 away games against the Islanders
-The Blues are 2-2-0 this season in the 2nd game of back-to-back sets
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
12/8 – vs. Winnipeg
12/11 – vs. Colorado
12/12 – vs. Nashville
12/15 – at Edmonton
12/16 – at Calgary
FAST STARTS ARE KEY FOR BLUES
-The Blues are 6-2-0 this season when leading after the first period and are 7-1-0 when leading after 2 periods
-The Blues are also 9-4-0 this season when scoring first
-Their 9 wins when scoring first share 11th in the NHL (1. Vegas, 15)
DEFENSEMEN CONTRIBUTING OFFENSE FOR BLUES
-The Blues defensemen have accounted for 15.3% of the Blues’ goals this season
-The Blues are 7-1-0 this season when a defenseman scores
-The Blues’ defense has contributed 5 power play goals this season, which shares the most in the NHL with Nashville and Florida
-They have also contributed 4 game-winning goals, which shares 3rd in the NHL (1. Boston/Columbus, 5)
-Torey Krug leads Blues d-men with 5 goals, which also shares 10th in the NHL among all defensemen (1. Karlsson, 11)
-Torey Krug’s 4 power play goals share the lead on the Blues (Buchnevich/Kyrou) and share 1st in the NHL among all defensemen with Dahlin, Makar, & Josi
-Justin Faulk’s 2 game-winning goals share the 4th most among all defensemen in the NHL (1. Fox/Karlsson/Morrissey, 3)
BLUES CONSISTENT UNDER ARMSTRONG
-Since Doug Armstrong took over the reigns as the Blues General Manager in 2010-11, the Blues have posted a 532-307-99 record
-Their 532 wins since then rank 5th in the NHL (1. PIT, 555)
-The Blues have made the postseason 10 out of the 12 seasons since Armstrong became GM, 1 of 5 teams in the NHL to clinch 10 or more playoff berths since 2010-11 (PIT, 12/WSH, 11/BOS & NSH, 10)
-Armstrong is also just 1 of 2 GMs to clinch 10 or more playoff berths since 2010-11 (David Poile, 10) -Since 2010-11, the Blues rank 8th with 2.91 goals per game (1. VGK, 3.21) and rank 3rd in the NHL with 2.59 goals against per game (1. BOS, 2.45)
-The Blues also have the 3rd best penalty kill (82.7%) under Armstrong (1. BOS, 83.3%), and have the 5th best power play (20.8%) in the league (1. WSH, 21.5%)
BINNINGTON CHASING BLUES HISTORY
-Jordan Binnington, who has 99 career wins in 182 GP, will become the 6th goaltender in franchise history to reach 100 wins as a Blue with his next win (Liut/Allen/Joseph/Fuhr/Elliott)
-Binnington is on pace to become the 3rd fastest goaltender to reach 100 wins with the Blues
-Binnington also shares 7th on the Blues all-time franchise list with 11 shutouts, just 1 of 8 goaltenders in franchise history to record at least 11 shutouts
-Since Nov. 10, Binnington has 6 wins, which shares 1st in the NHL (Saros, Jarry, Thompson, Vasilevskiy)
Fastest to 100 career wins with the Blues:
- Brian Elliott – 175 GP
- Jake Allen – 176 GP
- Curtis Joseph – 209 GP
BLUES STAY STRONG UNDER BERUBE
-Since taking over on Nov. 18, 2018, Berube has led the Blues to a 167-94-36 record (370 points)
-The Blues 370 points since Nov. 21, 2018 (Berube’s first game), rank 10th in the NHL (1. TBL, 407), while their 167 wins also rank 10th (1. TBL, 193)
-Their 3.23 goals per game share 7th in the NHL under Berube (1. TBL, 3.54)
-The Blues have posted a mark of 2.87 goals against per game under Berube, which ranks 10th in the NHL (1. BOS, 2.50)
