"The Skinny"
By Eric Hornick
Game 44
Nashville 2, Isles 1 (SO)
David Rittich and Juuse Saros battled through 65 minutes to a 1-1 tie, but Filip Forsberg scored the only goal of the shootout as the Nashville Predators defeated the Isles, 2-1, before a sellout crowd of 17,159 at Bridgestone Arena.
Simon Holmstrom and Ryan O'Reilly traded second period goals in a game where shots were even in all three regulation periods; the Isles had five of the six shots in overtime but could not beat Saros and instead saw their winless streak in Nashville reach seven games (0-4-3).
The Isles are 11-5-2 in their last eighteen games and 20-10-4 in their last 34 games; the road trip continues in Minnesota on Saturday.
The Scoring:
1st Period
No Goals
2nd Period
Simon Holmstrom (10) Scott Mayfield (6), Mathew Barzal (25) 12:14 NYI 1,NSH 0
Ryan O'Reilly (13) Cole Smith (2) 19:19 NYI 1,NSH 1 SHG
3rd Period
No Goals
OT
No Goals
The Shootout
Ryan O'Reilly (NG)/ Mathew Barzal (NG)
Filip Forsberg (G/GDG)/ Simon Holmstrom (NG)
Steven Stamkos (NG) / Emil Heineman (NG)
The Isles are 4-5 in the shootout while Nashville is 3-0… David Rittich falls to 12-11 in shootouts while Juuse Saros improves to 22-10 … The Isles (96-94) remain tied with Buffalo (96-83) for the most shootout wins in NHL history… Only Florida (192) has contested more shootouts than the Isles (190) …Filip Forsberg is now 19-53 in the shootout with eight game-deciding goals…The nine Islander shootouts this season are the most in the NHL and the most they had since 2018-19, when they went 5-5 in ten shootouts.
The Skinny
The Isles are 24-12-5 since they opened 0-3-0; the 53 points since October 16th are the most of any team in the Eastern Conference…The Isles went 0-2 on the power play and killed one Predator power play; the Isles are 11-55 on the power play in the last 20 games and have killed 21-26 over the last ten games… The Isles are 9-1-3 when tied after two periods … The Isles remain at a season-high nine games over NHL-.500…The Isles improve to +10 on the season at 5-on-5 (83-73)…Mathew Barzal extends his point streak to three games (1-5-6)… Simon Holmstrom scored for the fourth time in eight games; he has three goals in six games against Nashville… Matthew Schaefer played 28:53 to tie a career high…The Isles blocked a season-high 23 shots…The Isles have not allowed a goal in their 13 overtime periods this season, outshooting opponents by a 33-19 margin…Ryan O'Reilly now has six goals in 29 career games against the Isles…Former Islander coach Barry Trotz earned his 98th win as the Predator General Manager.
The Standings
The Isles remain in 2nd place in the Metropolitan Division as they drop four points behind Carolina and remain one point ahead of Philadelphia.
Milestone Men
• Anders Lee still needs one goal to become the fifth Islander with 300 goals.
• Mathew Barzal had an assist; he now needs two points to reach 500 points for his career and one point to tie Derek King for 14th place with 499.
• Barzal's remains tied with Mariusz Czerkawski for 19th in club history with 145 goals.
• Adam Pelech still has 139 assists, tied with Mark Streit for 10th on the club's defenseman assist list.
• Ryan Pulock still has 179 assists, one before Noah Dobson for 5th on the club's defenseman assist list.
• David Rittich played in his 249th NHL game.
First Time in a Long Time
Ryan O'Reilly's goal ended a 111:58 Islander shutout streak; they have scored 12 consecutive goals in that stretch – the longest stretch by the team since March 1988, when they scored 13 straight goals.
