5 Islanders games worth noting for rest of regular season
Ondrej Palat of the New York Islanders skates against the Pittsburgh Penguins at UBS Arena on Feb. 3, 2026. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Mother Nature wrecked the Islanders’ plans to skate on Monday, so they will have only two practices left before resuming their season on Thursday in Montreal after the three-week Olympic break.
The Islanders (32-21-5) have 24 regular-season games remaining and sit in third place in the Metropolitan Division. They entered the break having won five of their last seven, ending with a 3-1 road win over the Devils on Feb. 5 to leave them one point behind the second-place Penguins, who have played two fewer games.
The Olympic break roster freeze ended on Sunday, so general manager Mathieu Darche has until the NHL trade deadline on March 6 to further improve the Islanders after acquiring defenseman Carson Soucy from the Rangers on Jan. 26 and top-six wing Ondrej Palat from the Devils the next day. Palat could rejoin practice on Tuesday at Northwell Health Ice Center in East Meadow after playing for Czechia in the Olympics,
Given that context, here are five games to watch as the Islanders enter the final stretch of the season:
1. Saturday at Columbus Blue Jackets
The Blue Jackets entered the Olympic break on a seven-game winning streak under new coach Rick Bowness and sit four points behind the Islanders in fourth place in the division, having played two fewer games. It’s easy to make the argument that the Blue Jackets are the team most capable of knocking the Islanders out of a playoff spot, and a regulation loss in Columbus would be very damaging. The teams also will play at UBS Arena on March 22. They split their first two games this season, with the home team winning each time.
2. March 7 at San Jose Sharks
The first game after the trade deadline might be a first chance to see the roster that will complete the season, provided Darche makes a further move or two. That could include trading away pending unrestricted free agents Anders Lee or Jean-Gabriel Pageau, though it is considered unlikely that Darche would weaken his team that way for the playoff push; he’s more likely to risk losing one or both of the forwards for no return. It also will be a last chance in the regular season for the Islanders to face emerging superstar Macklin Celebrini, 19, who played so well for Team Canada in the Olympics.
3. March 17 at Toronto Maple Leafs
Matthew Schaefer’s first homecoming as an NHL player, essentially. The 18-year-old, selected first overall in the 2025 NHL Draft, grew up about an hour away from the greater Toronto area in Hamilton, Ontario, and it was his older brother, Johnny, who grew up as the rabid Maple Leafs fan. But before the teams played for the first time this season — a 4-3 overtime win for the Islanders on Jan. 3 at UBS Arena — Schaefer acknowledged that facing the Maple Leafs is “super-awesome.” It’s very likely that he will have a large contingent of friends and family at Scotiabank Arena for the game.
4. March 30 vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
The third and final regular-season meeting between the teams in what could be a preview of a first-round playoff series. If so, it certainly would behoove the Islanders to try to move past the Penguins to gain second place in the division and home-ice advantage in the first round. The teams have split their first two games, with the Islanders losing their season opener at Pittsburgh on Oct. 9 and beating the Penguins in overtime at UBS Arena on Feb. 3. The Islanders also play in Buffalo the next night, one of five back-to-back sets they will face in their final 24 games.
5. April 14 vs. Carolina Hurricanes
It’s the Islanders’ regular-season finale and possibly a game they will need to win to qualify for the playoffs. The Hurricanes, who have not missed the playoffs since 2018, again are a near-lock for the postseason, exiting the Olympic break in first place in the Metropolitan Division and battling for the top seed in the Eastern Conference. It’s the second of two games between the teams in April — the Islanders lost, 6-2, at Carolina on Oct. 30 — and one of only six division games the Islanders will play among their final 24. Sixteen of those games, though, are against Eastern Conference opponents.
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.
More Islanders
