Islanders vs. Golden Knights odds, prediction: Take the Under

It has been a slippery slope into the New Year for the Golden Knights, who have dropped seven of their last nine games.

You could blame the poor results on a severe case of the injury bug, but the defending champions have struggled mightily when given ripe opportunities. The Knights are 7-for-35 on the power play in this losing span, including going 0-for-6 with an extended two-man advantage in Thursdays 4-1 loss to the Panthers.

On the reverse, Florida buried three power-play goals and the Knights special teams have sunk to No. 16 overall on both the power play and penalty kill.

Logan Thompsons play has dipped in the absence of Adin Hill as he has allowed several soft goals in recent starts; he has failed to hold a .900 save percentage in seven of his last 10. Thompson finds himself in a critical spot to respond after coach Bruce Cassidy implied to the media his game needs to be better.

The Islanders come into Las Vegas on Friday after an emphatic rebound against Arizona following a frustrating overtime loss to Colorado.

Bo Horvat tallied four points in the 5-1 victory, lifting himself to second on the club in points with 38. Its guys such as Horvat, Anders Lee and Mathew Barzal who have compensated with production despite some erratic results.

There has been defensive lapses, and though Ilya Sorokin has had some hiccups, hes managed to fortify the Isles enough with 7.6 goals saved above expected. New York allows the second-most shots against in the league at 32.3.

Logan Thompson NHLI via Getty ImagesSorokin plays his best hockey when opposing shooters make him work. Hes 7-2-6 when hes faced 35-or-more shots.

The Knights are a top-10 team in getting pucks on net, but their shots convert at the 19th-best rate.

In the meantime, they have been stale at five-on-five play through their dry run, which should cause some congestion against an Islanders team thats been underwhelming with puck possession all year.

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Both teams remain in the thick of their respective divisions with insecure claims to second place heading into Saturdays puck drop.

With Vegas in desperate need of 60 stiff minutes of hockey and the Islanders chasing momentum in their season, there should be no jackpots in Sin City.

The play: Islanders-Golden Knights Under 6.5 (-140 FanDuel)