Road Warriors
This is the second seven-game road trip for the Isles this season; they are 0-0-1 so far:
8-Jan-26 @ NASH 1-2 Lso
10-Jan-26 @ MINN 8pm
13-Jan-26 @ WINN 8pm
15-Jan-26 @ EDM 9pm
17-Jan-26 @ CGY 3pm
19-Jan-26 @ VAN 10pm
21-Jan-26 @ SEA 9:30pm
(All times Eastern)
Return to Form
Ilya Sorokin was 2-4-1 (.868 and 3.75) in his first seven games this season; he is 11-6-1 (.935 and 2.06) since October 31st with four shutouts. Jesper Wallstedt is the only goalie with as many shutouts in that span or this season.
Sorokin has won each of his first ten games facing at least 30 shots; tying Mark Fitzpatrick's club record (at any time during the season). Sorokin is the only Isles goalie to start a season with more than eight straight wins in that situation.
Big Save Dave
David Rittich is 11-5-3 on the season. In his last fourteen games (8-3-3), he has stopped 333 of 362 shots for a 2.04 GAA and a .920 save percentage. He had started eight of the last nine games (4-2-2, 2.12, .917).
Islander goalies not named Sorokin won only five games all last season (tying a franchise record for fewest by the non-winningest goalies on the team).
Schaefer and Penalties
Matthew Schaefer has drawn 25 penalties this season, more than any other NHL defenseman, and for second to Connor McDavid's 26. He is a net +13 (having taken only 12 penalties), which is also 2nd in the NHL to Mc David.
Since penalties drawn was tracked in 2009-10, no Isle defenseman has finished a season higher than +11 (Noah Dobson 2021-22), John Tavares holds the club record for a season at +29 in 2011-12, while Mathew Barzal +26 in 2017-18 is the only other Islander to finish higher than +15. Cale Makar is the only NHL defenseman to finish higher than +16 (Makar was +19 in 2024-25 and +17 in 2023-24).
Most Penalties Drawn by an Islander Defenseman (Season, Since 2009-10)
1. Matthew Schaefer 2025-26 25
2. Matt Carkner 2013-14 23
3. Thomas Hickey 2016-17 22
Most Penalties Drawn by an Islander Rookie (Season, Since 2009-10)
1. Mathew Barzal 2017-18 40
2. Matthew Schaefer 2025-26 25
Matt Martin 2010-11 25
[Travis Hamonic (17 in 2010-11) is the only other Islander rookie defenseman to draw more than 10)
Most Ice Time by an Islander Teenager, Game
1. Matthew Schaefer 28:53 11/28/2025 vs PHI (SO)
Matthew Schaefer 28:53 1/8/2026 vs NAS (SO)
3. Matthew Schaefer 28:12 12/9/2025 vs VEG
4. Matthew Schaefer 27:40 10/25/2025 at PHI (SO)
5. Matthew Schaefer 27:30 11/22/2025 vs. STL
6. Matthew Schaefer 27:23 11/23/2025 vs. SEA (SO)
7. Matthew Schaefer 27:03 12/27/2025 vs. NYR
A 20-year-old Islander has played more than 28:53 only twice (Bryan Berard -31:30; Travis Hamonic -28:54). The younger of these was Hamonic (vs PIT) on April 8, 2011, when he was 20 years, 235 days old; Schaefer will not hit that age until April 27, 2028.
Most Ice Time by an 18-Year-Old, Game
1. Rasmus Dahlin (BUF) 29:15 12/4/2018 vs TOR (OT)
2. Drew Doughty (LA) 29:04 11/22/2008 vs COL (SO)
3. Matthew Schaefer 28:53 11/28/2025 vs PHI (SO)
Matthew Schaefer 28:53 1/8/2026 vs NAS (SO)
Schaefer has played at least 27 minutes seven times and at least 26 minutes twelve times. He is the first 18-year-old to do either of these things since ice time became official.
