New York
3rd Metropolitan30-19-0-5
Washington
5th Metropolitan26-22-2-5
Islanders vs Capitals Game Overview
NYI vs WASRecords
Head-To-HeadLast 10
Win / Loss
6-4
Over / Under
3-7-0
| Date | Home | Result | ML | O/U | HSOG | ASOG | HPP | APP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 11, '25 | NYI |
4 - 2
|
WAS -265 | u6.5 | 36 | 29 | 2-3 | 0-2 |
| Apr 15, '25 | NYI |
3 - 1
|
WAS -100 | u6.0 | 33 | 36 | 0-4 | 1-4 |
| Apr 06, '25 | NYI |
4 - 1
|
NYI +130 | u6.0 | 22 | 29 | 0-2 | 1-2 |
| Nov 29, '24 | WAS |
5 - 4 (OT)
|
WAS -144 | o6.0 | 26 | 24 | 2-4 | 0-3 |
| Dec 29, '23 | NYI |
5 - 1
|
NYI -148 | o5.5 | 32 | 27 | 0-3 | 0-2 |
| Dec 20, '23 | WAS |
3 - 2 (OT)
|
WAS -115 | u6.0 | 36 | 32 | 1-3 | 0-3 |
| Nov 11, '23 | NYI |
4 - 1
|
WAS +149 | u6.0 | 37 | 28 | 0-1 | 0-1 |
| Nov 02, '23 | WAS |
3 - 0
|
NYI -114 | u6.0 | 32 | 21 | 0-3 | 0-2 |
| Apr 10, '23 | WAS |
5 - 2
|
WAS +153 | o5.5 | 25 | 40 | 0-0 | 0-3 |
| Mar 29, '23 | WAS |
2 - 1 (SO)
|
NYI -107 | u6.0 | 26 | 29 | 0-0 | 0-1 |
NYI vs WAS Preview
Last Meeting ( Oct 11, 2025 ) Washington 4, NY Islanders 2
Alex Ovechkin hopes the third time is the charm in the pursuit of his 900th career NHL goal.
Ovechkin moved within one of a pair of milestones after collecting a goal and an assist on Oct. 24 at Columbus. The three-time Hart Trophy recipient has been held off the scoresheet in consecutive contests heading into the Washington Capitals' home game against the New York Islanders on Friday.
Ovechkin has famously tormented the Islanders for years, recording 71 points (45 goals, 26 assists) in 74 career encounters. He notched an assist in the Capitals' 4-2 road victory over the Islanders on Oct. 11.
In addition to his 900th goal overall, Ovechkin is aiming for goal No. 127 in October on Friday. If he achieves it, he would break a tie with Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky for the most career goals in October in NHL history.
Ovechkin and company failed to solve the Stars' Jake Oettinger on Tuesday, when Washington dropped its second straight decision with a 1-0 setback at Dallas.
"I think a lot of what we did out there for majority of the game, especially the second and third period, I thought we did a lot of good things," Capitals coach Spencer Carbery said. "(We) controlled play, had majority of the looks, just didn't convert on them (on Tuesday). So, you can't be upset or disappointed with the process. The process was good. We just weren't able to finish."
Washington didn't have that problem in its previous encounter against the Islanders, with Aliaksei Protas recording two goals and an assist and Logan Thompson making 34 saves earlier this month.
Capitals forward Dylan Strome and defenseman Rasmus Sandin, who were held off the scoresheet in that game, might return to action after practicing on Friday. Strome sustained a lower-body injury in the Capitals' 7-1 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Saturday, while Sandin has been out for three games due to an upper-body injury.
"It was a good step, and I'll talk to (head athletic trainer Jason Serbus) and we'll see where they're at for the weekend," Carbery said of Strome and Sandin.
New York finds itself mired in its second three-game losing streak of the young season after falling 6-2 to the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday in Raleigh, N.C.
Islanders rookie defenseman Matthew Schaefer scored his third goal of the season on Thursday. The top overall pick of the 2025 draft, Schaefer netted his first career goal in the previous encounter vs. Washington.
Simon Holmstrom scored his third goal in four games on Thursday for the Islanders, who played without Mathew Barzal. The latter was a healthy scratch due to disciplinary reasons after he was late to the morning skate at the rink.
"That's the culture of our team. We made the decision to not play him (on Thursday)," coach Patrick Roy said. "Barzy doesn't feel good about it, but you respect the decision. He understands it. He was really good about it."
Barzal will be back in action on Friday, according to Roy.
