The Islanders inched closer to a playoff spot on Thursday night, thanks to their 3-2 win against the Florida Panthers and their rivals all suffering losses.
SUNRISE, FL -- If the New York Islanders are going to stun the hockey world and find a way into the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, they are going to need a lot of help.
But they're also going to need to help themselves and that's by winning.
After a devastating loss to the New Jersey Devils last Sunday, the Islanders had three days before battling the elite Florida Panthers.
Despite the odds anything but in their favor, the Islanders found a way, beating the Panthers 3-2 on Thursday night in a gutsy win.
While a win was great, it wouldn't matter if the teams ahead of them in the standings came away with two points.
But on Thursday night, the hockey gods went to work as all three teams in action that the Islanders needed to lose did.
The Washington Capitals, who hold down the second wild-card spot, fell 5-1 to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Detroit Red Wings, who sat two points out of a playoff spot, were shut out by the Carolina Hurricanes 4-0.
The Philadelphia Flyers, who hold down the third seed in the Metropolitan Division, fell 4-1 to the Montreal Canadiens.
With those results, the Islanders are four points out of the second wild-card spot with 10 games to go:
The Islanders' next "must-win" game comes on Saturday night against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
There's just one game to watch on Friday, with the New Jersey Devils in action against the Buffalo Sabres.
New Jersey sits a point behind the Islanders and could leap-frog them with a win.
If...If the Islanders can find a way to beat the Lightning on Saturday night and receive hockey-god magic, they could wake up on Sunday morning just two points out of a playoff spot.
On Saturday night, the Red Wings will battle the Panthers, the Capitals will host the Bruins, and the Flyers will welcome the Chicago Blackhawks to town.
The race is as tight as it was a season ago, and the Islanders' win over the Panthers gave them some added life with much more to come to make a playoff dream reality.