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With injuries to both Evgeni Nabokov (groin) and Al Montoya (hamstring), the Islanders have called up 21-year-old Anders Nilsson for Saturday's game against Boston. Nilsson is expected to back up Rick DiPietro against the reigning Stanley Cup Champion Bruins.

Nabokov, who has been ruled out indefinitely after suffering an injury during the first period of the team's 4-3 win over Montreal Thursday, is headed to injured reserve.

Nilsson, a third-round pick in the 2009 draft, is 5-2-0 with a .908 save percentage in his first season in North America. The Swedish netminder played the past four seasons with Lulea HF of the Swedish Elite League before joining the Islanders goaltending rotation in Bridgeport of the American Hockey League.

Although 21-year-old Kevin Poulin played well in ten games with the big club last season, he would've faced a tough turnaround if recalled. Poulin made a season-high 42 saves in the Sound Tigers 3-2 OT loss to the Connecticut Whale Friday night.

In the matter of 27 hours, the Islanders have lost two of their three goaltenders.

One day after Evgeni Nabokov was forced out of the team's 4-3 win over Coloado, the Islanders announced that Al Montoya is out with a strained hamstring.

Nabokov's injury seems to be more serious -- the team is ruling him out indefinitely -- while Montoya has been ruled "day-to-day."

Montoya did not dress in Thursday's win over the Canadiens; it is believed that the injury has been a lingering issue for the 26-year-old.

That leaves oft-injured Rick DiPietro the only healthy netminder in the rotation. The Islanders will have to recall a goaltender to back up DiPietro for Saturday's game against the Boston Bruins.

Kevin Poulin, who played ten games for the Islanders last season, delivered a season-high 42 saves in Bridgeport's 3-2 overtime loss to the Connecticut Whale Friday.

The 21-year-old prospect appears to be the likely candidate, although Anders Nilsson has also played well of late.

Until recently, the team's AHL affiliate also hosted three goaltenders. Mikko Koskinen was loaned to KalPa of the Finnish Elite League on Tuesday.



Anders Nilsson

What it means: After dropping 10 of their last 11 games, the Islanders snapped a four-game skid with an 4-3 win over Montreal. The surging Canadiens -- coming off a 4-0 shutout win over Carolina on Wednesday -- pulled within a goal in the third period, but the Islanders held on for the win despite an early change in net.

Nabokov injured: Islanders goaltender Evgeni Nabokov left the game early in the first after suffering a groin injury. Nabokov went down in obvious pain after making a save on Montreal’s Yannick Weber. According to a team spokesperson, he will be re-evaluated Friday.

Coming in cold: For the second time this season, goaltender Rick DiPietro entered the game cold under tenuous circumstances. DiPietro made his first appearance of the season Oct. 27 to relieve an injured Nabokov in the shootout against the Penguins. He entered the game Tuesday with 12:05 minutes left in the first period and made 24 saves to earn the second star of the game.

Four-spot second: The Islanders scored four times in the second period to take a two-goal lead into the third period. PA Parenteau, Mark Streit, Jay Pandolfo and Matt Moulson all tallied in the middle frame. With his 6th goal of the season, Moulson extended his point streak to five games.

Century club: Pandolfo scored his 100th career goal with a tip-in past Habs backup Peter Budaj 3:01 into the second. The 37-year-old veteran, who made the Islanders team as a training camp tryout, got himself on the scoresheet for the first time this season.

Friends and foes: Childhood friends John Tavares and PK Subban squared off in Thursday’s match at Nassau Coliseum. Tavares recorded his third assist in as many games, picking up a helper on Moulson's wrist shot at 18:15 of the second.

Okposo sits again: 23-year-old forward Kyle Okposo sat for a second straight game against Montreal. Okposo, held without a goal in the first 14 games of the season, was the healthy scratch for the first time in his career against the Rangers on Tuesday.

One-year anniversary: Tuesday’s game marks the one-year anniversary of coach Jack Capuano's first game behind the bench for the Islanders since replacing Scott Gordon. Capuano, who assumed interim coaching duties when Gordon was fired Nov. 15, made his debut two days later in the Islanders' 4-2 loss to Tampa Bay.

Matthew Barnaby explains why Islanders head coach Jack Capuano is on the hot seat.

What it means: The red-hot Rangers won their seventh straight with a 4-2 defeat of the Islanders at Nassau Coliseum for the team's longest winning streak in more than two years. While the Rangers improved to 10-3-3, the Islanders fell to 4-8-3 after dropping their tenth in 11 games.

Go-ahead goal: Brad Richards snapped a 2-2 tie at 15:05 of the third with his slapshot from the left circle, his second game-winner of the season. Brandon Dubinsky, who intercepted Josh Bailey's clearing attempt at the blue line, picked up an assist on the play.

