For Islanders, ending seven-game road trip with two victories was the goal
New York Islanders' Anthony Duclair (11) shoots the puck past New Jersey Devils' Colton White (45) for a goal during the first period of an NHL hockey game Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, in Elmont, N.Y. Credit: AP/Frank Franklin II
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — As litmus tests go, this one was pretty basic for the Islanders (please feel free to marvel at the skill of making a science pun in the first sentence).
The Islanders are contending for home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. An 0-8-2 skid had sunk the Canucks to the bottom of the NHL standings, but the Islanders have posted a meh record against the NHL’s non-playoff teams as of Monday’s standings.
So the Islanders (26-17-5) absolutely needed to win on Monday night at Rogers Arena against the also-ran Canucks (16-27-5). And they need to follow that up with another victory on Wednesday in Seattle in the final game of this seven-game road trip to stamp the 16 days away from home as a successful journey.
The Islanders' hold on second place in the Metropolitan Division is tenuous. They need to start beating the teams that, on paper, they should beat on a more consistent basis.
They entered Monday’s game with an 11-9-3 record against the 16 teams outside of a playoff spot. That includes a 5-0 record against the Rangers and Devils, diminishing their results against the other 14 squads even further.
The penchant for so-so results against so-so teams continued with Saturday’s 4-2 loss in Calgary in which the Islanders couldn’t capitalize on a strong first period and fell behind by four goals in the second period. The Flames are in seller’s mode and traded top-pair defenseman Rasmus Andersson to Vegas on Sunday. So are the Canucks, who traded Kiefer Sherwood to the Sharks on Monday.
Yet on the flip side, the Islanders own a 15-8-2 record against the teams holding playoff spots, a decent representation of their habit of playing up or down to the opponent.
“Every game is important,” Anthony Duclair said. “We know this seven-game road trip, we know where we stand. We definitely want to finish on a good note. [Monday] is one of those games where it’s a must-win. We talk about not losing two in a row all year. It’s a big game for us. It doesn’t matter who we’re playing or where they are in the standings, we know that these are a big two points.
“Also, what happened at home against these guys.”
That was a 4-1 loss to the Canucks at UBS Arena on Dec. 19 in which Sherwood had a hat trick and the Islanders trailed 3-0 at 15:47 of the first period after failing to score on an early five-on-three power play. It was one of their worst games of the season.
The Islanders entered Monday’s game with a 2-2-1 record on the road trip. This trip won’t match the 6-1-0 trek they took in November against much harder competition, but finishing with two victories definitely would give it a good spin.
“We had one back when we went out west to Vegas and Dallas, and a trip like that can really make a big difference coming back home, points-wise, too,” Kyle MacLean said. “We’re definitely aware of it. We need to have a solid two games here and close out the road trip nicely and set ourselves up nicely for the rest of the season.”
“It’s a long road trip,” defenseman Tony DeAngelo said. “We’ve still got a chance to finish it on a high note with two games left. We’re .500 right now, so you want to be a little better than that.”
The Islanders alternated losses with wins during the trip’s first five games and could have reached Vancouver with a worse record. The Wild were the much faster team and took three one-goal leads before the Islanders gutted out a 4-3 overtime win on Jan. 10. Ilya Sorokin’s 35-save mastery and a prime defensive performance were needed to shut down the potent Oilers, 1-0, on Thursday.
Which brings us to Monday and a key litmus test for the Islanders.
Playing a strong game against a weak opponent was the only proper response.
Notes & quotes: Sorokin appeared in his 282nd game for the Islanders, matching Glenn “Chico” Resch for third on the franchise list for goalies behind Hall of Famer Billy Smith (674) and Rick DiPietro (318) . . . Defenseman Cole McWard and forward Max Shabanov were the healthy scratches.
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.
