The return of the weekly Metropolitan Division snapshot – call it the eighteenth – shows Columbus Blue Jackets getting hot, the Washington Capitals dropping three straight, and adds in the Atlantic for a wild card watch. All this and more for all eight teams in the division.
Welcome to March and the return of the Metropolitan Division Snapshot for the 2024-25 season. The 4 Nations Face-Off is in the past. The NHL resumed its season on a high last weekend. Expect more drama as the NHL Trade Deadline is next Friday. What was not expected was the Columbus Blue Jackets getting hot. They swept their week to help their cause tremendously. It was also not expected for the Philadelphia Flyers to be the only other team in the division to win their week. Even the Washington Capitals are on a three-game slide – not that their hold on first place is anywhere close to slipping.
Standings via NHL.com, Playoff odds via Moneypuck, First overall draft pick odds via Tankathon
With the season now resuming, I have added in two old favorites to the snapshot. From Moneypuck, playoff odds. Their model does consider how a team plays in a 5-on-5 so that does factor into their odds. From Tankathon, #1 draft lottery odds. The favorite for the 2025 NHL Draft is now Matthew Schaefer as opposed to James Hagens. Either way, whoever wins the draft lottery is going to get a prime prospect. For a few teams in the division, that percentage is more important than the playoff odds. They will be a part of these snapshots until the end of the season. If you see 0%, it means they are in the lottery but can’t win first overall due to the lottery rules.
I have also added in the wild card watch. The final two playoff spots go to the two remaining best teams in the East that are not in the top three spots in their division. This means the Atlantic Division matters and plenty of teams in the Metropolitan will have to pay attention to how they will do. I will be using a five-point cut off from the last playoff spot to decide which teams to include for the wildcard. For now, that is everyone outside of the top three in the Atlantic not named the Buffalo Sabres. This will change over time.
Likewise, I have italicized all games against the wild card watch teams as those games carry value for the wild card race in the East. As ever, the schedule for all eight teams will continue to have games within the Metropolitan highlighted and in bold. Like so:
Schedules via NHL.com
Here is the week that was and week that will be for all eight teams.
Washington Capitals
Saturday at Pittsburgh – Washington returned to their season in Pennsylvania. They pulverized the Pens. The first period was even as an Ethen Frank tip in goal was matched by Kris Letang punishing a Jakob Chychrun penalty. The second period, hoo boy. The first ten minutes were even as well. Martin Fehervary broke the tie early only for Sidney Crosby to make it 2-2 minutes later. It all fell apart after Chychrun broke the tie just after the halfway mark. Washington made it rain goals. Chychrun scored again. Aliaksei Protas scored on the shift after that. Tom Wilson tipped in a late shot from Fehervary to make it 6-2. The blowout continued in the third. Dylan Strome scored a PPG. Danton Heinan stashed in a goal to end Washington’s run of goals at 5. No matter. Brandon Duhaime made it an 8-3 game with minutes left. A huge win for the conference leaders.
Sunday vs. Edmonton – The Caps returned to DC to host the Oilers. They continued scoring goals to bury their opponent. At first, it seemed to look good for Edmonton as they held onto a 1-0 lead thanks to Leon Draisaitl. Then the Caps made it 2-1 within the final 3 minutes of the first period thanks to Wilson and Chychrun. Washington took the game further in the second period. Alex Ovechkin scored a brace and Connor McMichael made it 5-1 by the second intermission. In the third, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored an early consolation goal answered later by Dylan Strome. Jeff Skinner scored on a wraparound and Edmonton decided to pull their goalie down 3. It led to Ovechkin getting his hat trick with an empty netter. The Caps scored 15 goals for the weekend with a 7-3 win over the Oilers.
Tuesday vs. Calgary – Washington took on the Flames and were cooled off. Yes, their offensive production dropped off. Dan Vladar had himself a night in D.C. It helped that he had early goal support. Martin Pospisil and Matt Coronato scored in the first period to put the Caps down two. The score held until the third. Washington had a chance to come back when Ovechkin put home a PPG to punish a Jonathan Huberdeau slash on Ovechkin. Alas, about 9 minutes later, Huberdeau scored an insurance goal. Vladar would not be beaten again. Washington lost 3-1 to the Flames.
