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The New York Islanders are driving their fans up a wall already this season. 

They are 3-3-2 with a -3 goal difference (21 GF, 24 GA) and have yet to win consecutive games. The most frustrating bit for Islanders fans and backers is that they’re being haunted by familiar demons. 

Like last year, the Isles are proving incompetent at holding leads and their play on special teams is not just poor, but it’s actively costing them points in the standings. Throw in some cold starts by Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat, and you have the recipe for a sluggish start. 

The optimists on Long Island will point to the fact that the Isles do boast a strong statistical profile at even strength — they rank inside the top 10 in expected goals (xG) percentage and shot attempt rate — as a reason to believe they’ll get right, but things could turn ugly if the Isles stumble as big favorites against the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night. 

The good news for the Isles is that the Ducks are coming into this contest in some pretty poor form.

That may sound harsh for a team that is 3-4-2 and had very low expectations on the season, but two of Anaheim’s three wins came against the winless San Jose Sharks.

And their statistical profile is dreary — particularly on defense, where they rank inside the bottom three in expected goals against and high-danger scoring chances conceded. 

For an offense-challenged team such as the Isles, this is the perfect get-right opponent. 

It should also be noted that there is one bright positive for the Islanders in the early going and it’s the play of Ilya Sorokin.

The 29-year-old netminder has won just two of his four starts, but he’s played well enough to win in each game he’s played. Sorokin is currently sporting a .936 save percentage and +3.62 Goals Saved Above Expected (GSAx). 

You should tread lightly when it comes to backing the Islanders as favorites, but this is Anaheim’s third game in four nights on the East Coast and with Sorokin in goal, the Isles should be able to win this comfortably. 

THE PLAY: Islanders -1.5 goals ( +105, DraftKings)

Michael Leboff is a long-suffering Islanders fan, but a long-profiting sports bettor with 10 years of experience in the gambling industry. He loves using game theory to help punters win bracket pools, find long shots, and learn how to beat the market in mainstream and niche sports.