The New York Islanders need to get their swagger back, and there’s no better time to do that than on Monday night against the Philadelphia Flyers.
After the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 3-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks, the Islanders now trail Sidney Crosby and Co. by four points in the standings.
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And with the Flyers defeating the Colorado Avalanche 7-3 their last time out, Rick Tocchet’s team trails the Islanders by just two points in the standings, making Monday night’s game a big one.
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The Islanders have battled consistency all season long. They’ve gone on a run, showcasing a tremendous amount of swagger, like when they went 6-1-0 on their first seven-game road trip of the season.
But, they’ve also gone on the opposite streak, going 0-4-1 in their first five games after returning home. Flash-forward to now, they are losers of three of their last four games, the latest a 5-0 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday, a nightmarish showing.
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There are 31 games left in the season, but with how tight the Metropolitan Division still is, an extended losing streak could be disastrous.
The Islanders’ struggles as of late, even a week ago, didn’t seem too costly, given that they were still sitting in second place in the Metro, with the teams behind them failing to take advantage.
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But things have changed.
Despite Philadelphia’s latest win, they’ve lost seven of their last nine games (2-5-2).
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The Islanders may be without defenseman Ryan Pulock for a second straight game, but they do have their leading goal scorer, Bo Horvat, back in the lineup.
Vezina-favorite Ilya Sorokin is back in between the pipes, but even he is looking to raise his game a bit after allowing three or more goals in four of his last five games.
The Islanders have seven more games before the Olympic break, with six games against Metropolitan Division foes.
Puck drop between the Islanders and Flyers comes your way at 7 PM ET on MSGSN.