Thursday vs. St. Louis – Washington resumed their homestand against the Blues on Thursday. If you do not like shots on net, then this game was for you. Neither St. Louis or Washington reached 20 shots on net. Not that the Blues needed more as they put them in. Philip Broberg opened the scoring past halfway through the first period. Pierre-Luc Dubois would tied it up with just under five minutes left, but Broberg restored the lead for the visitors before the first intermission. In the second period, Connor McMichael tied it up within the final five minutes. All good? Nope. Less than a minute later, Dylan Holloway tipped in a Ryan Suter shot to make it 3-2 for the Blues. On the shift after that, Colton Parayko found the back of the net for 4-2. The Caps were stunned and did not have much of a response. A Jake Neighbours empty netter secured a 5-2 defeat for the Capitals.
Saturday vs. Tampa Bay – The Washington Capitals continued their stay at home and continued a run where they just are not going to shoot many pucks. Seriously, only 21 at home? At least they allowed only 19 to the Lightning. The problem was that, once again, the opponent did not need the shots. Late in the first period, Tom Wilson tripped up Nikita Kucherov. This was punished by Mitchell Chaffee for the Caps to go down a score. In the first half of the second period, Tampa Bay made it a two-goal deficit thanks to Gage Concalves. Late in the second period, the Caps had hope. Alexander Ovechkin scored a goal. His march towards a record continues and the Washington Capitals were down just a shot. They proceeded to get 8 on net in the third period. None went in. Brandon Hagel ended it with an empty netter. A 3-1 loss meant the the Capitals have lost three straight. Yes, they are on a losing streak.
What’s Coming Up in This Week: The Caps have three games to play on Deadline Week. All three will impact the wild card picture. They will host Ottawa on Monday, visit Manhattan to play the New York Rangers on Wednesday, and then host Detroit on Friday. The Capitals’ position is set. They can just keep on keeping on at the expense of the teams competing to play them in the first round. Just end the losing streak before it gets too out of control.
Carolina Hurricanes
Saturday at Toronto – The Carolina Hurricanes resumed their season in Toronto on Saturday night. The Canes were whacked in the first period. The Maple Leafs needed just over 15 minutes to run up the score to 4-0. Alex Steeves, an own goal credited to Pontus Holmberg, David Kampf, and John Tavares all struck against Carolina. Not even Toronto’s big names (aside from Tavares). The Canes were seemingly done. Until the final 10 minutes of the game. With over seven minutes left, Shayne Gostisbehere tipped in a shot to make it 4-1. With over five minutes left, Andrei Svechnikov put home a clapper to make it 4-2. On the next shift, Jaccob Slavin made it a 4-3 game. Oh my goodness did they come back? No. Auston Matthews secured an empty net goal. Holmberg added a second. The Canes resumed their struggles in February with a 6-3 loss.
Tuesday at Montreal – The Canes went East to visit Quebec’s only team: Montreal. This went badly. The game itself had 38 shots on net combined for both teams. The high-volume shooting Hurricanes were kept to just 20 shots. Sam Montembault made sure none of them went in. The Canadiens would score four out of their 18 shots. Juraj Slafkovsky and Patrik Laine scored on tip ins in the first period. Nick Suzuki punished a Mikko Rantanen cross checking penalty in the second. Lane Hutson punished a Jalen Chatfield holding penalty in the third. The Hurricanes were blanked in a 4-0 loss to Montreal.