-The Blues also have the 3rd best power play in the NHL at 23.9% since Berube became head coach (1.EDM, 26.7%)
-Berube is 3 games shy of becoming just the 4th Head Coach in franchise history to coach 300 games with the club (Quenneville – 593 / Hitchcock – 413 / B. Sutter – 320)
-Last season on Dec. 29 vs. EDM, Berube became the 7th different coach in NHL history to win 200 games and play in at least 1,000 career games
Wins as Coach / Games Played
Craig Berube – 242 / 1,054
Randy Carlyle – 475 / 1,055
Bob Pulford – 363 / 1,079
Craig MacTavish – 301 / 1,093
Red Kelly – 278 / 1,316
Brent Sutter – 215 / 1,111
Larry Robinson – 209 / 1,384
BUCHNEVICH STEPPING UP FOR BLUES
-Pavel Buchnevich ranks 2nd on the Blues with 9 goals (1. Kyrou, 10) and ranks 3rd with 20 points (1. Thomas, 22)
-Buchnevich has a 3-game point streak (3g, 1a), scoring a goal in each game
-Buchnevich also has 18 points in his last 14 games (8g, 10a), including 5 multi-point games in that span, after posting just 2 points (1g, 1a) in his first 6 games of the season
-Buchnevich has recorded at least 1 point in 11 of his last 14 games
-Since Nov. 10, Buchnevich shares 3rd in the NHL with 18 points (8g, 10a) (1. Robertson, 22), and shares 7th in the NHL with 8 goals (1. Robertson, 14)
-Buchnevich shares 1st on the Blues this season with 4 power play goals (Krug/Kyrou)
-Buchnevich recorded 4 points (2g, 2a) on Nov. 19 vs. Anaheim, the 2nd 4-point game of his career (also: Mar. 17, 2021 w/ NYR: 2g, 2a vs. PHI)
-Buchnevich set career-highs with 30 goals, 46 assists, and 76 points last season
THE TARASENK-SHOW
-Vladimir Tarasenko has a 3-game point streak (2g, 2a)
-He also has 6 points in his last 5 games (3g, 3a), including 2 multi-point games
-Tarasenko shares 2nd on the Blues with 12 assists (1. Thomas, 18) and ranks 4th on the Blues with 19 points (1. Thomas, 22)
-He also shares 1st on the Blues with 14 even-strength points (Thomas & Schenn) (7g, 7a)
-On Thursday vs. Carolina, Tarasenko recorded the 283rd and 284th assists of his career, moving him past Garry Unger for 8th on the Blues all-time franchise list (7. Demitra, 289)
-Tarasenko also ranks 5th on the Blues all-time franchise list in goals (259) and points (543)
BRAYDEN IS SCHENN-SATIONAL
-Brayden Schenn ranks 5th on the Blues with 18 points this season (6g, 12a) (1. Thomas, 22)
-He also shares 2nd on the Blues with 12 assists (1. Thomas, 18)
-Schenn recorded 10 points in the first 10 games of the season, matching the 2nd best start of his career in the first 10 games of the season (10 points (6g, 4a) in 2020-21 in first 10 games / 11 points, (8g, 3a) in 2019-20 in first 10 games)
-Schenn has 24 power play goals since the start of the 2019-20 season, which ranks 2nd among all Blues in that span (1. Perron, 26)
-Schenn dressed in his 800th career NHL game on Saturday at Pittsburgh
KYROU FINDING HIS SCORING TOUCH
-Jordan Kyrou scored twice, including his first career overtime winner, on Nov. 26 at Florida
-Kyrou posted a career-long 8-game point streak (5g, 8a), from Nov. 14-26, including a career-long 6 game assist streak from Nov. 16-25 (2g, 8a)
-Nov. 26 at Florida was also Kyrou’s 10th career multi-goal game, which is the 3rd most among all Blues since his debut in 2018-19 (Perron – 14 / Tarasenko – 13)
