Lightning vs Islanders Preview: Horvat Injury Looms Large

The Tampa Bay Lightning visit the New York Islanders on Saturday with the biggest question hanging over the night unrelated to either team’s record: whether Islanders captain Bo Horvat will be able to play. The game is set for 7:30 p.m. ET at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York. Tampa Bay enters at 3-1-0 in the Atlantic Division, while New York sits at 2-2-0 in the Metropolitan Division.

The Lightning have won three straight, most recently a 3-2 decision over the Minnesota Wild on Thursday in which John Carlson scored twice. The Islanders also won their last outing, beating the Chicago Blackhawks 4-1, but that game ended with a scare when Horvat left after an illegal head check from Chicago’s Frank Nazar, who drew a five-minute match penalty.

The Matchup Breakdown Tampa Bay Lightning 3-1-0 VS New York Islanders 2-2-0 11 Goals scored 13 125 Shots on goal 97 8.8% Shooting percentage 13.4% .917 Save percentage .944 2.25 Goals against average 2.00 1 Power-play goals 3 47.0% Faceoff percentage 51.4% 34 Penalty minutes 54

Tampa Bay has won three games in a row since an Oct. 1 loss to the New York Rangers, outscoring opponents in that stretch while generating heavy shot volume. The Lightning have put up 125 shots on goal through four games, the most of the two clubs, though their 8.8% shooting mark trails the Islanders’ 13.4%. Carlson’s two-goal performance against Minnesota leads the team in goals this season with two, while Nikita Kucherov paces the roster with five assists and six points.

Andrei Vasilevskiy is projected as the probable starting goalie for Tampa Bay. The Lightning are without defenseman Emil Lilleberg, listed as out, and forward Yanni Gourde remains on injured reserve following hip surgery.

New York’s offense has been efficient in the early going, converting at a 13.4% clip and posting a .944 save percentage behind the net, both figures ahead of Tampa Bay’s marks. Bo Horvat has driven much of that production, leading the team with four goals and five points, including his two-goal effort against Chicago on Thursday. Logan Stanley tops the roster with four assists.

Ilya Sorokin is projected as the probable starting goalie. The bigger uncertainty is Horvat himself. According to NHL.com, Horvat was scheduled for a medical evaluation Friday after leaving Thursday’s win with an upper-body issue, and his availability for Saturday was not yet known. The Islanders are also down defenseman Alexander Romanov, out for the season following knee surgery, and center Mathew Barzal remains on injured reserve with a knee injury.

With Horvat’s status uncertain, the matchup to watch shifts to Tampa Bay’s forward depth against an Islanders lineup that may be missing its leading scorer. The Lightning have outshot opponents in every game of their three-game win streak, and if New York is without Horvat, that shot advantage becomes harder for the Islanders’ already-thin group up front to offset. Vasilevskiy’s .917 save percentage will also be tested by an Islanders power play that has converted three goals already this season.

Horvat’s pregame status is the first thing to track Saturday, since his absence would remove New York’s leading goal scorer against a Lightning team riding momentum from three straight wins. Both teams sit near the top of the league in penalty-kill efficiency early this season, with the Islanders already recording two shorthanded goals. The season series between these clubs begins Saturday, with the next scheduled matchup to be confirmed once the NHL releases further dates.

More NHL news from Total Apex Sports.