Thursday vs. Buffalo – Surely the Hurricanes would bounce back at home against Buffalo. Surely with their Hartford Whaler throwbacks. They would do so on the strength of their first period. Jordan Staal opened the scoring with a re-direction of a Jordan Martinook shot. Sebastian Aho scored close to two minutes after that. Zach Benson took a tripping call and Mikko Rantanen – yes, remember him? – scored to convert the power play. It was 3-0 for Carolina before ten minutes into the game. Buffalo would get on the board late in the first thanks to Alex Tuch, punishing a too many men on the ice call on the Canes. The Canes pulled away further in the second period with a goal from Taylor Hall. Buffalo did pull within two early in the third thanks to John Jason Peterka, but there would be no comeback. Seth Jarvis ended it with a late goal for a 5-2 win. A needed result.
Saturday vs. Edmonton – With a chance to split the week, the Hurricanes came up short. It was not for a lack of trying. Calvin Pickard just had a night to shine for Edmonton. The Canes went down first. During a power play, Mattias Janmark went up ice and fired a shot. Frederik Andersen made the stop only for the rebound to bounce off Adam Henrique and go in. That was unfortunate. It got worse in the second. Corey Perry made it a 2-0 game late in the second period. The Canes needed something to get past Pickard. Which they got early in the third. Sebastian Aho one-touched in a Mikko Rantanen shot-pass to punish a John Klingberg penalty and make it 2-1. But Pickard was on top of his game. The Hurricanes were frustrated all the way such that Rantanen hit Pickard. During the penalty kill, Evan Bouchard scored a last-second empty net goal for a 3-1 defeat of Carolina. The Canes went 1-3-0 and second place is absolutely up for grabs as a result.
What’s Coming Up in This Week: Carolina will wrap up this weekend with a home game against Calgary. They will also have impact on the wild card race. Carolina visits Detroit on Tuesday and hosts Boston on Thursday. The Canes will be off until the following Sunday, so they have time to rest and trade. They need to get it together. They could end up in third place at this rate. Or, worse, fourth.
New Jersey Devils
Saturday vs Dallas – The Devils hosted Dallas on Saturday. Their final home game until the NHL Trade Deadline day of March 7. New Jersey started the game fine. Until the team forgot about Evgeny Dadanov, who buried a shot pass to open the scoring in the first. Later, Brenden Dillon decided to punch a separated Lian Bischel in open ice. He took an unsportsmanlike conduct call for that and Thomas Harley punished it for a 2-0 deficit. This held due to Casey DeSmith playing well. Then, in the third, Jack Hughes buried a one timer for a power play goal to make it 2-1. The Devils responded with a sleepy shift that Matt Duchene scored on for 3-1. Then Hughes made it 3-2 with another banger of a one timer. The Devils tried to push for an equalizer. But one would not come. An empty netter would seal a 4-2 loss at home.
Sunday at Nashville – Nico Daws took to the net for the Devils and he was awesome. Nashville took loads of shots (84 attempts!!) and some of them were even on target. Daws got them all. He goalied the Devils. All while the Devils pulled away on the scoreboard. Luke Hughes set up Ondrej Palat for the game’s first goal. Dougie Hamilton scored on a perfect shot from the outside of the left circle for 2-0. Seamus Casey put in a long wrister off a post and in for 3-0. In the third, Stefan Noesen hammered in a one timer for a PPG for a 4-0 score. Then Tomas Tatar scored with a shot that went off a skate. Daws kept the shutout and the Devils won big, 5-0.
Wednesday at Colorado – The Devils began their game in Colorado getting rushed down and rolled over. It took a counter-attack for Artturi Lehkonen to beat Jake Allen in front for an early deficit. Allen and Dougie Hamilton combined to keep the score reachable. The Devils got their bearings in the second but did not get anything past Mackenzie Blackwood. The third period would be decisive. An early period slashing call on Luke Hughes was punished by Nathan MacKinnon to put the Devils down two. Minutes after that, Jack Hughes brought the Devils within a shot to tie it up. A shot that never came thanks to Ondrej Palat tripping Martin Necas. MacKinnon batted in a power play goal to put the Devils down 3-1. Minutes later, Casey Mittelstadt made it 4-1 and Logan O’Connor one-touched in a Parker Kelly shot for 5-1. Jake Allen took himself out as the Devils lost big, 5-1.
