The Islanders visit a fellow wild card contender. Will they play like they know what’s on the line?
Spirits and hopes for the Islanders have cratered, so they’ll probably pull off a win in Detroit tonight to keep their pulse alive.
Or not. They’re on a five-game winless slide and they’ve looked pretty bad while doing it, so why should tonight be any different? Other than to torture us a little longer by re-flickering a spark of hope, that is.
First Islanders Goal picks go here.
Islanders News
- Previewing tonight: “A pivotal game in the wild card race.” Yes, you could say that. [Isles]
- “Find some life,” or whatever it is, the Isles need to reconnect. [Newsday]
- Patrick Roy said Pierre Engvall just needed a night off to watch and regroup. I can’t wait for six more years of this. [THN]
- Roy says long shifts are an issue for the Isles. [AM NY]
- The family of the late Chris Simon (that still feels so weird to say) believes he suffered from CTE, and of course the NHL is having none of that. They’ll await medical results, at which point they (and the NHLPA) will still be having none of that. [Post]
Elsewhere
Last night’s NHL scores were minimal, but the Capitals lost in regulation to the Leafs, so that’s nice.
- Both Alex Ovechkin and Auston Matthews scored, and I’m told the NHL just needs to market its stars more, so hey, that’s great for them but I don’t really care. [NHL]
- Prior to Toronto’s win though: They lack cohesion heading into the playoffs. [Sportsnet]
- I forgive Lanny McDonald for 1979, when he was just doing his job, and I’m glad he survived his recent scare with death. He’s still emotional about it, understandably. [Sportsnet]
- Akim Aliu, who blew the whistle on former Flames coach Bill Peters, is attempting a comeback at age 34 on a PTO with San Jose’s AHL affiliate. [TSN]
- Is this postseason the best chance for a Maple Leafs breakthrough? Or is TSN just required to post stuff like that because it generates traffic? [TSN]