After a disappointing 2-3 home stand to open the season, the San Jose Sharks made a statement in their first road game of the year, an impressive 3-0 shutout of the first-place Metropolitan New Jersey Devils. San Jose will try to jump above .500 for the first time this year when they visit the New York Islanders tonight.
Things couldn’t have been much better for the Sharks in their opening road game. They had production from all four lines, with Melker Karlsson and Joonas Donskoi each scoring their first goals of the season. And of course, Martin Jones shined in net with a 28-save shutout victory. San Jose will look to keep up that chemistry tonight in their second and final meeting of the season against the Islanders.
Like the Sharks, the Islanders come into tonight’s game in search of some momentum. At 3-3-1, New York has kept it close so far this season. Other than a 3-1 victory at SAP Center last Saturday, the Islanders have had each of their past 5 games decided by 1 goal. Brock Nelson and Casey Cizikas are currently tied atop the team points leaderboard with 5 points each. Captain John Tavares has just 3 points in 7 games so far.
It’s an important early season matchup for both teams. The Islanders are in need of a big win to build some energy and string together a few wins. Meanwhile, the Sharks can use tonight’s game as an opportunity to build on last night’s win and forget about a poor start to the season. Let’s hope they can stay hot.
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