Saturday at Utah – The Devils needed to make things right in Salt Lake City after that loss to Colorado, knowing they have a tough one in Las Vegas the next night. They did so. Nico Daws was strong in the net all night long. The Devils went up first when Luke Hughes fired a shot and Nico Hischier put home the rebound. The second period saw the Devils struggle to extend the lead. Then Curtis Lazar threw a hit on Liam O’Brien, Nathan Bastian lost a puck battle, and the puck stayed in for O’Brien to set up Mikhail Sergachev for a one-timer equalizer. But the Devils roared back in the third. After weeks of not scoring, Timo Meier rocketed a shot past Karel Vejmelka for a 2-1 lead early in the third. Later on, a mishandle by Jack Hughes went right to Lazar, whom fired a shot on net. And it went in for 3-1. The Devils held on to prevail and split their week at 2-2-0.
What’s Coming Up in This Week: The Devils will finish up their weekend Las Vegas tonight. They will end their 5 game road trip in Dallas on Tuesday. Then the Devils return on Deadline Day to host Winnipeg. This is a very difficult week given all three opponents are very good. Results this week can only help the Devils’ cause. They have been given the gift of Carolina sliding along so they can do more than just worry about holding onto third. Second place is possible with a good week. Although, they would probably want the team behind them to cool off.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Saturday vs. Chicago. Columbus returned to their season at home against Chicago. It went well for the Blue Jackets. Kent Johnson opened the scoring in the first period. He doubled Columbus’ lead early in the second too; he converted a power play from a late first period penalty on Nick Foligno. Chicago made it a one shot game a bit later when Craig Smith tipped in an Alex Vlasic shot for a PPG. No worries for Columbus. Denton Mateychuk scored later in the second to make it 3-1. The Blue Jackets pulled away in the third. Zach Werenski scored one on one to make it 4-1. Adam Fantilli scored shortly thereafter. Columbus won decisively, 5-1.
Tuesday vs. Dallas – The Blue Jackets had a tougher task when they hosted Dallas on Tuesday. They rose to the challenge. It helped that they had a 2-0 lead within the first five minutes. Kirill Marchenko scored 30 seconds into the game. Mathieu Olivier made it 2-0 on a tip in of a Damon Severson shot. Dallas would not be far behind though. Jamie Benn scored minutes later to make it 2-1. In the second period, Marchenko scored early for a 3-1 lead. And Ivan Provorov scored for 4-1. Roope Hintz made it 4-2 shortly after Provorov’s goal. Jason Robertson made it a one-shot game again later in the second. Columbus got some relief in the third when James van Reimsdyk one-touched a puck from Sean Kuraly. This held up until the final 3 minutes. Mavrik Bourque made it 5-4 with over 2 minutes left. The pressure returned. It was eased in the final minute with an empty netter by Fantilli. The Blue Jackets held off Dallas for a 6-4 win.
Thursday at Detroit – This game would be a warmup for the big one at the Horseshoe on Saturday. It also had implications for the wild card. It took a period but the game’s score blew up in the second period. Alex DeBrincat struck for Detroit 27 seconds into the period. James van Riemsdyk tipped in an equalizer close to four minutes later. Before the halfway mark, Sean Kuraly batted in a puck for a 2-1 Columbus lead. Kent Johnson added a tip-in goal minutes later for 3-1. Van Reimsdyk made it a brace and a 4-1 lead with just under five minutes left. Detroit would get a power play thanks to a Damon Severson hooking call afterwards. It was quickly punished by J.T. Compher. Still, the Blue Jackets were up 4-2 and just needed to maintain in the third. Which they did as Kirill Marchenko sealed up a 5-2 win. It was a third straight win and a big warmup ahead of their Stadium Series game.