Most Goals by an 18-Year-Old Defenseman
1. Phil Housley (BUF) 17 (1982-83)
2. Bobby Orr (BOS) 13 (1966-67)
3. Matthew Schaefer 12 (2025-26)
Most Power Play Goals by an 18-Year-Old Defenseman
1. Phil Housley (BUF) 10 (1982-83)
2. Matthew Schaefer 6 (2025-26)
3. Rasmus Dahlin (BUF) 5 (2018-19)
Most Goals by an Islander Teenage Defenseman
1. Matthew Schaefer 18
2. Bryan Berard 7
Only seven Islander teenagers, regardless of position, have scored at least ten goals, led by Bryan Trottier's 32 and Pat LaFontaine' 26. David Chyzowski (13) is the one above Schaefer.
Most Assists by an Islander Teenage Defenseman
1. Bryan Berard 32
2. Matthew Schaefer 17
Only eight Islander teenagers, regardless of position, have recorded at least 17 assists, led by Bryan Trottier's 63 and Tim Connolly's 51. Josh Bailey (18) is the one now above Schaefer.
Most Points by an Islander Teenage Defenseman
1. Bryan Berard 39
2. Matthew Schaefer 29
Only seven Islander teenagers, regardless of position, have recorded at least 29 points, led by Bryan Trottier's 95 and Tim Connolly's 75. Bryan Berard (39) is the one now above Schaefer.
Schaefer will still be a Teenager for the next 122 Isles games.
Most Games, Goals, Assists and Points as an 18-Year-Old (Isles history)
1. Tim Connolly 81 (14-20-34)
2. Mathew Schaefer 44 (12-17-29)
Most Goals by an Islander Rookie Defenseman
1. Denis Potvin 17 (1973-74)
2. Vladimir Malakhov 14 (1992-93)
3. Matthew Schafer 12 (2025-26)
Did Somebody Say Comeback?
The Isles have eleven come-from behind wins this season, including five when they trailed in the third period. The opponents have come-from-behind to win nine times this season, including four times in the third period.
Overtime Is Our Time
The Isles are 4-0 in games decided by an overtime goal, and they are 4-5 in shootouts.
The Sixth Attacker
The Isles have scored six goals with the 6th attacker (most in NHL) and allowed eight empty net goals.
Opponents have scored five goals with 6th attacker and allowed six empty-netters to the Isles.
Most Extra Attacker Goals, Isles (since 2009-10)
1. 2017-18 9
2. 2019-20 and 2023-24 7
4. Five years, including 2025-26 6
Most Career Empty Net Goals
1. Bryan Trottier 27
2. John Tavares 20
3. Mike Bossy 15
4. Brock Nelson 13
5. Jason Blake and Casey Cizikas 11
Building on a Lead
The Islanders have had a two-goal lead 22 times this season:
• Score the next goal: 9 times
• Allowed the next goal: 9 times
• Game ended with 2-goal difference: 4 times
Last Year vs. This Year
• 2025-26 24-15-5 for 53 points in 44 games
• 2024-25 17-20-7 for 41 points in 44 games; they reached 53 points in their 50th game.
Offense from Defense
• Today: 0-1-1
• Season: 20-65-85
• Last Season (Final) 32-129-161
Rookie Scoring
• Today: 0-0-0
• Season: 24-35-59
• Last Season (Final) 19-30-49
• This season's totals are the most since 2017-18 (38-101-139)
The 24 rookie goals trail only Montreal (25) for the most in the NHL while the 59 points are 3rd. Islander rookies have scored 19.1% of the team's goals, which is the most in the NHL.
Home and Road
The Isles are 24-15-5 overall; they are 14-8-2 at home and 10-7-3 on the road.
Nashville is 20-19-4 overall; they are 11-9-2 at home and 9-10-2 on the road.
East and West
The Isles are 14-9-4 against the East (7-5-2 vs. Metropolitan and 7-4-2 vs. Atlantic) and 10-6-1 against the West (4-5-1 vs. Central and 6-1-0 vs. Pacific).
First Things First
The Isles are 18-4-3 when scoring first and 6-11-2 when allowing the opening goal.