Moulson scores on man-advantage: After four failed attempts, the Islanders tied the game to cash in on their fifth power-play opportunity of the night. Matt Moulson tallied his fifth goal of the season, converting a feed from John Tavares to knot the teams at 2 at 6:58 of the third.

Chipping in offensively: With his goal at 6:07 of the second period, Steve Eminger became the fifth defenseman to score a goal for the Rangers this season. The team now has 10 goals from their blue line; 22-year-old Ryan McDonagh leads the pack with three.

New season for Nino: 19-year-old Swiss winger Nino Niederreiter made his season debut for the Isles after missing the first six weeks of the season with a groin injury suffered in September. Niederreiter, who played nine games last season before being sent back to his junior club, skated on the team’s third line with Blake Comeau and Marty Reasoner.

Avery scores again: Notorious agitator Sean Avery scored his second goal in as many games to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead in the first period. Avery, who was promoted to the third line after a strong performance Friday against the Hurricanes, buried his own rebound from the left circle at 14:43.

Rivalry restored: A chippy second period featured two fights -- one between Avery and Mike Mottau and the other between Matt Martin and Brandon Prust. Mottau’s scrap with Avery wasn’t his first -- the two also fought while Mottau was playing for the Devils back in 2009.

Okposo scratched: For the first time in his NHL career, Kyle Okposo missed a game as a healthy scratch. The Islanders sat the struggling 23-year-old forward, who has not scored a goal in 14 games this season. Okposo finished with five goals last season after missing 44 games with a shoulder injury and scored 19 one year prior during his second full season with the team in 2009-10.

Up next: Islanders vs. Canadiens, Thursday at 7 p.m.; Rangers vs. Canadiens, Saturday at 7 p.m.

Struggling Islanders forward Kyle Okposo will sit out Tuesday's game against the Rangers, ESPNNewYork.com has learned.

The 23-year-old Okposo, who missed half of last season with a shoulder injury, has been held without a goal in the first 14 games. According to Islanders team statistician Eric Hornick, this will be the first time in Okposo's career he will be a healthy scratch.

Although Islanders coach Jack Capuano said the lineup would be a "game-time decision" it is not believed Okposo will skate in pre-game warmups.

With Okposo watching the game from the press box, 19-year-old Swiss winger Nino Niederreiter will make his season debut for the Islanders after being recalled Monday.

Niederreiter was in position to crack the Islanders' roster out of training camp but suffered a preseason groin strain that has shelved him for the first month of action. The former fifth overall pick finished with three goals and one assist in six games during a two-week conditioning assignment with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.

Bridgeport goaltender Mikko Koskinen has been loaned to KalPa of the SM-Liiga (Finnish Elite League).

The towering 6-6, 200-pound Finnish netminder, drafted 31st overall in the 2009 draft, was once regarded as a top goaltending prospect for the Islanders but has received little playing time this season in the American Hockey League.

The 23-year-old, who has had to split reps with Kevin Poulin and Anders Nilsson, is 0-2-0 (2.82, .909) in only three games played for the Sound Tigers this season.

At a glance: Looking to extend their winning streak to seven games, the Rangers roll into Nassau Coliseum for the second time this season to face a sputtering Islanders squad that has dropped nine of their last ten games.

Last time around: In the first meeting between the two teams this season, the Islanders prevailed 4-2 with a hat trick from 21-year-old John Tavares and a 29-save effort from goaltender Evgeni Nabokov in his Islanders debut.

El Nino: Tuesday marks the season debut of 19-year-old Swiss winger Nino Niederreiter, who began the year on injured reserve after suffering a preseason groin injury. Niederreiter was recalled Monday from a two-week conditioning stint with the team’s minor-league affiliate in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Niederreiter, the Islanders fifth overall pick in 2010, had three goals and one assist in six games for the Sound Tigers.

Good stretch for Gabby: Elite winger Marian Gaborik has been scorching of late; the 29-year-old sniper tallied three goals and six assists during the team’s recent six-game homestand and recorded 11 points (five goals, six assists) in the last eight games.

Struggling to score: Amidst an abysmal 1-6-3 stretch over the last 10 games, several of the Islanders young core players are slumping. Most notably, power forward Kyle Okposo. Okposo has yet to score a goal in 14 games and was the last off the ice Tuesday morning, usually a good indication of the night’s healthy scratch. Blake Comeau has been held off the scoresheet in all 12 games played this season and Josh Bailey has only one goal.

No sophomore slump: Second-year player Derek Stepan has found his groove centering a line with Gaborik and Artem Anisimov. Stepan, 21, has recorded nine points (three goals, six assists) and a plus-8 rating in the last seven games.

