The New York Islanders [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders]' night of scoreboard watching last night can be summarized by one singular word: Oof. The Ottawa Senators [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators] beat the Tampa Bay Lightning in regulation. The Philadelphia Flyers [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers] pummeled the New Jersey Devils. The Columbus Blue Jackets [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/columbus-blue-jackets] knocked off the Detroit Red Wings in a shootout. By the time the carnage ended, the Islanders sat in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, three points outside both third place in the Metropolitan Division and the final Eastern Conference Wild Card spot. Moneypuck.com [https://moneypuck.com/predictions.htm] moved the Islanders' playoff odds down to just 19.4%. That almost feels too generous. The Islanders' tragic number is down to six. The tragic number is a countdown to when the Islanders are mathematically eliminated from playoff contention. Every regulation loss moves the number down by two. From here on in, every time Ottawa and Philadelphia win, it also moves the number down by two. The number sitting at six signifies just how close the Islanders are to elimination. If the Flyers and Senators win three of the last four, the Islanders are out. That's also assuming New York wins out. One loss and all they'd have to do is go 2-2-0, and they'd clinch over New York. Yes, the Islanders do play the Senators on Saturday afternoon. But, Ottawa's other opponents to close the year are the Florida Panthers, the Devils, and the Toronto Maple Leafs. Not exactly a killer's row. That's three mathematically eliminated teams and the Islanders. Philadelphia, meanwhile, heads on the road to take on the Red Wings Thursday night, then heads to Winnipeg to face the Jets. They close with a back-to-back at home against the Carolina Hurricanes and Montreal Canadiens. They're much likelier to stumble down the final stretch. Of course, the Blue Jackets also passed the Islanders last night, so it's worth observing their final stretch, too. Columbus visits Buffalo on Thursday, then Montreal on Saturday. They close with two home games against the Boston Bruins and Washington Capitals. Again, like Philly, there's a chance they'll stumble. Even with the potential for some stumbling ahead of them, the Islanders themselves will be playing with the pressure equivalent to that of walking on a tightrope from the Empire State Building to the Chrysler Building with no safety net. One trip, one misplaced step, and they'll come crashing down with no chance of making it. Essentially, the Islanders must go 4-0-0, and hope two of Philly, Columbus, and Ottawa all succumb to the pressure. The odds are no longer in the Islanders' favor after the entirety of March saw them control their destiny. New head coach Peter DeBoer [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/latest-news/pete-deboer-brings-elite-playoff-pedigree-to-islanders] has hands full immediately.