The Shots
Isles 10-9-7-5=31
Nashville 10-9-7-1=27
The Isles are 6-10-4 when they outshoot their opponents, 1-0-1 when the shots are even and 17-5-0 when the opposition has more shots.
In the Nets
David Rittich made 26 saves; he is 11-5-3 this season and 3-2-2 vs. Nashville.
Juuse Saros made 30 saves; he is 17-14-3 this season and 8-2-0 vs. the Isles.
Special Teams
The Isles were 0-2 (4:00) and allowed a shorthanded goal; Nashville was 0-1 (2:00)
The Isles are 12-4-2 when they score at least one power play goal and 12-11-3 when they do not. The Isles are 7-7-4 when they allow at least one power play goal and 17-8-1 when they do not.
The Isles are 11-1-0 when they outscore the opposition on special teams, 3-7-2 when they are outscored, and 10-7-3 when special team goals are equal. (Their only loss when outscoring the opposition on special teams was in the home opener against Washington.)
Three is a Magic Number
The Isles are 19-1-3 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 5-14-2 when they do not.
One-Goal Games
The Isles are 14-3-5 in games decided by a single goal including 6-3 in regulation. They are 4-0 in games decided in overtime and are 4-5 in shootouts. The Isles are 4-3 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game.
Back-to-Backs
The Isles are 3-4-0 on the front end and 4-2-1 on the back end this season. The next back-to-back will be January 28-29 when they face the Rangers in a home-and-home series.
The Isles are 4-3-0 when the opponent is on the back end, including 2-1-0 when the Isles also played the previous day.
Ice-time Leaders
Isles: Matthew Schaefer (28:53); Nashville: Ryan O'Reilly (23:52)
Mathew Barzal led Isles forwards (24:51).
Face-offs
Isles 25, Nashville 28 (47%)
Casey Cizikas and Jean-Gabriel Pageau each won 8 of 12 for the Isles; Ryan O'Reilly won 15 of 22 for Nashville.
Hit Count
Isles 20 (Marc Gatcomb -5)
Nashville 19 (Michael McCarron -6)
Fights
None. Season total: 4 (Mayfield, MacLean, Lee, DeAngelo)
Blocked Shots
Isles 23 (Ryan Pulock -5)
Nashville 16 (Two with 3)
For the Analytics Crowd
Corsi: All situations: Isles 59, Nashville 71
Corsi: 5-on-5: Isles 42, Nashville 57
5-on-5 leaders:
Isles: Mathew Barzal +7
Nashville: Fedor Svechkov +18
High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)
All situations: Isles 12, Nashville 14
5-on-5: Isles 5, Nashville 13
Scratches
(Pierre Engvall-LTIR), (Semyon Varlamov-IR), (Alex Romanov-IR), (Kyle Palmieri-IR), (Bo Horvat -INJ), Adam Boqvist, Max Tsyplakov
Games Lost to injury: 212. (Last season's total: 304)
The Ironmen
Casey Cizikas is the Islanders' ironman, having played 152 consecutive games. Anders Lee (126) is the only other Isle to have also played every game since the start of last season.
National TV Games
Including tonight, the Isles are 3-1-1 in games that air on one of the NHL's US national broadcast partners. Their next appearance will be on TNT on January 21st in Seattle.
Matinee Isles
The Isles are 2-4-2 in matinee games this season; the next matinee will be at 3:00pm ET on January 17th in Calgary. The NHL considers games that start before 5:00 local time to be afternoon contests. Since the start of the 2019-20 season, the Isles are 17-21-14 in matinees.