Nabokov in net: Nabokov has not won a game since the last time he faced the Rangers, but will look to record his second win of the season Tuesday. The 36-year-old is 1-4-0 with a 2.86 goals against average and .912 save percentage. Former Rangers first-round pick Al Montoya will back him up.

Bottom line: The Islanders will have to perform much better to ensure this rivalry continues but they usually play their best games against the Rangers. The Blueshirts look to rattle off their seventh straight for the first time in over two years (October 3-17 2009).

Evgeni Nabokov, who earned his first win as an Islander against the Rangers October 15, will start in goal Tuesday. Al Monotya will back-up.

And that was all coach Jack Capuano was willing to divulge about Tuesday's lineup.

Although it is likely 19-year-old Nino Niederreiter will make his anticipated season debut, Capuano declined to confirm or say who would come out of the lineup in his place.

"It's unfair to give me our thoughts when the players don't know," Capuano said.

Nino Niederreiter is set to make his season debut for the Islanders and it couldn’t come at a better time.

The Islanders –- 1-6-3 in their last ten games -- hope Niederreter’s return from a two-week conditioning assignment in Bridgeport might infuse the team’s anemic offense with new life.

The 19-year-old Swiss winger, who was taken by the Islanders fifth overall in the 2010 draft, has yet to play a game this season since suffering a preseason groin injury but is expected to dress in Tuesday’s game against the Rangers.

“I’m super excited,” Niederreiter told ESPNNewYork.com when reached by telephone Monday. “I couldn’t be happier than I am right now. I’m just going to try to take it one day at a time and do what I can to help the team.”

And the team does need help. After dropping nine of their last ten games, the Islanders find themselves mired in last place in the Eastern Conference. A large part of that can be explained by a 29th-ranked offense that has averaged only 2.07 goals per game. Kyle Okposo – who, like Niederreiter, also plays right wing – has not scored a goal in 14 games this season, Josh Bailey has been limited to only one, and Blake Comeau has been held scoreless in 12 games played.

Cue Niederreiter, who possesses an NHL-caliber shot and plays a chippy, physical game. Although it is unclear which forward will sit when he returns, Niederreiter may ultimately earn an audition playing on the team’s first line with Matt Moulson and John Tavares.

Niederreiter, who finished with three goals and one assist in six games for the Sound Tigers, was surprised the injury lingered as long as it did, but feels confident he’s fully recovered.

“It was hard to come back from an injury like that – I’ve never really had anything like that – but I felt like I played pretty good the last two games,” he said. “The first four games were kind of hard, but I felt I got better as the games went on and got some confidence back, too.”

Niederreiter remained with the Islanders for nine games last season before being sent back to his junior club – the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League. Heading into his second training camp, Niederreiter seemed poised to crack the team’s roster but his hopes were derailed by injury. Six weeks later, he hopes he can still carve out a spot for himself on the Islanders team.

“It doesn’t look too bad,” Niederreiter said of his chances. “but I’m not going to put too much pressure on myself. I’m just going to go out, have fun. I’m very happy to be back and blessed to be where I am.”

The Islanders officially recalled Nino Niederreiter Monday from his conditioning stint in Bridgeport. The 19-year-old forward, taken fifth overall by the Islanders in the 2010 draft, will make his season debut Tuesday against the Rangers.

Niederreiter, who remained with the club for the for the first nine games last season before being sent back to his junior team, was expected to crack the team's roster out of training camp this September but was sidelined with a groin injury.

The Swiss winger began the season on injured reserve and was sent to the team's minor-league affiliate November 1 on a conditioning assignment; he finished with three goals and one assist in six games with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.

Losers in nine of the last ten games (1-6-3), the Islanders hope to inject some life into their lineup and jump-start their struggling offense with the addition of Niederreiter.

Trade rumors involving goaltender Evgeni Nabokov ignited a frenzy in the Twitterverse Thursday night during the team's 4-3 OT meltdown loss to Colorado.

But the rumor, that the Islanders had traded Nabokov to Columbus, in exchange for defenseman Fedor Tyutin, appears to be just that.

As of 9 a.m. Friday morning, the Islanders had not asked Nabokov to waive his no-trade clause, general manager Garth Snow confirmed to ESPNNewYork.com.

Snow also said there was no truth whatsoever to the rumors that surfaced Thursday night.

The no-trade clause was included in the one-year, $570,000 deal Nabokov orginally inked with Detroit last January before the Islanders claimed him off waivers.

The 36-year-old netminder, who was suspended by the Islanders last season after refusing to report, is 1-3-0 with a 2.81 goals against average and .911 save percentage in five games this season.

Since his contract was tolled by the Islanders for the 2011-12 season, Nabokov has been speculated to be trade bait for teams looking to improve their depth in net.

