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Islanders have a favourable schedule to end the regular season |
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The New York Islanders are continuing to lose ground in the Metropolitan Division, having dropped seven of their last nine games. While it’s easy to look at the negatives, I’ll introduce a positive: the Islanders’ remaining schedule is actually quite favourable.
While they may play 10 of their final 18 games on the road, their competition down the stretch isn’t nearly as tough as it could be. Of their remaining games, 10 will come against teams that aren’t currently in a playoff spot.
This includes two games against both Montreal and New Jersey and one game against Buffalo, Chicago, Minnesota and Ottawa. It also includes two key games against the Carolina Hurricanes, who sit just outside of a wildcard spot but are currently relying on their third and fourth-string goalies (and both games come at home). As for the playoff teams they’ll face in the other eight games, the Islanders don’t face a single Division leader (Boston, St. Louis, Vegas, Washington).
In their next three games, they face Montreal, Ottawa then Carolina, with two of the three games coming at home. They’ll then face the toughest stretch of their remaining 18 games, as six games in a row are lined up against teams currently in a playoff spot, with five of the six coming on the road. This starts with the Western Canada road trip in Vancouver on March 10 and ends in Toronto on March 19. This will certainly be their most difficult test, however after that, they’ll have a great chance to finish the year strong.
Of their final nine games, five will be played at home and seven will come against teams that currently sit outside of a playoff spot. You really can’t ask for a better draw to end the regular season and for a team that’s struggled as of late, they’ll have the opportunity to capitalize on a lineup of winnable games.
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New York Islanders Blogger • 
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