-Kyrou leads the Blues with 10 goals and shares 1st on the team with 3 power play goals (Buchnevich/Krug)
-Kyrou also shares 1st on the Blues with 8 power play points (1. Buchnevich/Thomas)
-Since Nov. 10, Kyrou shares 6th in the NHL with 17 points (7g, 10a) (1. Robertson, 22)
-Kyrou now has 18 points (7g, 11a) in his last 15 games after recording just 3 points (3g) in his first 9 games of the season
THOMAS SETTING THE PACE
-Robert Thomas leads the Blues with 18 assists and 22 points this season
-Thomas has a 3-game point streak (3a)
-In his last 13 games, Thomas has recorded 15 points (2g, 13a), recording at least 1 point in 10 of those 13 games
-Thomas has also recorded 4 multi-point games in his last 13 games
-He also leads the Blues with 7 power play assists and shares 1st on the Blues with 8 power play points (Buchnevich/Kyrou)
-Since Nov. 10, Thomas ranks 3rd in the NHL with 13 assists (1. Karlsson/Gaudreau, 14)
-Since Nov. 10, Thomas shares 3rd in the NHL with 7 power play assists (1. Dahlin/Q. Hughes, 8) and shares 12th in the NHL with 7 power play points (1. Kucherov, 11)
THE CAPTAIN IS COMING ALIVE
-Ryan O’Reilly has 4 points in his last 5 games (3g, 1a)
-O’Reilly has recorded 11 points (7g, 4a) in his last 15 games after just recording 1 point (1g) in his first 10 games of the season
-O’Reilly scored the Blues’ first shorthanded goal of the season on Nov. 16 at Chicago, the 11th of his career
-Nov. 12 at Vegas was O’Reilly’s 300th game as a Blue
NEW YORK ISLANDERS NOTES:
LAST GAME
DATE NYI RESULT SCORE NYI SCORERS IN GOAL
Sun., Dec. 4, 2022 Win NYI 3 vs. CHI 0 Martin, Parise,
Nelson
Varlamov (21/21)
Islanders forward Matt Martin opened the score in the second frame, then Zach Parise and Brock Nelson added two goals to help the New York Islanders defeat the Chicago Blackhawks, 3-0, Sunday night at UBS Arena. Islanders netminder Semyon Varlamov turned away all 21 shots he faced to earn his first shutout of the season and 37th of his career.
TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
Tonight, the New York Islanders host the St. Louis Blues in the second and final matchup between the two clubs this season. These teams last met just over one month ago, on November 3, when Noah Dobson, Anders Lee and Brock Nelson each recorded multi-point games in a 5-2 win in St. Louis. The Islanders last hosted the Blues on March 5 of last season, a 2-1 Islander victory. The Islanders face their third straight Central Division opponent tonight. They look to improve upon their 8-4- 0 record against Western Conference teams this season, and earn their tenth home ice victory of 2022-23.
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Dec. 4 Robin Salo has been recalled from Bridgeport (AHL).
Dec. 3 Cole Bardreau has been assigned to Bridgeport (AHL).
Dec. 1 Kyle Palmieri is being placed on IR (retroactive to 11/21/22), Cal Clutterbuck is day-to-day with an upper body injury, Cole Bardreau and Hudson Fasching have been recalled from loan (Bridgeport).
Nov. 29 Josh Bailey is day to day with an upper body injury.
Nov. 28 Robin Salo has been recalled from loan (Bridgeport).
Nov. 27 Robin Salo has been loaned to Bridgeport.
