Islanders vs Sabres Game Overview
NYI vs BUFRecords
Head-To-HeadLast 10
Win / Loss
6-4
Over / Under
2-8-0
| Date | Home | Result | ML | O/U | HSOG | ASOG | HPP | APP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, '26 | NYI |
5 - 0
|
BUF -114 | u6.5 | 26 | 21 | 0-3 | 0-2 |
| Dec 20, '25 | BUF |
3 - 2 (SO)
|
BUF -182 | u6.5 | 32 | 34 | 1-4 | 1-3 |
| Dec 23, '24 | NYI |
7 - 1
|
BUF +134 | o5.5 | 28 | 25 | 0-1 | 1-3 |
| Nov 30, '24 | NYI |
3 - 0
|
NYI -126 | u5.5 | 20 | 29 | 1-3 | 0-2 |
| Nov 01, '24 | BUF |
4 - 3
|
NYI +102 | o5.5 | 35 | 36 | 1-4 | 1-4 |
| Mar 14, '24 | BUF |
4 - 0
|
BUF +102 | u5.5 | 37 | 21 | 1-4 | 0-4 |
| Oct 21, '23 | BUF |
3 - 1
|
BUF -128 | u6.5 | 42 | 25 | 0-3 | 0-3 |
| Oct 14, '23 | NYI |
3 - 2
|
NYI -143 | u6.5 | 29 | 28 | 0-3 | 0-2 |
| Mar 25, '23 | NYI |
2 - 0
|
BUF +148 | u6.5 | 26 | 35 | 0-2 | 0-3 |
| Mar 07, '23 | NYI |
3 - 2
|
NYI -156 | u6.5 | 39 | 24 | 0-2 | 0-2 |
NYI vs BUF Preview
Last Meeting ( Jan 24, 2026 ) Buffalo 5, NY Islanders 0
The Buffalo Sabres hope to ride the momentum of a late rally into their game Tuesday against the visiting New York Islanders.
Buffalo (45-21-8, 98 points) appears to be a lock to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since the 2010-11 season. The Sabres are battling the Tampa Bay Lightning for the top spot in the Atlantic Division.
Having lost three in a row (0-1-2), Buffalo trailed by two goals in the third period to the Seattle Kraken on Saturday before rallying to a 3-2 win in a shootout.
"I think it doesn't really matter what the score is, we want to play the same way," said Tage Thompson, who scored one of two shootout goals.
"I thought we had a really good response, especially in the second (period). I thought we played a really good second and third. The first was not great, but not bad. We just gave them too many chances. I don't think there was any doubt in the room after the first (goal)."
Captain Rasmus Dahlin and Peyton Krebs each scored in regulation while Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 32 saves and denied two attempts in the shootout.
Dahlin's goal was the 100th of his career. He joined Phil Housley as the only two defensemen in Sabres' history to reach the century mark in goals.
The Islanders' (42-28-5, 89 points) two-game winning snapped on Monday with an 8-3 setback to the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins. Pittsburgh moved past New York into second place in the Metropolitan Division standings.
New York led 3-1 in the second period before allowing seven unanswered goals.
"We were just awful defensively," Islanders defenseman Ryan Pulock said. "[We allowed] guys behind us, breakaways, losing puck battles ... halfway through that (the third) period, we were just awful defensively."
Mathew Barzal had a goal and an assist and captain Anders Lee and Brayden Schenn also tallied for New York. Defenseman Adam Boqvist and Calum Ritchie each had two assists. Ilya Sorokin made 21 saves before being replaced by David Rittich, who stopped two shots.
"We had a chance to get back in the game, and I think we didn't match the game as well as we did in the first half of the game," Islanders' coach Patrick Roy said. "It could be [due to] line changes, or it could be losing battles in the corner. Our sticks were not as good. It's things that we've been doing so well lately, and I guess we just had a bad one in the system."
"You don't like to be embarrassed like this in front of your fans, so we need to regroup and be ready for [Buffalo]. ... We can't give that many chances and think we're gonna win hockey games."
Buffalo won the first two meetings of the season series against New York. The Sabres recorded a 3-2 victory in a shootout on Dec. 20 and a 5-0 romp on Jan. 24.
