The New York Islanders take on the Philadelphia Flyers for the eighth and final time this season on Sunday night. The season series is 4-3 for the Islanders who have won four in a row against the Flyers. The key injuries for both teams will play a role in the outcome of this matchup.
- Date/Time: April 18, 6:30 p.m. ET
- Arena: Wells Fargo Center
- TV Coverage: NBCS
- Sportsbook Odds: Islanders -133 | O/U 5.5 (Line History)
- Islanders vs Flyers (Matchup Report)
Sportsbook Odds Analysis
The game opened with the Islanders as favorites at -133 and the line is now at -135 pretty much across the board. The total opened at 5.5 and has stayed at that number with the UNDER favored at most sportsbooks.
New York News & Notes
In first place in the East Division for much of the season, the Islanders now sit third in the division and have lost back-to-back games.
Despite the tiny slump, the Islanders are still one of the league’s top teams and boast great underlying numbers. The Islanders have the sixth-most even strength goals this season and have given up the sixth-fewest. They also rank sixth in the league in expected goals for percentage, so their style of play is working at both ends of the ice.
The chances are there too, indicating more goals on the team’s horizon. Only the Maple Leafs have more high danger chances this season than the Islanders. Furthermore, only three teams have given up fewer high danger chances.
The Islanders were big players at the trade deadline, bringing in a couple of key forwards to shore up their depth heading into the playoffs. Both major additions, Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac, have scored for the Isles in their first few games.
Philadelphia News & Notes
The Flyers are on the opposite side of the spectrum from the Islanders and will almost certainly not be heading to the playoffs this season after advancing through two rounds of the ‘return to play' playoffs last summer before being eliminated by the Islanders in Game 7 of the conference semifinal.
Down years from several players has many pundits wondering whether this team will endure a major shakeup in the offseason.
Goaltender Carter Hart is at the forefront of that criticism as the once-budding star goalie has taken a big step back in his third season and is now hurt. Hart is 9-11-5 this season with a .877 save percentage and is now in a timeshare with 36-year-old Brian Elliott.
The 2017 No. 2 overall selection, Nolan Patrick, has been another disappointment. Patrick has just eight points in 42 games this season and is now injured and questionable for Sunday.
Betting Pick: Islanders -135
Forwards Josh Bailey and Cal Clutterbuck are questionable for the Islanders, but the team is so much deeper and playing so much better than Philly that it really should not matter. The Islanders have dominated this matchup since midseason and actually have something to play for.
- The UNDER is 6-1 in NY Islanders' last 7 games.
- NY Islanders are 13-7 SU in their last 20 games.
- The OVER is 13-7 in Philadelphia's last 20 games.
