That’s back-to-back losses now for the New York Islanders, who fell at home to the Nashville Predators on Monday, 3-1. With that defeat, New York is currently at a rather distant four points behind the Boston Bruins for the final playoff spot in the East with just seven games remaining.
Goalie Thomas Greiss made 28 saves that evening, but once again buckled under pressure. Greiss’ team is 2-6 in the last eight contests with him between the steel pipes, and he’s even allowed four goals in three of those losses during that stretch.
On the bright side, Josh Bailey found the back of the net against the Predators to extend his point streak to three games. But in the end, Bailey’s about the only player on on the team who’s getting it done on offense. The Islanders have been shut down on the attack with the upper hand of late, going a mere 2-of-21 on power-play opportunities over their last eight games.
Fans are getting restless with their team’s playoff hopes slowly slipping away, having witnessed the Isles go 0-4-1 at the Barclay Center in their last five outings. But perhaps a trip up north to Philly will get them back on the right path as they’ve won five of their last six road games.
The Philadelphia Flyers need a close-to-flawless finish to their regular season if they’re to make it to the playoffs somehow, and they’re certainly giving their all as evident from their gritty 3-2 shootout win over the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday.
The Flyers are winners of three of their last four and are currently two points away from where the Islanders are in the standings. Goalie Steve Mason made 35 saves against the Senators, giving him two-consecutive starts with 30 or more saves. He was also fantastic at shutting down Ottawa’s bid for shootout victory that evening.
What’s more encouraging is that Philadelphia is finding the back of the net at the most opportune of times. Upstart center Jordan Weal knocked in the only goal in the shootout on Tuesday, and he was also the one who scored the game-tying goal late in the final period to send the game to overtime. The team as a whole, meanwhile, has scored four goals on average over their last three victories.
With six games left and with very little room for error, the Flyers are basically in a must-win situation against New York this Thursday. They should pounce on this hobbling Islanders squad right now, like what they did in their 3-1 win on February 9. Still, Philly has got to watch out for the pesky Isles, as the team has actually lost five-straight meetings against them prior last month’s win.
Writer’s Prediction
The Flyers (-135) inch closer towards stealing the East’s final wild card spot with a crucial 3-2 victory.
