After Sunday's 3-2 win against the Dallas Stars, the Ottawa Senators now play an Eastern Conference team for the third and final time this season, the New York Islanders.
Against the Islanders this season, the Senators haven't fared well. The Senators fell by the exact same score of 4-2 against the Islanders on Nov. 7 and Dec. 8. Both games were played in Ottawa. The Senators hope the third time will be the charm against the Islanders, but this time in Long Island.
Senators play Islanders for third and final time this season.
The Senators travel to UBS Arena to play the Islanders with puck drop scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.
On Sunday, the Senators ended the Stars' seven-game winning streak. After trailing 1-0 after the first period, Josh Norris and Tim Stutzle each scored a goal in a 39-second span in the second period. Just 21 seconds into the third period, Matthew Highmore scored his first goal since April 2022, which turned out to be his first game-winning goal since May 2021.
Leevi Merilainen started his second consecutive game even with the Senators playing on a back-to-back and made 24 saves to earn the win. In six games now in the NHL this season, Merilainen is 4-2-0 with a 2.34 goals against average and .913 save percentage.
As for the Islanders, they come into tonight's game with a 17-18-7 record. The Islanders have won their past three consecutive games on the road against the Boston Bruins, Vegas Golden Knights and Utah Hockey Club.
Islanders captain Anders Lee leads the team with 19 goals and 35 points. Bo Horvat is second on the Islanders with 13 goals and 30 points, and leads the team with 17 assists. Lee recorded two points in each Senators-Islanders game this season.
The Eastern Conference standings are getting tighter with every game played. While both teams would currently be out of the 2025 playoffs, the Senators are currently ahead of the Islanders by four points in the standings.