Islanders Gameday News: Open Your Homes

Tonight marks the first of 41 Islanders home games and first of 21 games at Barclays Center. The Nashville Predators, who opened their season with a 3-2 win at Madison Square Garden, are the visitors. Hopefully we don’t get too sick of them, because we’ll see them in a week.

It appears coach Barry Trotz will be rolling out the same unit as the one that got shellacked by the Hurricanes, albeit in a victory, against the first NHL team he ever coached (and this iteration of the Preds is also quite capable of a shellacking):

And it looks like Thomas Greiss also earned himself the nod tonight with his brilliant performance that pretty much gifted the Isles a win the other night:

One wonders what Trotz and Robin Lehner are talking about. Apparently, Lehner is doing most of the talking. (MID-WRITE UPDATE: There aren’t any hard feelings. Lehner understands why he isn’t playing, and Trotz said they spoke on a range of topics between hockey and life.)

Anyway, if you would be so kind as to leave your FIG Picks here, thank you.

Islanders News

• The team will be hosting a slew of pre-game celebrations and activities in the plaza outside Barclays Center prior to the game. [Islanders]
• LISTEN: Anders Lee was on NHL Game Day to discuss being named Islanders captain and Notre Dame football. [Islanders]
• WATCH: He also called into NHL Now on NHL Network to talk about the captaincy and the win two nights ago. [Islanders]
• The Isles and MSG Network partnered with the Carolina Hurricanes to help raise money for Hurricane Florence relief, which devastated North Carolina. Find out how you can help. [Islanders]
• It seems that Lou has botched the one potentially positive roster decision he made this summer by assigning Czech center Jan Kovar to Bridgeport. He hasn’t reported and is deciding his next move, because why would he choose to ride buses in the AHL if he could live in a mansion back home and be treated like a star? Much like Garth Snow bungling the Kirill Petrov situation - what on earth is the harm in letting these guys start with the big club? First Islanders goal of the season aside, we know that Valtteri Filppula isn’t a good hockey player. Kovar may not be, either, but now we may never know, all because Lou wanted “maximum flexibility.” [LHH]
• The Islanders appear to have swiped away the Penguins COO Travis Williams for a “promotion” in the Long Island front office. No title was given yet and it has not been announced by the Islanders, but it appears he will oversee all business aspects of the organization, while Lou Lamoriello manages the hockey side of things. [LHH | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]
• The Sound Tigers announced their final roster and no player is wearing a number over 40. Just as the Good Lou’rd intended. [Sound Tigers | Soundin’ Off]
• Josh Ho-Sang is part of that roster, and he could care less about personal achievements. He just wants to win. [CT Post]
• And they’re hoping that Chris Bourque, a decorated AHL vet and son of Ray Bourque, will get them there. [CT Post]
• As of right now, one of the Sound Tigers’ co-captains appears set to sit out if the lineups hold as they are here. [Soundin’ Off]
• Stan Fischler relives the Isles’ upset of the Rangers in the 1975 playoffs as part of his Maven’s Memories series. [Islanders]
• The Isles Fan Meetups in Carolina continue to grow; they formed a large tailgate at the opener on Thursday night. [Islanders]

Elsewhere

• Carey Haber’s site examines, in detail, Erik Karlsson’s debut with the Sharks. He played 27 minutes alongside Marc-Edouard Vlasic. [The Cap Space]
• Former Islander Travis Hamonic was placed on IR after suffering a facial fracture during the Flames 5-2 loss to the Canucks in Vancouver on Wednesday night. Feel better, Travis! [NHL]
• John Tavares hopes that the Maple Leafs’ three young stars - Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, and the unsigned William Nylander - are willing to buy in “from a financial perspective” to keep the core together. Which makes Nylander’s unwillingness to budge on his contract demands all the more delicious. [NHL | Sportsnet]
• Joe Murphy, the former no. 1 overall pick and Stanley Cup champion who has been homeless for at least the last couple months, has finally gotten a roof over his head for the time being. [TSN]
• Corey Masiask takes a trek through the Swedish countryside to meet Dave Gunnarsson, the man behind some of the best goalie mask artwork in the business. [The Athletic]