INJURIES GAMES MISSED
12 Josh Bailey Nov. 29 at PHI
15 Cal Clutterbuck Oct. 13 vs. FLA , Nov. 8 at NYR, Dec. 2 vs. NSH –
21 Kyle Palmieri Nov. 23 vs. EDM –
25 Sebastian Aho Oct. 13 vs. FLA – Oct. 20 vs. NJD
26 Oliver Wahlstrom Oct. 13 vs. FLA
Man Games Lost: 16
RECENT RESULTS
Sunday, Dec. 4 vs. Chicago W (3-0)
Friday, Dec. 2 vs. Nashville L (4-1)
Tuesday, Nov. 29 at Philadelphia L (3-1)
Saturday, Nov. 26 vs. Philadelphia W (5-2)
SEASON SERIES
Nov. 3, 2022 Enterprise Center (St. Louis, MO) MSG W (5-2)
Dec. 6, 2022 UBS Arena (Belmont Park, NY) MSG
UPCOMING GAMES
Dec. 9 at New Jersey Prudential Center (Newark, NJ) 7:00pm
Dec. 10 vs. Carolina UBS Arena (Belmont Park, NY) 7:30pm
Dec. 13 at Boston TD Garden (Boston, MA) 7:00pm
Dec. 16 at Arizona Mullett Arena (Tempe, AZ) 9:30pm
Dec. 17 at Vegas T-Mobile Arena (Las Vegas, NV) 10:00pm
LAST FIVE MEETINGS VS. ST. LOUIS
Nov. 3, 2022 Enterprise Center (St. Louis, MO) Win (5-2)
Apr. 9, 2022 Enterprise Center (St. Louis, MO) Loss (6-1)
Mar. 3, 2022 UBS Arena (Belmont Park, NY) Win (2-1)
February 27, 2020 Enterprise Center (St. Louis, MO) OT Loss (3-2)
October 14, 2019 Nassau Coliseum (Uniondale, NY) OT Win (3-2)
vs. THE BLUES:
2022-23 1-0-0
Last 5 meetings 3-1-1
Franchise History 57-37-20-6
NYI Home 32-14-11-4
NYI Away 25-23-9-2
STORYLINES
SOGs
The Islanders have recorded 40 or more shots on goal in two straight games for the first time since March 2018. They registered 40 shots on goal in their 3-0 victory vs. the Blackhawks on Sunday night. Friday night vs. Nashville, the Islanders registered 49 shots on goal in their 4-1 loss. It is the most they have recorded in a single game since March 11, 2020, in Vancouver, a game that went to the shootout. In regulation, the Islanders have not recorded that many shots on goal since October 25, 2008. Nine of the Islanders’ season-high 49 shots on goal were taken by Mathew Barzal, who matched a career-high. Entering tonight’s game, defenseman Noah Dobson leads the team in shots on goal and is tied for fifth amongst NHL defensemen with 80 (Trouba). Brock Nelson is second on the Islanders, with 78.
29
Islanders forward Brock Nelson scored his 12th goal of the season on Sunday night, to help the Islanders defeat the Blackhawks at home. Nelson leads the Islanders with 12 goals so far this season. He has scored points in his last five straight games, the second Islander to record a point streak of five or more games this season (Barzal, 7). Nelson also leads the Islanders with four game-winning goals this season, one of just five NHLers to record four GWGs this season (L. Draisaitl, J. Robertson, A. Tuch, T. Hall). Since his first goal of the season on October 28, the Islanders are 10-0-0 when Nelson scores a goal.
18
Islanders forward Anthony Beauvillier tallied an assist in Sunday night’s game vs. Chicago, his 200th career NHL point. He is the 15th player from his 2015 NHL Draft class to reach the milestone, including teammate Mathew Barzal. Beauvillier is one of nine Islanders with 200 or more career points. He enters tonight’s game one goal away from his career 100th.
VARLAMOV
Islanders netminder Semyon Varlamov tallied his sixth win of the season on Sunday and his 12th shutout as an Islander when he turned away all 21 shots he faced vs. Chicago. It was his first shutout since April 1 (at NY Rangers) and the 37th of his NHL career. Varlamov’s 37 career shutouts are tied with Sergei Bobrovsky for tenth-most amongst active NHL netminders. The 21-save showing earned the Islanders their third shutout of the 2022-23 campaign, becoming just the third NHL club to record three shutouts so far this season (Detroit, Winnipeg).
