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Rangers nemesis to be disciplinary scratch for Islanders vs. Hurricanes
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- Rangers nemesis to be disciplinary scratch for Islanders vs. Hurricanes
Dennis Schneidler-USA TODAY Sports
New York Islanders forward Mathew Barzal , who has more career points against the New York Rangers than any other team, will pay the price for being late to the team's morning skate by being a healthy scratch for their game at the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday night.
Coach Patrick Roy said the disciplinary move will last only one game and that the speedy center will be back in the lineup when the Islanders visit the Washington Capitals on Friday. Roy also said the team would likely make pre-game moves to add another forward. Barzal did take part in the morning skate, but Erik Heineman took his place on the top power-play unit.
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"That's the culture of our team, we made the decision to not play him tonight," Roy said. "Barzal doesn't feel good about it but he respects and understands it.
"Like I said to him, it happened to me when I was in Colorado . Different way, but (I) missed a practice, missed two games. That's the culture of our team; we believe in it. But he's good about it. He's very good about it."
The Rangers likely wouldn't mind if Barzal were out of the lineup when the Islanders come to Madison Square Garden on Nov. 8. He has 35 points (10 goals, 25 assists) in 31 career games against the Blueshirts. That's nine more points than he's had against any other NHL opponent– even though he missed all four games against the Rangers in 2024-25 because of injuries, including a broken kneecap on Feb. 1 that ended his season.
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Barzal has two goals and eight points in nine games this season while averaging 21:09 of ice time, second among Isles forwards behind Bo Horvat (21:16).
Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
Injuries limited him to 30 games last season, when he finished with six goals and 20 points. In 539 NHL games, he has 470 points (136 goals, 334 assists). He had one assist on Tuesday, when the Islanders lost 5-2 to the Bruins in Boston .
Barzal is the Islanders' highest-paid player, according to PuckPedia, carrying a cap hit of $9.15 million through the 2030-31 season.
The 28-year-old center was selected by the Islanders in the first round (No. 16 overall) in the 2015 NHL Draft. He won the Calder Trophy as the League's top rookie in 2017-18.
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