Boston Bruins (33-16-7, third in the East Division during the regular season) vs. New York Islanders (32-17-7, fourth in the East Division during the regular season)
Uniondale, New York; Thursday, 7:30 p.m. EDT
NHL PLAYOFFS SECOND ROUND: Series tied 1-1
BOTTOM LINE: The New York Islanders host the Boston Bruins in game three of the second round of the NHL Playoffs with the series tied 1-1. The teams meet Thursday for the 11th time this season. The Islanders won the last matchup 4-3 in overtime.
The Islanders are 32-17-7 against the rest of their division. New York averages only 2.7 penalties per game, the least in the league. Ross Johnston leads them averaging 0.7.
The Bruins are 33-16-7 against East Division opponents. Boston is 26th in the league with 33.3 shots per game and is averaging 2.9 goals.
TOP PERFORMERS: Mathew Barzal leads the Islanders with 45 points, scoring 17 goals and registering 28 assists. Brock Nelson has five goals and four assists over the last 10 games for New York.
Brad Marchand has 69 total points while scoring 29 goals and totaling 40 assists for the Bruins. David Pastrnak has six goals and six assists over the last 10 games for Boston.
DURING THE PLAYOFFS: Islanders: Averaging 3.4 goals, 5.4 assists, 3.4 penalties and 6.8 penalty minutes while giving up 3.0 goals per game with a .923 save percentage.
Bruins: Averaging 3.4 goals, 5.3 assists, 5.1 penalties and 10.3 penalty minutes while giving up 2.3 goals per game with a .930 save percentage.
INJURIES: Islanders: Ross Johnston: out (undisclosed), Oliver Wahlstrom: day to day (undisclosed).
Bruins: Ondrej Kase: out for season (upper body), Kevan Miller: day to day (undisclosed).
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