Saturday Stadium Series Game vs Detroit – Say what you want about the promotion for this game, but it was the second largest attendance for a NHL regular season game ever at the Horseshoe. It was also a massive night for Elvis Merzlikins as he faced a whopping 46 shots on net. Columbus forgot the defense at Nationwide. Of course, the Red Wings were chasing the game. After a scoreless first period, Denton Mateychuk opened the scoring in the second period. Alex DeBrincat tied it up to punish a Dante Fabbro interference call. Late in the second, Mortiz Seider tripped Kirill Marchenko and Dmitri Voronkov punished that. Right on the next shift, Mathieu Olivier put in a backhander for a 3-1 lead. Detroit threw everything at the Jackets in the third to catch up. Patrick Kane put them within a goal early in the third. With over three minutes later, they got their equalizer thanks to Alex DeBrincat. But Columbus would have a hero emerge: Justin Danforth. Yes, the Justin Danforth. He scored over a minute late to make it 4-3. Detroit was stunned. They pulled their goalie. But the Jackets would get the empty netter with over a minute left thanks to Adam Fantilli. The Blue Jackets won at the Horseshoe 5-3. They went 2-0 against a Detroit team competing with them for the same wild card berths. They went 4-0-0 in the week after the 4 Nations Face-Off. They are hot and they are probably looking even higher than just WC #1. Look out, Devils and Hurricanes.
What’s Coming Up in This Week: It will be a short week for the Blue Jackets. They have two games coming up, both on the road and in the Sunshine State. On Tuesday, they will be in Tampa Bay. On Thursday, they will be in Sunrise to play Florida. Two tough games. At least they’ll be rested to a point for each. They need to get those points to keep the pressure up on New Jersey and Carolina – as well as to keep ahead of Detroit, Ottawa, Boston, Montreal, and the fifth place team in the division.
New York Rangers
Saturday at Buffalo – The New York Rangers resumed to their season in Upstate NY. They needed a harder reset. The Rangers were blown out by the Sabres. The first period alone was a rout. Jack Quinn scored 106 seconds into the game. Then, close to the 12 minute mark, the Sabres ran up 4 goals: A tip in for Rasmus Dahlin, a backhander from Tage Thompson, a tip in by Ryan McLeod, and Dahlin converted a Sam Carrick-caused power play. The Rangers were cooked at 5-0. They would get on the board in the second period. Chris Kreider punished a Beck Malenstyn tripping penalty. Later in the second, Mika Zibanejad batted in a puck from Adam Fox for 5-2. Both were consolation goals. That was ensured with Buffalo scoring more in the third period. Thompson, McLeod, and a last-minute one from Henri Jokiharju ended it at 8-2. 8-2! To Buffalo! Brutal!
Sunday at Pittsburgh- The Rangers needed to make things better in their next game. They did so at the expense of Pittsburgh. A tip in goal by Evgeni Malkin halfway through the first was answered with a late period PPG by Will Cuylle for a 1-1 score at intermission. Late in the second, J.T. Miller put the Rangers up a goal. However, the Pens hit back in the third period. Ryan Shea tied it up 57 seconds in and he made it 3-2 for the Pens 3:31 in. The Rangers would recover. Jimmy Vesey scored shortly after to tie it up. Adam Fox broke the tie past the halfway mark. Miller sealed up the 5-3 win with an empty net goal. A much needed win for the Rangers. If only to remove some of the bitterness from the 8-2 loss to Buffalo.
Tuesday at New York Islanders – The Rangers visited their hated rivals in the Islanders on Tuesday. The Rangers piled it on and never looked back. Urho Vaakanainen opened the scoring for the Rangers. Alexander Romanov tied it up, but Jonny Brodzinkski scored twice to put the Rangers up 3-1 by the first intermission. Miller added a fourth goal in the second. Matt Rempe tipped in a fifth. The Rangers could cruise to a win and they did so. A 5-1 win over a hated rival is always a good thing. The only downside was that Adam Fox picked up a significant enough upper body injury to go on injured reserve. Given that Fox is the Rangers’ best defenseman, this is a significant issue.