The Islanders currently have a surplus at the position with Al Montoya and Rick DiPietro on their roster as well.

Former NHL scout and current ESPN Insider draft guru Grant Sonier released his latest NHL organizational rankings today, a rating in which he evaluates the quality and depth of the prospects within each team's system. It's the first update from 2011-12 after the rookie picture has gained a little clarity and ... let's just say the Devils took a bit of a dip.

New Jersey dropped from No. 16 in the first edition of the rankings to No. 27 Thursday, one of the biggest falls on the list. Only the Philadelphia Flyers fell farther (No. 15 to No. 29).

Before fans start flipping out, the rationale for the slide seems to stem from the solid play of D Adam Larsson, a player who instantly became the team's top prospect when he was selected No. 4 overall in June's draft. With Larsson in the big leagues, it's left the rest of the New Jersey system a little barren of top tier talent.

Sonier makes this point in his entry for the Colorado Avalanche, who also slipped a ways, but I think it applies to the Devils' situation as well:

"Dropping ... would seem like a bad thing, but look at it this way. Would you rather drop because a prospect has proven himself in the NHL? Or would you rather rank higher with doubts still swirling about how good your past draft picks can be? I'd take the bird in hand."

Sonier also writes that the Devils do have a few prospects to keep an eye on:

"Jon Merrill (38th overall, 2010) is in his sophomore season at the University of Michigan of the CCHA and has time to grow into his 6-3 frame while goaltender Scott Wedgewood (84th overall, 2010) is playing on a very strong Plymouth Whalers team in the OHL and some have suggested he should get a tryout for the World Juniors with Team Canada."

Meanwhile, the Islanders fell slightly from No. 7 to No. 11 following the promotion of Nino Niederreiter, and the Rangers moved up two pegs to No. 15 thanks to the strong performances of Chris Kreider, J.T. Miller and Christian Thomas for their respective teams.

The puzzling absence of Al Montoya from the Islanders' goaltending rotation will come to an end soon.

Coach Jack Capuano said he plans on playing Montoya on the team's upcoming road trip to Colorado and Vancouver.

"Al will get back in there for sure," Capuano said after practice Wednesday.

Save for his relief appearance in Monday's 6-2 loss to Boston, Montoya has not played since October 20 -- a 4-1 loss in Tampa Bay. The situation is strange considering Montoya won the opening night nod -- and the following two starts -- as the result of an excellent training camp.

Capuano provided little by way of explanation.

"To give you a concrete answer would be hard for me to do," he said.

General manager Garth Snow also did not respond to an interview request on the topic.

36-year-old Evgeni Nabokov has shouldered the bulk of the workload since Montoya seemingly fell out of favor, posting a 1-3-0 record since making his first start as an Islander October 15 against the Rangers. Rick DiPietro, who suffered a concussion last month, has also started three games this season; he is 1-1-2 with a .904 save percentage and 2.67 save percentage.

Several times this season Capuano has called the three-goalie situation a "luxury," but it's hard to imagine Montoya -- or any of the team's goaltenders -- finds the situation ideal.

Montoya (2-2-0, .928 save %, 2.12 GAA) outranks Nabokov and DiPietro in wins, goals against average and save percentage yet has found himself the odd man out recently.

So why has he gone almost three weeks since his last start?

"I don't know," he said. "I don't answer those questions."

Regardless of the reason, Montoya said he will focus on taking advantage of his next opportunity, whether it's Thursday against the Avalanche or Sunday against the Canucks.

"As much as fun as it is to be on this team, it's fun to be playing. It's more fun to be playing," he said. "Whether it's the next game or whenever, I'm going to make the most of it."

Capuano said veteran defenseman Mike Mottau, who has been scratched the last five games, will play on the road trip as well.

WIth a 6-2 loss to the Bruins at TD Garden Monday, the Islanders have dropped seven of their last eight games to find themselves in last place in the Eastern Conference. They remain winless in the road.

Goaltender Evgeni Nabokov was pulled in the first period after giving up three goals to the reigning Stanley Cup Champions. Al Montoya made his anticipated return, replacing Nabokov for his first appearance since October 20.

Montoya was awarded the opening night nod for the Islanders out of training camp and started the first three games of the season but curiously seemed to fall out of favor in the following weeks. The 26-year-old, who entered the game with a 2-0-0 record, 2.10 goals against average and .930 save percentage, was exceptional in the second period.

Montoya was pulled for the extra skater with four minutes remaining in regulation after the Bruins built a 4-2 lead on goals from Milan Lucic and Nathan Horton. Norton tallied twice in the game while David Krejci adding an empty-netter with 2:48 left in the game to make it 6-2.

Daniel Paille left the game after taking a Steve Staios slapshot to the face in the third; he appears to have suffered a broken nose on the play.