New York Islanders

Islanders Game 30 Preview at Montreal Canadiens: Lines, Best Bets, How To Watch

Published

4 months ago

December 16, 2023

The New York Islanders play the second half of a back-to-back as they travel up to Montreal to face the Canadiens at Bell Center tonight. Here’s what you need to know before puck drop.

Projected Lineup:

Lee-Horvat-Barzal

Engvall-Nelson-Palmieri

Holmstrom-Pageau-Wahlstrom

Gauthier-Cizikas-Clutterbuck

Romanov-Dobson

Bolduc-Bortuzzo

Reilly-Aho

Varlamov

Sorokin

Last Time Out:

The Islanders wrapped up their season-long homestand on Friday night in a 5-4 shootout loss to the Boston Bruins.

Islanders Play Well, Penalty Kill Unable to Contain Bruins in 5-4 Shootout Loss

Twice did the Islanders lead in the third period as Bo Horvat and Brock Nelson each capitalized on the power play. However, Boston was just as strong on the man advantage, scoring on all three of its chances in the game.

With the Islanders holding a one-goal lead at 16:51 of the third, rookie defenseman Mason Lohrei somehow managed to put the puck past Ilya Sorokin with a shot from the corner after a missed tripping call that would’ve given the Islanders a power play.

The Opponent:

In the midst of a rebuild, The Montreal Canadiens sit in seventh place in the Atlantic Division with a record of 12-13-4.

The Canadiens are 4-4-2 in its last 10 games, including a 4-3 shootout loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on home ice on Thursday.

Montreal captain Nick Suzuki leads the team with 23 points, while Sean Monahan is its top goal scorer, lighting the lamp nine times thus far.

Samuel Montembeault is expected to be in the crease tonight for the Canadiens. In an ongoing rotation, Montembeault has a record of 6-4-2 in 12 starts, posting a 2.78 GAA and a .911 save percentage. He made 30 saves on 33 shots in Montreal’s shootout loss to Pittsburgh.

The Habs are operating at a 17% clip on the power play, which is 22nd in the league and are 30th on the penalty kill at 72.4%

For more Montreal Canadiens coverage, follow Marc Dumont over at Montreal Hockey Now.

Best Bets:

Kyle Palmieri has seven career goals in 21 games against Montreal, including one in four games against Montembeault. Bet on him as an anytime goalscorer tonight with +200 odds presented by Draft Kings.

How To Watch:

Puck drop between the Islanders and Canadiens from Bell Center is scheduled for just past 7 p.m. EST. The game can be seen on MSGSN2 and streamed on MSG + or ESPN+ for out-of-market viewers. 88.7 FM WRHU will produce the radio feed of the game, which can also be heard on 1050 AM ESPN or 103.9 FM WRCN.