Islanders Gameday News: Here come the Oilers

Tonight the Islanders, who are coming off a comfortable win where they played pretty poorly, will host the Oilers, who are coming off an ugly loss during a start that has fallen well short of lofty summer expectations.

Leave your FIG Picks for tonight here.

Islanders Reading

• Ex-Oiler Jordan Eberle says yeah, you’d especially like to win this one. [Isles]
• Ex-Isle Ryan Strome says he loved his time in New York, has a lot of good memories (oh, and yeah the Brooklyn commute wasn’t an issue). [Oilers]
• The Isles are off to their best home start since the early dynasty years, and yes John Tavares likes playing here but thanks for asking. [Newsday]
• Like a bitter and reluctant Islanders fan, the NHL concedes Josh Bailey has kind of had a good week. [LHH | NHL | Isles]
• Broadcaster Shannon Hogan on that line between covering the team and its entertainers and realizing that those entertainers need to be allowed their moments to just be human, too. [MSG]
• In one of their final acts before new elections, Bridgeport’s city council votes to approve the amphitheater development that the Sound Tigers say violates their contract. [CT Post]
• Meanwhile, on the ice, here’s a look at the week in report. Ahoy, Aho. [Isles]
• You know, the Isles don’t need Matt Duchene because that Barzal kid is pretty good. [Fanpost]

In praise of Bailey, from noted hockey dork Mark Scheifele:

Elsewhere

• Scheifele scored twice in the Jets’ win over the Stars last night, but more importantly Tyler Seguin won the latest pre-game rock/paper/scissors battle. [Sportsnet]
• After nine games and three assists, first-rounder Kailer Yamamoto has been returned to juniors by the Oilers. [Oilers | C&B]
• They begin this road trip after an embarrassing 4-0 loss at home to the Red Wings. [Oilers | C&B | Oilers Nation]
• A pretty great look into how the Matt Duchene trade fell apart, then came back together again. GMs (and assistant GMs) are so clearly human, their behavior governed by a range of variables. [TSN]
• Will the Sens regret that deal? [Sportsnet/Down Goes Brown]
• The Sens believe Duchene will take them “to the next level.” [TSN]
• But Kyle Turris’ debut for the Predators may be delayed by immigration. [TSN]
• Oh, but with that trade consummated, and with the Oilers off to a below-expectations start, they should beware making a(nother) poor trade just to make a move. [C&B]
• The Hurricanes, who were interested in Duchene to address their center issues, should be good but are struggling at the bottom of the Metro. Whose fault is it? [News & Observer]
• As Vegas continues to enjoy an unprecedented start for an expansion franchise, Alex Tuch has been a vital player. [Knights on Ice]