--Field Level Media
NYI vs WASInjury report
New York's Injuries
| Player | POS | Status | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C. Cizikas | C | Day To Day - Illness( Jan 29, '26) | Jan 29, '26 | |
| Cizikas did not play in Thursday's (Jan. 29) game against the Rangers due to an illness. | ||||
| C. Ritchie | C | Day To Day - Lower-body( Jan 29, '26) | Jan 29, '26 | |
| Ritchie did not play in Thursday's (Jan. 29) matchup against the Rangers. | ||||
| K. Palmieri | C | Out - Knee( Nov 29, '25) | Nov 29, '25 | |
| The New York Islanders placed F Kyle Palmieri on injured reserve on Sunday (Nov. 30). | ||||
| A. Romanov | D | Out For Season - Upper-body( Nov 22, '25) | Nov 22, '25 | |
| The Islanders reported on Sunday (Nov. 23) that Romanov will have surgery and be out for 5-6 months. | ||||
| P. Engvall | LW | Out - Ankle( Oct 22, '25) | Oct 22, '25 | |
| The New York Islanders placed F Pierre Engvall on long-term injured reserve on Thursday (Oct. 23). | ||||
| S. Varlamov | G | Out - Knee( Oct 05, '25) | Oct 05, '25 | |
| The New York Islanders placed G Semyon Varlamov on injured reserve on Monday (Oct. 6). | ||||
Washington's Injuries
| Player | POS | Status | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| L. Thompson | G | Day To Day - Upper-body( Jan 29, '26) | Jan 29, '26 | |
| Thompson did not play in Thursday's (Jan. 29) game against the Red Wings. | ||||
| M. Roy | D | Day To Day - Lower-body( Jan 29, '26) | Jan 29, '26 | |
| Roy did not play in Thursday's (Jan. 29) game against the Red Wings. | ||||
| P. Dubois | LW | Out - Abdomen( Jan 02, '26) | Jan 02, '26 | |
| The Capitals reported on Saturday (Jan. 3) that Dubois has started skating, according to HC Spencer Carbery, as per Bailey Johnson of The Washington Post. He is expected to return after the Olympic break in February. | ||||
GoaltendersLast 5
W/L
2-2-0-1
GAA
3.60
Save %
.875
| Date | Score | W/L | GA | SA | SV% | SO | ML | O/U | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D.Rittich | Oct 30, 2025 | CAR 6 - NYI 2 | L | 6 | 34 | .824 | - | L +180 | o6.5 |
| I.Sorokin | Oct 28, 2025 | BOS 5 - NYI 2 | L | 4 | 21 | .810 | - | L -152 | o6.5 |
| I.Sorokin | Oct 25, 2025 | PHI 4 - NYI 3 (SO) | - | 3 | 26 | .885 | - | L +100 | o6.5 |
| D.Rittich | Oct 23, 2025 | NYI 7 - DET 2 | W | 2 | 34 | .941 | - | W -138 | o6.5 |
| I.Sorokin | Oct 21, 2025 | NYI 4 - SJ 3 | W | 3 | 36 | .917 | - | W -220 | o6.5 |
W/L
3-3-0-0
GAA
2.67
Save %
.899
| Date | Score | W/L | GA | SA | SV% | SO | ML | O/U | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A.Vasilevskiy | Oct 28, 2025 | DAL 1 - WAS 0 | W | 2 | 20 | .900 | - | L +108 | u5.5 |
| L.Thompson | Oct 28, 2025 | DAL 1 - WAS 0 | L | 1 | 19 | .947 | - | L +108 | u5.5 |
| C.Lindgren | Oct 25, 2025 | WAS 1 - OTT 7 | L | 7 | 34 | .794 | - | L -130 | o5.5 |
| L.Thompson | Oct 24, 2025 | CLB 1 - WAS 5 | W | 1 | 35 | .971 | - | W -114 | u6.5 |
| L.Thompson | Oct 21, 2025 | WAS 4 - SEA 1 | W | 1 | 19 | .947 | - | W -310 | u5.5 |
| C.Lindgren | Oct 19, 2025 | WAS 3 - VAN 4 | L | 4 | 24 | .833 | - | L -166 | o5.5 |
NYI vs WASStats
Offense vs Defense
Goals
| OFFENSE |
Stat | DEFENSE |
|---|---|---|
| 3.40 | Total | 2.20 |
| 1.10 | 1st Period | 0.50 |
| 1.40 | 2nd Period | 0.80 |
| 0.90 | 3rd Period | 0.90 |
| 0.00 | OT | 0.00 |
Shots
| OFFENSE |
Stat | DEFENSE |
|---|---|---|
| 30.20 | Total | 25.70 |
| 9.10 | 1st Period | 7.90 |
| 10.90 | 2nd Period | 7.70 |
| 9.80 | 3rd Period | 10.10 |
| 0.40 | OT | 0.00 |
Shot Pct vs. Save Pct
| SHOOTING |
Stat | SAVE PCT. |
|---|---|---|
| 0.11 | Total | 0.91 |
| 0.12 | 1st Period | 0.94 |
| 0.13 | 2nd Period | 0.90 |
| 0.09 | 3rd Period | 0.91 |
| 0.00 | OT | 0.00 |
Power Play vs Penalty Kill
| POWERPLAY |
Stat | PENALTY KILL |
|---|---|---|
| 6 - 36 | G/Att vs. GA/Att | 9 - 28 |
| 16.67 | PP % vs. PK % | 67.86 |
Goaltenders
| NY Islanders Goaltenders |
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | S | SV | SV% | WL | ||
| David Rittich | 101 | 91 | 0.901 | 2-1-0 | ||
| Ilya Sorokin | 197 | 171 | 0.868 | 2-4-1 | ||
| Semyon Varlamov | 0 | 0 | 0.000 | 0-0-0 | ||