--Field Level Media
NYI vs BUFInjury report
New York's Injuries
| Player | POS | Status | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T. DeAngelo | D | Out - Lower Body( Mar 25, '26) | Mar 25, '26 | |
| DeAngelo will miss the next 1-2 weeks, the team announced Thursday (Mar. 26). | ||||
| A. Romanov | D | Out - Shoulder( Mar 11, '26) | Mar 11, '26 | |
| The Islanders reported on Thursday (Mar. 12) that Romanov is making strides in his recovery from surgery and could return during the 2025-26 postseason, per Stefen Rosner of NHL.com. | ||||
| P. Engvall | LW | Out For Season - Ankle( Mar 11, '26) | Mar 11, '26 | |
| The New York Islanders said on Thursday (Mar. 12) that Engvall will miss the remainder of the 2025-26 campaign, per Stefen Rosner of NHL.com. | ||||
| S. Varlamov | G | Out For Season - Knee( Mar 11, '26) | Mar 11, '26 | |
| The New York Islanders said on Thursday (Mar. 12) that Varlamov will miss the remainder of the 2025-26 campaign, per Stefen Rosner of NHL.com. | ||||
| 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). | ||||
Buffalo's Injuries
| Player | POS | Status | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| N. Ostlund | C | Day To Day - Upper-Body( Mar 28, '26) | Mar 28, '26 | |
| Ostlund did not play against Seattle on Saturday (Mar. 28). | ||||
| J. Kulich | C | Out For Season - Ear( Mar 05, '26) | Mar 05, '26 | |
| The Sabres said that Kulich is expected to miss the remainder of the 2025-26 season. | ||||
| J. Danforth | RW | Out - Lower Body( Jan 25, '26) | Jan 25, '26 | |
| The Buffalo Sabres said on Monday (Jan. 26) that Danforth is trending toward a post-Olympic return to action, per Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times Herald. | ||||
GoaltendersLast 5
W/L
3-2-0-0
GAA
2.14
Save %
.851
| Date | Score | W/L | GA | SA | SV% | SO | ML | O/U | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I.Sorokin | Mar 30, 2026 | NYI 3 - PIT 8 | L | 7 | 29 | .759 | - | L -130 | o6.5 |
| D.Rittich | Mar 30, 2026 | NYI 3 - PIT 8 | - | 1 | 3 | .667 | - | L -130 | o6.5 |
| I.Sorokin | Mar 28, 2026 | NYI 5 - FLA 2 | W | 2 | 21 | .905 | - | W -205 | o5.5 |
| I.Sorokin | Mar 26, 2026 | NYI 2 - DAL 1 | W | 1 | 27 | .963 | - | W +100 | u5.5 |
| D.Rittich | Mar 24, 2026 | NYI 3 - CHI 4 | - | 3 | 12 | .750 | - | L -170 | o6.0 |
| I.Sorokin | Mar 24, 2026 | NYI 3 - CHI 4 | L | 1 | 12 | .917 | - | L -170 | o6.0 |
| I.Sorokin | Mar 22, 2026 | NYI 1 - CLB 0 | W | 0 | 26 | 1.00 | - | W +102 | u6.0 |
W/L
2-1-2-0
GAA
3.40
Save %
.877
| Date | Score | W/L | GA | SA | SV% | SO | ML | O/U | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.Luukkonen | Mar 28, 2026 | BUF 3 - SEA 2 (SO) | W | 2 | 34 | .941 | - | W -192 | u6.5 |
| A.Lyon | Mar 27, 2026 | BUF 2 - DET 5 | L | 4 | 19 | .789 | - | L -137 | o6.5 |
| U.Luukkonen | Mar 25, 2026 | BUF 3 - BOS 4 (OT) | - | 4 | 31 | .871 | - | L -205 | o6.5 |
| A.Lyon | Mar 22, 2026 | ANA 6 - BUF 5 (OT) | - | 6 | 33 | .818 | - | L -125 | o6.5 |
| U.Luukkonen | Mar 21, 2026 | LA 1 - BUF 4 | W | 1 | 27 | .963 | - | W -130 | u6.5 |
NYI vs BUFStats
Offense vs Defense
Goals
| OFFENSE |
Stat | DEFENSE |
|---|---|---|
| 2.92 | Total | 2.95 |
| 0.81 | 1st Period | 0.95 |
| 1.05 | 2nd Period | 0.86 |
| 0.87 | 3rd Period | 1.03 |
| 0.13 | OT | 0.11 |
Shots
| OFFENSE |
Stat | DEFENSE |
|---|---|---|
| 28.19 | Total | 29.42 |
| 7.48 | 1st Period | 7.58 |
| 8.72 | 2nd Period | 8.38 |
| 7.43 | 3rd Period | 8.22 |
| 0.57 | OT | 0.32 |
Shot Pct vs. Save Pct
| SHOOTING |
Stat | SAVE PCT. |
|---|---|---|
| 0.10 | Total | 0.90 |
| 0.11 | 1st Period | 0.88 |
| 0.12 | 2nd Period | 0.90 |
| 0.12 | 3rd Period | 0.87 |
| 0.23 | OT | 0.67 |
Power Play vs Penalty Kill
| POWERPLAY |
Stat | PENALTY KILL |
|---|---|---|
| 37 - 221 | G/Att vs. GA/Att | 37 - 205 |
| 16.74 | PP % vs. PK % | 81.95 |
Goaltenders
| NY Islanders Goaltenders |
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | S | SV | SV% | WL | ||
| David Rittich | 699 | 625 | 0.894 | 14-9-3 | ||
| Ilya Sorokin | 1384 | 1260 | 0.910 | 28-19-2 | ||
| Semyon Varlamov | 0 | 0 | 0.000 | 0-0-0 | ||