Challenges
Isles: 0 successful, 1 failure (No goalie interference – VEG 11/14)
Opponents: 0 successful, 4 failure (No hand pass – WAS 10/11), (No interference – DET 10/23), (No offside – WAS 10/31), (No interference – COL 12/4)
Hockey Opps: 1 favorable, 1 unfavorable (No missed stoppage- NJ 11/10), (goalie interference -DAL 11/18)
Quickies (Two goals in under a minute)
For (3): DET 10/23, CBJ 11/2, NJ 1/6
Vs (4): BOS 10/28, COL 11/16, PHI 11/28, TB 11/30
Quick Responses (One team scoring within a minute of other team)
Isles responses (3): OTT 10/18, SJS 10/21, BOS 11/4
Opponent responses (3): WPG 10/13, CAR 10/30, COL 12/4
Multi-Goal 3rd Period Comeback Wins
For (0):
Vs (0):
Last Minute Heroes (Tying or go-ahead goals in the final three minutes of the third period):
For (8): Anders Lee, GWG(18:57)10/18 OTT, Matthew Schaefer, GTG (18:53) and Simon Holmstrom GWG (19:22) 11/2 CBJ, Kyle Palmieri GAG (17:07 11/10 NJ)- Isles won in OT, Mathew Barzal GTG (17:23 11/13 VEG)- Isles won in OT; Emil Heineman GTG (19:31 12/20 BUF)- Isles lost in OT; Adam Pelech GWG (18:45 12/23 NJD); Emil Heineman GTG (17:45 1/3 TOR) – Isles won in OT
Vs (3): Simon Nemec GTG (19:55 11/10 NJ) but NYI won in OT, Pavel Dorfeyev (19:46, 12/9 VEG) but NYI won in SO; Alex DeBrincat GWG (17:43 12/16 DET)
OT Winners
For (4): Mathew Barzal 11/10 @ NJ, JG Pageau 11/13 @ VEG, Matthew Schaefer 11/14 @ UTA and 1/3 Vs TOR
Vs (0):
Shootout Winners
For (4): SEA 11/23, VEG 12/9, TBL 12/13, CHI 12/30
Vs (5): PHI 10/25, BOS 11/4, PHL 11/28, BUF 12/20, NAS 1/8
All-time Islander Leader Boards:
Games Played (skaters)
1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 *** 3. Josh Bailey 1,057 ***
4. Casey Cizikas 941 *** 5. Brock Nelson 901 *** 6. Bobby Nystrom 900 *** 7. Anders Lee 885…
19. Frans Nielsen 606 *** 20. Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock 604 *** 22. Kenny Jonsson 597 *** 23. Garry Howatt 596 *** 24. John Tonelli 594 *** 25. Scott Mayfield 577 *** 26. Mathew Barzal 573
Goals
1. Mike Bossy 573 *** 2. Bryan Trottier 500 *** 3. Denis Potvin 310 ***
4. Clark Gillies 304 *** 5. Anders Lee 299 …
17. Patrick Flatley 160 *** 18. Pierre Tugeon 147 ***19. Mariusz Czerkawski and Mathew Barzal 145…
23. Duane Sutter 121 *** 24. Alexei Yashin, Frans Nielsen, and Casey Cizikas 119
Assists
1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553 ***
4. Josh Bailey 396 *** 5. Clark Gillies 359 *** 6. Mathew Barzal 353…
18. Tomas Jonsson 249 *** 19. Anders Lee 233…
24. Ed Westfall 181 *** 25 Noah Dobson 180 *** 26. Ryan Pulock 179…
32. Ziggy Palffy 163 *** 33. David Volek and Casey Cizikas 154
Points
1. Bryan Trottier 1,353 *** 2. Mike Bossy 1,126 *** 3. Denis Potvin 1,052…
10. John Tonelli 544 *** 11. Bob Bourne 542 *** 12. Anders Lee 532 ***
13. Bob Nystrom 513 *** 14. Derek King 499 *** 15. Mathew Barzal 498…
27. Ed Westfall 286 *** 28. Casey Cizikas 273
+/-
1. Bryan Trottier +467 ***2. Denis Potvin +456 *** 3. Mike Bossy +380