Friday vs. Toronto – The Rangers returned to MSG to host Toronto. The Rangers did their best to pin back the Maple Leafs. They even out-shot them 14-4 in the first period. Only that one of those four shots was a PPG by Oliver Ekman-Larsson within the first two minutes. The Rangers would tie it up later on in the first when Mika Zibanejad tipped in a Will Borgen shot to tie it up. But Toronto struck again in a more even shooting (9-7) period. William Nylander poked a shot within the first minute to make it 2-1. The Rangers rose up in the third to tie it up early on. While killing a Sam Carrick penalty, Will Cuylle rushed up to put in a shorthanded goal to make it 2-2. But while the Rangers outshot Toronto 12-6, one of those six did go in after the Cuylle equalizer. Matthew Knies finished a pass in front by Auston Matthews. That put New York down 3-2 and they would not recover. The Rangers lost and split their week. They remain behind plenty of teams in the wild card race.
What’s Coming Up in This Week: The Rangers will get to play four games in seven nights. At least three are at home. The Blueshirts will host Nashville on Sunday and the Islanders on Monday. Favorable matchups given the state of the Predators’ season and what happened against the Isles last week. On Wednesday, the Rangers will get a tougher matchup against Washington. Their week will end on Saturday afternoon in Ottawa – a big game for the wildcard.
Philadelphia Flyers
Saturday vs. Edmonton – The Philadelphia Flyers came back from the break to host Edmonton. They would surprise more than a few with the result. The Flyers did strike first with a Matvei Michkov goal. The Oilers responded with a quick double; a goal each from John Klingberg (his first with the Oilers) and Leon Draisaitl. The 2-1 score held until the Flyers pulled away in the second period. Owen Tippett, who returned to action in this game, put home a backhander to make it 2-2 early in the second. Sean Couturier put Philly up a goal later on. Mattias Ekholm would make it 3-3 for Edmonton over a minute later. That held until Tippett scored his second of the night over 12 minutes. Klingberg high-sticked Andrei Kuzmenko after that and Kuzmenko punished the penalty with a power play goal for a 5-3 lead. The Flyers were able to hold on to that until the final minutes. Rasmus Ristolainen added an empty netter to secure a 6-3 win over one of the contending teams out of the Western Conference.
Tuesday vs. Pittsburgh – The Pennsylvania Rivalry resumed and this one was pretty much all Flyers. Philly went up early and never looked back in this blowout. They came out strong. They got first period goals from Ristolainen and Noah Cates. While Philip Tomasino made it a 2-1 game early in the second, the Flyers responded in a big way after the halfway mark. Tyson Foerster, Cates, and Bobby Brink each scored to put the Flyers up 5-1 by the second intermission. The Penguins were stunned and, more importantly, defeated. The Flyers added a sixth goal from Tippett to put an exclamation mark on the night. A massive 6-1 win over a rival opponent. Surely, the home fans loved this one.
Thursday at Pittsburgh – The rivalry would continue for a game in Pittsburgh. It seemed like the Flyers would pick up where they left off. Cates scored early. The Flyers went up 3-0 with second period goals from Tippett and Michkov. However, Alex Nedeljkovic was yanked and Joel Blomqvist came in. This seemingly sparked the Penguins to do something different – and they did. Within a minute (specifically, the ninth one of the second period), Tomasino and Erik Karlsson made it a 3-2 game. The Flyers would pull ahead with a PPG by Michkov to punish a Bokondji Imama interference call on Garnet Hathaway. However, Karlsson would put the Penguins within one late in the second. Worse, Evgeni Malkin tied up the game early in the third. Despite the Flyers peppering Blomqvist with pucks and keeping the Pens to just four shots in the third, the lead would not be restored. Overtime was needed. There, the Flyers got caught. Somehow, they were in a 2-on-1 situation against Letang and Malkin while the Pens were changing. Malkin got the pass, waited for Jamie Drysdale to slide past him, and beat Ersson straight up for the game. The Flyers blew the lead and the second point to the Penguins in a 5-4 overtime loss. Not at all what they needed if they wanted to break from the Pens in the standings.