AGAINST THE BLUES
The Islanders enter tonight’s game with a 9-2-2 record against St. Louis, dating back to the 2015-16 season. On home ice, the Islanders are 5-0-1 through their last six matchups. Tonight’s game will be the Islanders’ second time hosting St. Louis in franchise history. The last time the Blues visited UBS Arena was a matinee game on March 5, 2022, a 2-1 Islander win. Brock Nelson and Oliver Wahlstrom scored in the win. The Islanders enter tonight’s game with a 4-4-0 record against Central Division opponents and and 8-4-0 record against Western Conference teams. The Islanders and Blues last met on November 3, when the Islanders earned a 5-2 win at Enterprise Center. Ten Islanders found the scoresheet. Anders Lee, who has recorded 11 points (six goals, five assists in 14 career games against the Blues, tallied a goal and an assist in the victory.
THIRD PERIODS
14 Islander victories in the 2022-23 campaign have included at least one third period goal. The Islanders have outscored opponents 36-28 in the third period through 26 games this season. Their victory on Sunday was only the second time this season the Islanders have won a game without finding the back of the net in the third. However, they score three times in the second frame, the fifth time this season they have recorded at least three goals in the second frame. They scored a season-high four goals in the second period on November 3, the last time they faced St. Louis.
17
Islanders forward Matt Martin scored his third goal of the season and the eventual game-winning goal. It was his 14th career game-winning tally and his first since December 29, 2019. With his third goal of the season, Martin ties his goals total from the 2021-22 campaign. Last year, the Windsor, ON native did not score his third goal of the season until Islander game #77. Martin leads the Islanders with 86 hits through 26 games so far this season, eighth-most in the league.
11
Islanders forward Zach Parise scored his eighth goal of the season on Sunday. Parise is second on the Islanders in goals and leads active Islanders in points against St. Louis. He enters tonight’s matchup with 22 points (10g, 22a) in 43 career games against the Blues.
ISLANDERS DEBUT
On December 1, Islanders announced that forward Hudson Fasching was recalled from loan (AHL Bridgeport). Fasching, 27, made his Islander debut on Devember 4, vs. Chicago, recording 13:04 TOI and a plus-one rating. Fasching has recorded three points (one goal, two assists) in 39 career NHL games. He served as captain of the Tucson Roadrunners (AHL) during the 2021-22 season, before signing with the Islanders as a free agent on August 23, 2022. This season with Bridgeport (AHL), the Milwaukee, WI native has tallied 10 points (seven goals, three assists) in eighteen games.
PENALTY KILL
The Islanders enter tonight’s game 81.5% on the penalty kill through 26 games this season. They have allowed 15 power play goals this year. Just three teams have allowed fewer (Boston, San Jose, Winnipeg). Islanders defenseman Scott Mayfield has recorded 89:34 shorthanded TOI this season, leading the Islanders and fourth-most amongst all NHLers (Lindell, Hakanpaa, Savard). Mayfield is a +6 through 26 games this season. Adam Pelech has skated 76:04 shorthanded TOI, and enters tonight’s game as the Islanders plus-minus leader (+13).
GOALS AGAINST
Entering tonight’s game, the Islanders have a team goals-against average of 2.54 through 26 games. It is tied with Toronto for third-lowest in the league, and is second-lowest in the Metropolitan Division behind New Jersey. Islanders netminder Ilya Sorokin has a save percentage of .932 through 18 games this season, second-most amongst goalies with at least ten appearances so far this season. On November 28, the NHL announced that Ilya Sorokin was selected as the the Third Star of the Week ending in November 27. In his last five starts (since November 21), Sorokin has made 152 saves on 160 shots, and has posted a .950 save percentage. Sorokin’s next win will be the 50th of his career.
OPENING THE SCORE
The Islanders have opened the score in each of their last five victories, including Sunday night vs. Chicago. This season, the Islanders are 11-2-0 when scoring the first goal. They are 5-8-0 when they allow the first goal.
