New York Islanders (29-26-7, in the Metropolitan Division) vs. Anaheim Ducks (27-28-7, in the Pacific Division)

By trading only Brock Nelson this week, general manager Lou Lamoriello committed to the challenge of trying to retool the New York Islanders while keeping them in contention.

The Ducks received 19-year-old prospect Herman Traff and a second-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft in exchange for defenseman Brian Dumoulin.

Welcome back to another edition of NHL Predictions. Each day, Last Word on Hockey reviews the scheduled games and offers insight and analysis to help predict who will win in key head-to-head matchups.

The Islanders trail the Ducks in the season series 0-1-0 after a 3-1 loss at UBS Arena on Oct. 29. Mathew Barzal scored the lone goal for the Islanders with a power play tally, but it wasn’t enough to combat Anaheim’s offense with Leo Carlsson and Troy Terry potting power play goals of their own and Frank Vatrano burying the empty-net goal.

The Rangers are caught in a sort of gray area ahead of this year’s trade deadline, which is Friday at 3 p.m. Management has maintained hope these Rangers can make the playoffs this season, especially after watching them claw from the basement of the Metropolitan Division to just below the second wild-card spot over the past 2 ¹/₂ months.

The Rangers emerged from the trade deadline in better shape than before, but there is more hard work to be done.

The Buffalo Sabres host the Anaheim Ducks after Rasmus Dahlin scored two goals in the Sabres’ 8-2 win against the New York Rangers. Buffalo is 23-27-5 overall and 14-12-3 in home games. The Sabres have an 8-14-3 record in games they serve more penalty ...

Just seven hours after Friday’s NHL trade deadline, the Ducks will welcome back a beloved player whom they dealt earlier this season, defenseman Cam Fowler, and his new club, the St. Louis Blues.