Bruins making two surprising lineup changes against the Islanders

The Boston Bruins close out a four-game road trip on Wednesday night against the New York Islanders, looking to head into Thanksgiving with a .500 trip. It's going to be a busy stretch for Marco Sturm's team as they will host the New York Rangers on Friday afternoon before welcoming the Detroit Red Wings in on Saturday night.

This will be the final matchup with the Islanders in 2025-26, and the Bruins have already locked up the season series with a 5-2 win at home on Oct. 28 and a 4-3 shootout win on Nov. 4 on Long Island. Boston will likely see Ilya Sorokin in goal again for New York, and he has been someone who has frustrated the Black and Gold before. The last stop on a road trip that began in California feels like this could be one of those nights.

Bruins coach Marco Sturm making some interesting lineup decisions against Islanders

Boston held their morning skate at UBS Arena on Wednesday morning, and Sturm had some noticeable lines. Matej Blümel was back on the first line with Pavel Zacha and David Pastrnak. After practice, Sturm said that Blümel will be back in the lineup after being scratched against the San Jose Sharks.

As for the other decision that will open some eyes, Sturm said that Jeremy Swayman will get a third straight start on the road trip after playing against the Los Angeles Kings and Sharks. Joonas Korpisalo played the opening game of the trip and will likely play on Friday afternoon against the Rangers.

Surprisingly, Swayman gets the nod between the pipes against the Islanders, but after a couple of days off after the San Jose game, this is likely more of a decision that allows Swayman to come back on Saturday night against the Red Wings. It won't matter who is in goal if the Bruins can't stay out of the penalty box, which is easier said than done.