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Hurricanes set to visit Islanders

Jan 26, 2011 - 4:04 PM (Sports Network) - Carolina will host this weekend's All-Star festivities, but the Hurricanes will be away from Raleigh tonight as they visit the New York Islanders for a battle at Nassau Coliseum.

Raleigh will host the 2011 All-Star Game on Sunday at the RBC Center, but will play their final game before the break on the road, where Carolina is 11-11-4 this season. The Hurricanes have lost three straight away from the RBC Center and last picked up a road victory on Jan. 7 at Florida.

Carolina will get to remain in Raleigh after the All-Star Game, as the club's next test is Tuesday against visiting Boston.

The Hurricanes, who are ninth in the Eastern Conference and just one point out of a potential playoff spot, have won two of their last three games and are coming off Monday's home win over Toronto.

Brandon Sutter had a pair of goals in the third period while Jeff Skinner scored the game-winner as Carolina took a 6-4 slugging match over the Maple Leafs at RBC Center.

Joe Corvo had a goal and an assist while Cam Ward stopped 26-of-30 shots for the Hurricanes.

"It was a pretty tight game there and we exchanged chances all night," said Sutter. "They have a quick team over there and they caught us standing still, but we managed to battle it out. This was a big win."

Carolina destroyed the Islanders in the only meeting between the clubs this season, posting a 7-2 blowout victory at RBC Center on Nov. 3. It was the third straight win in the series for the Hurricanes, who have also taken seven out of nine from New York. The 'Canes have won five of their last six games on Long Island.

The Islanders were shut out Tuesday evening in Pittsburgh, as Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 29 shots in a 1-0 victory for the Penguins. With that shutout loss, New York has dropped two straight, four of five and seven of their last nine games.

New York is also just two points ahead of New Jersey for the last place in the Eastern Conference and NHL.

Craig Adams scored the lone goal for the Penguins in Tuesday's win at CONSOL Energy Center. Kevin Poulin was sharp in net for the Islanders as he stopped 30-of-31 shots, but it was not enough to prevent his club from another loss.

"We battled, but there were opportunities to get more pucks to the net," said New York head coach Jack Capuano. "Kevin Poulin played great for us tonight."

Meanwhile, the ongoing saga between New York and Evgeni Nabokov took another turn on Tuesday as the team suspended the goaltender for not reporting to the club.

Nabokov signed a one-year contract with the Red Wings last Friday, but was then claimed off waivers by the Islanders. However, he has so far refused to report for the team.

New York has lost three in a row on Long Island and is just 8-11-4 as the host this season.