The Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Islanders face each other for the first time this season on Saturday night, the first of six matchups before the end of February. The Penguins have three of four games while the Islanders enter the weekend on a five-game losing streak. It is also worth noting that Pittsburgh is 1-6 SU in their last seven vs the Islanders.
- Date/Time: Saturday, February 6, 7 p.m. ET
- Arena: Nassau Coliseum
- TV Coverage: ESPN+
- Sportsbook Odds: Islanders -125 | O/U 5.5 (Line History)
- Penguins vs Islanders Matchup Report
Sportsbook Odds Analysis
The game opened with the Islanders as favorites at -125 and the line has since moved in Pittsburgh’s direction. It can now be found at even odds at many sportsbooks with the Islanders slight favorites at others. The total opened at 5.5 and has stayed at that number with the UNDER the slight favorite at most books in the -115 to -125 range.
Pittsburgh News & Notes
The Pens have still yet to get great play from a couple key players this season. Future Hall of Famer center Evgeni Malkin has just one goal and five points in ten games this season while top D-man Kris Letang has just three assists in nine games and is now dealing with an injury.
The injuries situation has gotten quite ridiculous for the Pens defense corps as six regulars are now dealing with injuries. Three are on injured reserve, two are out indefinitely and Letang is questionable for Saturday.
In net, Casey DeSmith has has played better of late as he has won three of his last four and had his best game statistically in Monday’s loss to the Rangers. He now sports a 3-1-0 record with a .882 save percentage. Tristan Jarry on the other hand is 2-3-1 this year with a .859 save percentage that ranks 28th out of 28 goalies who have played at least six games this year.
New York News & Notes
The Islanders secret to success is no secret. They have been a playoff team in recent seasons because of their excellent defensive structure, coaching and goaltending. They love low-even hockey. And for the most part, the team has accomplished their goal in their own end. The Isles have allowed the second fewest high danger scoring chances in the league and the fourth-fewest total scoring chances (all teams with fewer have played fewer games) at even strength.
The problem is the offense. Only Florida (twelve, in two fewer games played) has scored fewer goals at even strength than New York’s thirteen. The Islanders also rank 27th in both total scoring chances and high danger scoring chances.
Mathew Barzal leads the team with 10 points in nine games. The next most on the team is five.
Starter Semyon Varlamov has played admirably this season despite losing three straight games. He now has a 3-2-1 record with a .924 save percentage and will likely get the start here.
Betting Pick: Islanders -110
Maybe the Penguins goaltending woes will snap the Islanders out of their offensive funk. New York is too good a team to lose so many games in a row this feels like a get-right spot at home against an injury-depleted team.
- The UNDER is 4-1 in Pittsburgh’s last five games.
- Pittsburgh is 1-6 SU in their last seven games vs the Islanders.
- New York is 8-4 in their last 12 home games.
