Despite the craziness of the last week, the Islanders are still just a point out of a wild-card spot with 15 games to go.
Despite the craziness of the last week, the Islanders are still just a point out of a wild-card spot with 15 games to go.
The New York Islanders couldn't right the ship against the cross-town rival New York Rangers on Sunday afternoon, falling 5-2 for a fourth straight defeat.
But contrary to popular belief, the Islanders are very much alive in the playoff race, thanks to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Entering Sunday just a point behind the second wild-card Detroit Red Wings, the Islanders woke up Monday morning in the same situation as Pittsburgh defeated Detroit 6-3 on Sunday night.
The Islanders got help from the Boston Bruins on Saturday night. The Bruins defeated the third-place Philadelphia Flyers 6-5 in regulation, keeping the Islanders three points behind John Tortorella's squad with a game in hand.
The Islanders are getting help, but they need to start helping themselves if they are going to sneak into the playoffs with 15 games to go.
Games in hand only matter if you win them, and right now, since the Islanders are on the outside looking in, they have no choice but to win to get in.
After blowing chances to gain ground with losses to the Buffalo Sabres and Ottawa Senators, the Islanders have no choice but to steal some games down the stretch here.
On Tuesday, the Islanders host the Carolina Hurricanes before heading to Detroit for a pivotal matchup on Thursday before coming home for a back-to-back weekend slate against the Winnipeg Jets and New Jersey Devils -- anything but an easy next four games.
Before playing the Islanders, the Red Wings host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday before finishing their week in Nashville to face Barry Trotz and the Predators on Saturday night.
The Flyers schedule is an absolute gauntlet for the rest of the month.
Their next seven games to close out the month of March are against six playoff teams, starting with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday, the Hurricanes on Thursday, and a weekend back-to-back against the Boston Bruins and Florida Panthers before battling the Rangers on Mar. 26. They close out the month against the Montreal Canadiens and Chicago Blackhawks.
While the Tampa Bay Lightning are pulling away in the top wild-card spot, four points ahead of Detroit and five ahead of New York, let's look at their schedule.
Starting their week against a slumping Vegas Golden Knights, Jon Cooper's squad heads out west like the Islanders just did to battle the San Jose Sharks on Thursday before a weekend back-to-back against the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks.
"I think everyone in this room knows what time of year it is and how important these games are," Palmieri said on Sunday night. "Talking is one thing. You can't talk your way into the playoffs."
The Islanders are off Monday as they prepare for Jake Guentzel and the Hurricanes, who have won three straight games.