After losing six consecutive games, the Boston Bruins have won four of their last five, including three straight, as they head to New York to take on the Islanders at USB Arena on Tuesday.
The matchup with the Islanders will be the second in seven days. The Bruins beat Patrick Roy’s team 5-2 at TD Garden last week, but the Islanders have always given Boston problems while playing in New York. In the last two seasons, the Islanders have a 3-2-1 home record against the Bruins.
The Bruins will be without their top-line center for the second straight game. While speaking with the media Monday, head coach Marco Sturm revealed that Elias Lindholm is considered week-to-week after an MRI confirmed what Boston suspected. However, Sturm did not divulge details of the MRI results.
Lindholm left the ice with 12:40 remaining in the second period of Boston’s overtime win against the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 30 when he collided with Jordan Greenway near the Bruins’ blue line and did not return for the third or overtime. He was helped to his feet and off the ice with assistance from Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm.
Based on Monday’s practice, Mason Lohrei is in danger of being a healthy scratch for the fourth game in a row. Sturm acknowledged the young defenseman’s mindset before Boston’s 2-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday.
“He should be pissed. He should be very pissed. He should be upset,” Sturm said of Lohrei while meeting with the media. “He works hard. He’s ready. He just waits for his opportunity. That’s the goal. Having him out there and being a little bit different when he comes back.
“Watching from upstairs, watching some other players, what they do well, what they do wrong too. It’s a learning process for him right now. That’s why we do it.”
The Islanders are winners of two straight and look to extend their streak to three after completing a 3-2 come-from-behind win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday.
Roy confirmed Ilya Sorokin would start in net against the Bruins. Sorokin is 4-4-2 against Boston lifetime, along with a .898 save percentage and a 2.87 goals-against average. He is 3-4-1 this season, posting a 3.40 goals-against average and a .877 save percentage.
Here are the projected lines and defensive pairings for both clubs:
BOSTON BRUINS (7-7-0)
Morgan Geekie — Marat Khusnutdinov — David Pastrnak
Casey Mittelstadt — Pavel Zacha — Viktor Arvidsson
Tanner Jeannot — Fraser Minten — Mark Kastelic
Johnny Beecher — Sean Kuraly — Mikey Eyssimont
Nakita Zadorov — Charlie McAvoy
Hampus Lindholm — Andrew Peeke
Jonathan Aspirot — Henri Jokiharju
Jeremy Swayman
NEW YORK ISLANDERS (6-5-1)
Emil Heineman — Bo Horvat — Mathew Barzal
Jonathan Drouin — Cal Ritchie — Kyle Palmieri
Anders Lee — JG Pageau — Simon Holmstrom
Anthony Duclair — Casey Cizikas — Kyle MacLean
Alexander Romanov — Tony DeAngelo
Adam Pelech — Ryan Pulock
Matthew Schaefer — Scott Mayfield
Ilya Sorokin
More Bruins: Off the Post: Dominant Second Period Lifts Bruins Past Islanders
Troiani Rink Report 
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