The first three-game winning streak of the season for the New York Islanders gave them a chance to keep their playoff hopes alive during their longest homestand of the campaign.
The Islanders are slated to begin a seven-game homestand Tuesday night, when they host the Ottawa Senators in a battle of teams trying to remain in the Eastern Conference wild card race.
The Islanders have been off since Saturday, when Mathew Barzal scored the game-winning goal with 1:25 left in the third period of a 2-1 victory over the host Utah Hockey Club.
The victory completed the Islanders’ first perfect road trip of three games or more since a three-game run from Oct. 27-30, 2018. New York opened this trip with a 5-4 win over the Boston Bruins, who are the top wild card in the East, before blanking the Pacific Division-leading Vegas Golden Knights 4-0.
“Those are three good teams, three tough buildings,” Barzal said. “You couldn’t ask for a better road trip.”
Nor could Barzal and his teammates have asked for a more perfect time to finally win three in a row anywhere. The Islanders, the last Eastern Conference team to author a three-game winning streak this season, have 41 points, five behind the Columbus Blue Jackets in the race for the final wild card spot.
The Senators, who have 45 points, are one of three wild card contenders the Islanders will oppose on the homestand, The Philadelphia Flyers, who entered Monday’s game against the Florida Panthers with 41 points, will visit Elmont Thursday and again on Jan. 24 while the Blue Jackets arrive Monday.
“We know what time of year it is — it’s crunch time, really,” Barzal said. “It’s kind of make-or-break for the team and it looks like we’re trending upwards.”
The Senators concluded a perfect weekend back-to-back set Sunday by beating the visiting Dallas Stars, 3-2. They are hoping the sweep of the Stars and the Pittsburgh Penguins — whom Ottawa blanked 5-0 in Pennsylvania on Saturday — is the start of another upward trend in the midst of an inconsistent season.
Ottawa didn’t win or lose more than two games in a row until a five-game skid (0-4-1) from Nov. 14-23. The Senators won four of their next seven games (4-2-1) before winning six in a row from Dec. 11-21.
Ottawa then lost six of seven (1-5-1) but snapped a four-game losing streak with the win over the Penguins before Joshua Norris and Tim Stutzle scored the tying and go-ahead goals in a span of 39 seconds in the second period Sunday.
The game against the Islanders will be the first of seven straight against Eastern Conference foes for the Senators.
“That’s a huge win,” said Senators left winger Matthew Highmore, who scored the game-winning goal 21 seconds into the third. “Credit to the guys for being resilient after getting down one there early and really fighting back and playing the right way. So, a huge two points in the standings and we’ll rest up and get back at it Tuesday.”
–Field Level Media
