Vegas @ New York preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 20, 2018 ) NY Islanders 2, Vegas 4

The New York Islanders have finally cooled off a bit following a six-week stretch in which they were the hottest team in hockey, winning 15 of 16 as part of a franchise-record 17-game point streak. Losers of four of their last six (2-3-1), the Islanders will face a surging opponent when they host the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday night.

New York has played seven of its last nine on the road and is looking to return to Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum for the first time since Nov. 13. “It’ll be nice to play at the Coliseum again," defenseman Scott Mayfield said after Tuesday's 4-2 loss in Montreal. "We’ve just got to stay with the process. We had a lot of wins to start the season. You’re going to have these losses. You’ve just got to move on.” The Golden Knights extended their winning streak to a season-high four games with a 4-3 victory at New Jersey on Tuesday and are bidding to complete a perfect three-game road trip. "We've still got a long way to go, but it's definitely going in the right direction right now," coach Gerard Gallant said. "We've just got to keep battling every game."

TV: 7 p.m. ET, AT&T Sportsnet-Rocky Mountain (Las Vegas), MSG-Plus (New York)

ABOUT THE GOLDEN KNIGHTS (15-11-4): Vegas had lost seven of nine when starting netminder Marc-Andre Fleury took a personal leave following the death of his father. Backup Malcolm Subban took the loss in the next game but has rattled off four straight victories, including both ends of a back-to-back on Monday and Tuesday. “You get a couple wins, start to feel better about yourself, start to feel good about your game and stuff,” Subban said. “It’s been great. Obviously I still have stuff to work on, but it’s coming along.”

ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (18-6-2): New York is the first team to alternate starting netminders in each of the first 26 games of the season since San Jose in 2006-07, so Semyon Varlamov is expected to get the nod versus Vegas after Thomas Greiss faced Montreal. "Both of those guys have been awesome for us," said center Mathew Barzal, who called the duo "our backbones (in) a lot of games this year." Varlamov has split four career decisions versus the Golden Knights but turned aside all 40 shots in a shutout last season.

OVERTIME

1. Golden Knights F Jonathan Marchessault had a hat trick Tuesday and has scored seven of his eight goals on the road.

2. Islanders F Cal Clutterbuck had to exit Tuesday's game and his status is unclear for Thursday's matchup.

3. Golden Knights F Alex Tuch has three goals and as many assists during a three-game point streak.

PREDICTION: Islanders 3, Golden Knights 2