Saturday at Winnipeg – The Flyers went into a tough place – Manitoba – and prevailed. They kept the Jets to one goal in regulation: a Mark Scheifele halfway through the first period. The Flyers would tie it up early in the second period thanks to Jamie Drysdale. The goalies, Ivan Fedotov and Connor Hellebuyck, dominated the majority of the game. The game not only needed overtime, it needed a shootout for either goalie to be beaten a second time. There, Fedotov was perfect. Hellebuyck was beaten by Matvei Michkov. The Flyers won 2-1 in a shootout. Enough to put them up to sixth place and win the week at 3-0-1. It may be too late for them but a win in Winnipeg is a big plus.
What’s Coming Up in This Week: Philly begins a seven game homestead this week. They will be hosting Calgary, Winnipeg, and Seattle on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday afternoon respectively. It may be too late to contend, but they have two games to showcase some players before Friday’s deadline.
New York Islanders
Sunday vs. Dallas – The Islanders had the benefit of being off on Saturday and having to host a Dallas team that played (and won) in Newark the night before. They did not take advantage. In fact, they went down a goal early by conceding one to Sam Steel 2:10 into the game. Pierre Engvall would tie it up early in the second period. Then it became the Jason Robertson show. Robertson would put the Stars back up a goal. Kyle Palmieri would tie it up on the shift after that one. Then Casey Cizikas took a match penalty against Lian Bischel and that led to an extended power play. One that Robertson scored twice in. He put up a second period hat trick to ultimately put the Stars up 4-2. The Isles would make an effort to come back. Anthony Duclair scored with over ten minutes left in regulation in the third period to make it a one-shot game. But that one shot would not get past Jake Oettinger. The Isles fell short, 4-3.
Tuesday vs. New York Rangers – The Islanders came out flat and got flattened by the one team the Islanders fans would never want to see them flatten their favorites: the New York Rangers. The first period saw Urho Vaakanainen open the scoring, Alexander Romanov tie it up, and then a double from Jonny Brodzinski. The Isles were down 3-1 to two of the least likely scorers on the Rangers. In the second period, one of the more likely scorers in J.T. Miller put the Isles down further at 4-1. Matt Rempe would add a tip-in goal of a Brodzinski shot to make it 5-1 late in the second. The Isles had no answer and their hated rivals cruised to a win at their expense. Add in the fact that both teams are fighting for the same playoff spot and it makes the 5-1 loss sting even more. Brutal.
Thursday at Boston – The Islanders needed something positive in this wild-card match up game. They would get it thanks in large part to Ilya Sorokin. The B’s owned the run of play by out-shooting the Islanders 39-20. Sorokin stopped almost all of those 39 shots. Even better, the Isles gave him a lead to work with. Alexander Romanov opened the scoring with a late first period goal. Kyle Palmieri put the Isles up 2-0 early in the second. Drama would ensue within the final ten minutes. David Pastrnak made it a 2-1 game with just under ten minutes left in regulation. But Sorokin was up to the task and the Isles held on for a tight regulation 2-1 win.
Saturday vs Nashville – The Islanders put the Preds to the sword and never stopped slashing. The first period saw the Isles go up 3-0. Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored early. Kyle Palmieri put in a power play goal past midway. Bo Horvat added another with 29 seconds left in the first. Nashville would get on the board early in the second with Colton Sissons. Only for Brock Nelson to take the game back with a shorthanded goal. After the penalty was killed, Marc Del Gaizo scored for Nashville to make it 4-2. It took longer but Nelson made it a three-goal game again late in the second. It was all for consolation at this point. Casey Cizikas ensured that with a goal early in the third. Cole Smith did score a brace. Enough to make Nashville pull their goalie late. Only for Ilya Sorokin to stop a shot, Steven Stamkos take the long rebound, and miss a pass to his defenseman. All the way for the puck to go in the net. Yes, Sorokin got credit for the goal. Just like Billy Smith did all those years ago. The Islanders won 7-4 to split their week. They fell to seventh and their odds remain on the lower end for making it. Of course, if there is one team that just does not go away easily, then it is the Islanders.
