There is plenty of blame to go around for the Islanders’ struggles this season, but the star players’ struggles is a big reason for their poor play.

The New York Islanders (14-18-7) have sat in the NHL’s mushy middle for the last three seasons. That trend has continued into this year for a fourth straight season.

Barzal provided an assist in Tuesday's 3-1 loss to the Maple Leafs. Barzal now has three points and a plus-1 rating over seven contests since he returned from an upper-body injury. He hasn't gotten on the scoresheet in consecutive games this season,

At first glance, there was nothing particularly noteworthy about the goal Mathew Barzal scored in Toronto Saturday night. There were two minutes and 20 seconds remaining and the Islanders were protecting their two-goal advantage against a Maple Leafs squad that was both desperate and aggressive.

The Boston Bruins return from a three-game road trip to face the New York Islanders in their first home game of the 2025 calendar year on Sunday evening.

The New York Islanders (14-18-7) arrive in Boston losers of three straight, with just two wins in their last eight games (2-6-0). They take on the Boston Bruins (20-17-4) in TD Garden tonight, with puck drop scheduled for just after 6 p.

Korpisalo sports a 7-4-1 record in his first season as a Bruin, along with a 2.71 GAA and a .895 SV%. The Finnish netminder was between the pipes in the prior meeting with the Isles this season for a 6-3 victory for the Bruins.

On Thursday's loss to Toronto, Anders Lee had this to say: "We created chances. We didn't score on them. That was the difference."

Bobby McMann scored twice, including the game-winner on the power play with 2:59 left in regulation, as the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the New York Islanders 2-1 on Thursday night in Elmont, N.Y.

Barzal notched an assist, five shots on goal, two hits and a plus-2 rating in Saturday's 6-3 win over the Penguins. Barzal set up Jean-Gabriel Pageau's opening goal in the first period. The helper was Barzal's second point to go with 18 shots on net and a minus-2 rating over five games since he returned from an upper-body injury.

The New York Islanders (14-18-7) woke up in 28th place in the NHL this morning. If the NHL held the 2025 Draft Lottery today, the Islanders would hold the fifth overall pick and, therefore, have a serious chance of winning that lottery to draft James Hagens.

The Toronto Maple Leafs will have to wait a little longer before welcoming back Auston Matthews to a team that has Stanley Cup aspirations. The New York Islanders can't afford to wait much longer to begin winning and stave off a potential breakup of the core that reached consecutive NHL semifinals in 2020-21.