15. Bob Lorimer +105 *** 16. Adam Pelech +88 *** 17. Tomas Jonsson +76 *** 18. Garry Howatt +75 *** 19. Pat Price +70 *** 20. JP Parise +67 *** 21. Ryan Pulock +68 *** 21. Jude Drouin +58 *** 23. Patrick Flatley +57 *** 24. Greg Gilbert +54
Defense Goals
1. Denis Potvin 310 *** 2. Tomas Jonsson 84 *** 3. Kenny Jonsson 57 ***
4. Ryan Pulock 54…
13. Bryan Berard 31 *** 14. Scott Mayfield and Adam Pelech 29
Defense Assists
1. Denis Potvin 742*** 2. Stefan Persson 317 *** 3. Tomas Jonsson 249 ***
4. Nick Leddy 198 *** 5. Noah Dobson 180 *** 6. Ryan Pulock 179 …
9. Jeff Norton 166 ***10. Mark Streit and Adam Pelech 139…
15. Tom Kurvers and Gerry Hart 108 *** 17. Scott Mayfield 103
Defense Points
1. Denis Potvin 1,052 *** 2. Stefan Persson 369 *** 3. Tomas Jonsson 333 ***
4. Nick Leddy 243 *** 5. Ryan Pulock 233…
10. Mark Streit 179 *** 11. Adam Pelech 167…
15. Tom Kurvers 134 *** 16. Scott Mayfield 132
Goalie Games
1. Billy Smith 674 *** 2. Rick DiPietro 318 *** 3. Glenn Resch 282 ***
4. Ilya Sorokin 278 …
8. Jaroslav Halak 177*** 9. Glenn Healy 176 *** 10. Semyon Varlamov 173
Wins
1. Billy Smith 304 *** 2. Glenn Resch 157 *** 3. Ilya Sorokin 138 …
7. Jaroslav Halak 88 *** 8. Roland Melanson 77 *** 9. Semyon Varlamov 76
Shutouts
1. Ilya Sorokin 26 *** 2. Glenn Resch 25 *** 3. Billy Smith 22 ***
4. Rick DiPietro and Semyon Varlamov 16
On the Farm
Bridgeport is 12-16-2-1 on the season as they head to Providence on Friday to begin a 3-in-3 weekend. The Islanders have fallen three points behind Springfield for the final playoff spot but do have a game in hand.
Leaders: Goals: Joey Larson- 12 (one of six AHL rookies with at least 12); Assists: Matthew Maggio-15; Points: Larson and Jefferies 21.
Goalies: Marcus Hogberg 5-8-2, 3.15, .880; Henrik Tikkanen 5-3-1, 2.62, .900
Season Series Stats
Nashville leads the season series, 1 game to 0 (and 2 points to 1). The teams will conclude the season series on January 31st at UBS Arena.
The Isles are 0-4-3 in their last seven trips to Nashville since winning twice (in different seasons) there in 2017 under Doug Weight.
UP NEXT
SATURDAY, JANUARY 10th —ISLANDERS AT MINNESOTA 8:00PM
[MSGSN (Pre-game at 7:30); WRHU 88.7 FM, WRCN 103.9FM, Isles + UBS Arena App]
The road trip continues on Saturday at the re-named Grand Casino Arena as the Isles face the Wild for the 2nd time this season.
The Wild have had the Isles' number in recent years, with the Isles holding only one win in the last nine games (1-7-1); they have not won in St. Paul since 2019 (0-3-1). The Wild defeated the Isles 5-2 in November at UBS Arena.
This game will mark the only meeting between Matthew Schaefer and Quinn Hughes this season.
Eric Hornick has been the statistician on Islander home game telecasts since January 21, 1982. Information contained in "The Skinny" has been gathered from various sources. Follow Eric @ehornick on Twitter & on his blog www.nyiskinny.com
Forever1940 is the nom de plume of Eric Hornick, statistician on Islander home telecasts since January 21, 1982. Visit my blog: NYISkinny.com and follow me on Twitter @ehornick
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