The New York Islanders punched their ticket to the playoffs Monday night.
Head coach Patrick Roy’s team did so by beating the New Jersey Devils 4 to 1. The “Islanders” have now amassed 92 points and are assured of taking third place in the Metropolitan section standings. They will therefore face the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round of the spring dance.
In today’s clash, the Islanders quickly took the lead. Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Kyle Palmieri (on the power play) scored during the first period.
The Devils reduced the gap via a goal from Timo Meier at the start of the second, but Brock Nelson gave the visitors a two-goal priority before the end of the middle period.
Kyle MacLean added to the Islanders’ lead in the third period, while goaltender Semyon Varlamov stopped a total of 23 pucks in the victory.
The Penguins are still alive
In Pittsburgh, the Penguins made sure to stay alive in the playoff race by triumphing over the Nashville Predators 4-2.
Sidney Crosby and his gang are still in the derby for the second and final place among the teams drafted in the East. They now have 88 points, one less than the Washington Capitals and the Detroit Red Wings.
“Sid the Kid” was also at the heart of his team’s success against the “Preds”. The famous number 87 scored a goal and provided an assist.
Other scorers for the Pens were Erik Karlsson, Reilly Smith and Emil Bemstrom. The Predators’ response came from the sticks of Gustav Nyquist and Filip Forsberg. The latter now has 48 goals under his belt in 2023-2024.
The Penguins will conclude their season against the Islanders on Wednesday night.
The “Caps” in good position
In Washington, the Capitals scored a very important 2-0 victory against the Boston Bruins.
They thus made sure to keep possession of the last place giving access to the playoffs in the Eastern Association.
John Carlson was the only player who managed to beat goaltender Jeremy Swayman. He did it during the first period. Nic Dowd completed the score and confirmed the victory for the “Caps” in an empty net.
In front of the winner’s cage, Charlie Lindgren stopped all 16 Bruins shots to obtain his sixth shutout of this season.
The Capitals will finish their season and try to qualify for the playoffs on Tuesday night, facing the Flyers in Philadelphia.