by Chuck Sommers
Friday, Apr 08, 2022
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Venue: PNC Arena, Raleigh, NC
Where to watch: BSSO, MSG+
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Hurricanes -175, Islanders +150
BetMGM: Hurricanes -185, Islanders +150
Caesars: Hurricanes -175, Islanders +150
Season record
Islanders: 32-28-9
Hurricanes: 46-17-8
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Islanders - Hurricanes preview and analysis
Is it time for the Bunch of Jerks? I think there’s still plenty of time to decipher if this is the year the Carolina Hurricanes take that next leap. There’s still some hockey left to be played in order to figure out who they’re going to play, but it’s clear if the Florida Panthers are the top team in the East, the Canes aren’t that far behind.
And Carolina will try to keep things rolling with the second night of a back-to-back against the New York Islanders on Friday night at PNC Arena fresh off a come-from-behind win over the Buffalo Sabres at home that saw the Hurricanes clinch a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
It was a beautiful day for Jordan Staal and Sebastian Aho scoring two goals each, and the Canes rallied from 3-1 down with four unanswered goals, bringing the Canes four wins away from 50 which is very plausible at this point.
“That’s what we need coming down the stretch (and) in the playoffs, too,” Aho said. “That’s the whole point why you play hockey – to be in the playoffs. We are very proud that we’re heading to the playoffs.”
If there was a time to think Carolina has turned the corner, it might be this year. Frederik Andersen is now the goalie and while his playoff track record is nothing to get excited about, playing in front of a better, much more sound defensive team has helped his case. It’s why he could win the Vezina Trophy this year and actually be the reason why Carolina is in a good spot.
“It’s a huge accomplishment. We grinded all year,” coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “Obviously, we know there are bigger and better things we want to accomplish, but you have to get there first. To get there with 11 games to go says a lot about the group. Normally, you’re sweating it out to try to get in.”
The Hurricanes currently sit two points clear of the New York Rangers for first place in the Metropolitan Division with a game in hand. If the season were to end today, the Hurricanes would face the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round of the playoffs, putting the hockey world on its axis for a seven-game series that would ultimately destroy the meaning of matter as we know it.
Meanwhile, the Islanders are not technically out of it yet. They’re 13 points behind the Washington Capitals with 13 games remaining. They would literally need to run the table and that kind of thinking might be too much for them to overcome.
The Islanders are coming off a 3-2 loss to the Dallas Stars on Tuesday night. Brock Nelson and J-G Pageau scored, and Semyon Varlamov’s solid 37-save performance. But it wasn’t enough against a team fighting for its playoff lives.
“They create a lot of volume, and they won those races,” Islanders coach Barry Trotz said. “I thought we sort of gathered ourselves (after the first period), but we didn’t put the puck in play enough.”
Prediction
The Canes rolled with Antti Raanta for the matchup against Buffalo, leaving them a fresh Andersen against New York. That seems like a plausible thing to make happen when you want to keep the winning train going. Even though it might be a better idea to not play Tampa in the first round, you can make things exciting with a series win. But patience, all. We’ll get there, eventually. Hurricanes win 4-2
Betting trends
Islanders are 70-51 against division opponents the last three years.
Hurricanes are 12-8 against division teams this season.
The Islanders are 19-17 this season coming off a loss.
Projected lines
Islanders:
Anders Lee -- Brock Nelson -- Anthony Beauvillier
Josh Bailey -- Jean-Gabriel Pageau -- Kyle Palmieri
Zach Parise -- Mathew Barzal -- Oliver Wahlstrom
Matt Martin -- Casey Cizikas -- Ross Johnston
Adam Pelech -- Ryan Pulock
Zdeno Chara -- Noah Dobson
Andy Greene -- Grant Hutton
Semyon Varlamov
Anders Lee -- Brock Nelson -- Anthony Beauvillier
Josh Bailey -- Jean-Gabriel Pageau -- Kyle Palmieri
Zach Parise -- Mathew Barzal -- Oliver Wahlstrom
Matt Martin -- Casey Cizikas -- Ross Johnston
Adam Pelech -- Ryan Pulock
Zdeno Chara -- Noah Dobson
Andy Greene -- Grant Hutton
Semyon Varlamov
Hurricanes:
Andrei Svechnikov -- Sebastian Aho -- Seth Jarvis
Teuvo Teravainen -- Vincent Trocheck -- Max Domi
Nino Niederreiter -- Jordan Staal -- Jesper Fast
Martin Necas -- Derek Stepan -- Jordan Martinook
Jaccob Slavin -- Tony DeAngelo
Brady Skjei -- Brett Pesce
Brendan Smith -- Ian Cole
Frederik Andersen
Andrei Svechnikov -- Sebastian Aho -- Seth Jarvis
Teuvo Teravainen -- Vincent Trocheck -- Max Domi
Nino Niederreiter -- Jordan Staal -- Jesper Fast
Martin Necas -- Derek Stepan -- Jordan Martinook
Jaccob Slavin -- Tony DeAngelo
Brady Skjei -- Brett Pesce
Brendan Smith -- Ian Cole
Frederik Andersen
Statistical leaders
Islanders:
Points: Brock Nelson -- 50
Goals: Brock nelson -- 33
Assists: Mat Barzal -- 34
Goalie: Ilya Sorokin -- 22-14-7, 2.30 GAA, .927 SV%
Hurricanes:
Points: Sebastian Aho -- 71
Goals: Sebastian Aho -- 33
Assists: Teuvo Teravainen -- 39
Goalie: Frederik Andersen -- 33-12-3, 2.07 GAA, .926 SV%
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
