Playing at the Canada Life Center is historically difficult enough.
Even more difficult is facing a Jets team that boasts the NHL's highest scoring rate and has won 15 of 23 games there this season.
That's the challenge the Islanders face in the second leg of the series on Tuesday.
They've been relatively consistent on the road, but haven't had results against the big Western powers, with recent losses to Vancouver, Las Vegas and Colorado.
It's hard to predict what the Isles will accomplish this year. This team lost 7-0 to Pittsburgh and bounced back a few weeks ago with a 5-1 win over Washington.
Islanders vs. Jets predictions
(8 p.m. ET, ESPN+)
New York is a seemingly defeated hockey team, still a thread behind in the ever-fluctuating Metropolitan Division.
Before the final buzzer sounded on Jan. 13 against Nashville, the Isles bench headed to the locker room, which is certainly not an everyday sight.
If anything, Noah Dobson has emerged as an elite puck-moving defenseman. He was an effective quarterback for the first unit, scoring 17 points on the power play.
For what it's worth, the Isles moved up to ninth overall in power play efficiency.
You can also praise the Isles for their discipline. They have given up the third-fewest penalty minutes. But when they were playing at a disadvantage, their penalty kill was brutal.
The Isles are in the bottom four teams on the penalty kill 72.8% of the time.
Fortunately, the Jets aren't as sharp on special teams, but they also don't take many penalties. His total playing time is just 6 more minutes than the Islanders.
Would you bet on the NHL?
There are two things that make the Jets a threat to opponents. One is his 5-on-5 play and the other is Connor Hellebuyck's trophy-worthy season in Vezina.
Hellebuyck lost 2-0 to the Flyers, marking the first time in 14 games that the Jets started without scoring at least one point. He led the NHL in saves above expectations and helped the Jets have the best team in the league with a .924 save percentage and 2.29 goals against average.
The Isles should be a good matchup for the Jets, who have won eight of their past nine games, to get things back on track.
THE PLAY: Jets pack line (-1.5 goals, +145 BetMGM)