What’s Coming Up in This Week: The Isles will have a back to back set before embarking on a California road trip after the trade deadline. The Islanders will visit MSG to play the Rangers on Monday. They surely would want some revenge for last Tuesday’s loss. The Isles will have a tougher game on Tuesday. They will host Winnipeg, one of the league’s best. The California trip starts on Saturday in San Jose. They need to make this week work out in their favor. Easier said than done.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Saturday vs. Washington – The Penguins resumed their season against the Capitals. It went badly. Not at first. Ethen Frank opened the scoring and Kris Letang tied it up late in the first period with a power play goal. All good. Then the Capitals went on a run that sank the Penguins on this night. Martin Fehervary put the Pens down a goal. Sidney Crosby responded with a backhander. Then the Penguins conceded four straight in the second period: two to Jakob Chychrun, one to Aliaksei Protas, and one to Tom Wilson. It was technically five straight goals as Dylan Strome converted a power play within the final ten minutes of regulation. A Danton Heinen goal was pure consolation after that one. Even that was responded with a late Brandon Duhaime score. The Penguins were embarassed in an 8-3 loss. The pain would continue on.
Sunday vs. New York Rangers – The Penguins hosted the Rangers on Sunday in an important game for the wild card race. It was close for the majority of this 60 minute game. Evgeni Malkin even put the Penguins up first with a tip-in of a Cody Glass feed. Unfortunately, Kris Letang took a tripping penalty and Will Cuylle punished it late in the first to make it a 1-1 game. In the second period, the Penguins went down a score when J.T. Miller put home a puck late for a 2-1 deficit. One that would be answered quickly in the third. Ryan Shea scored twice within the first four minutes of the third to flip the score to a 3-2 lead. One that did not last long as Jimmy Vesey scored to tie it up less than a minute after Shea’s second goal. Adam Fox broke the deadlock with over eight minutes left and the Pens had no recourse. Miller secured a 5-3 loss for Pittsburgh with an empty net goal. More pain? More pain.
Tuesday at Philadelphia – Maybe a rivalry game would lift the spirits of the Penguins. If nothing else, beating a rival is always a positive. Problem: the Penguins were the ones to get beaten in this one. Badly. The first period featured 15 shots by Philly to Pittsburgh’s six and one goal each from Rasmus Ristolainen and Noah Cates. In the second period, Philip Tomasino made it a one-shot game. Then after the halfway mark of the second, the Flyers opened the flood gates. Tyson Foerster made it 3-1. Cates made it 4-1 with over a minute left. Bobby Brink made it 5-1 ten seconds later on a deflection. The Pens were cooked. Owen Tippett made it a touchdown with a wrister over six minutes into the third. The Penguins got waxed 6-1.
Thursday vs. Philadelphia – Revenge would be hoped for in this one for the Penguins. Even being competitive would be hoped for given how badly Tuesday’s game went. This one took some turns. At first, it seemed like the game would be a continuation of the beating on Tuesday. Noah Cates scored two minutes to put the Pens down early. Owen Tippett scored early in the second and Matvei Michkov scored later on to make it a 3-0 game. After the Michkov goal, Alex Nedeljkovic was pulled and Joel Blomqvist came in. Somehow, this sparked the Pens to try for a comeback. One made possible when Philip Tomasino beat Sam Ersson with a backhander and Erik Karlsson scored on a slapshot within a minute of each other. It was a 3-2 game. One that Philly pulled back to 4-2 when Michkov punished an interference call on Bokondji Imama. Yet, the Pens still clawed back another goal when Karlsson scored within the final minutes of the period. Early in the third, Evgeni Malkin scored to tie it up. Philly owned the shots at 14-4 in the third, but Blomqvist was perfect. Pittsburgh managed to drag the game to overtime. There, Letang and Malkin caught the Flyers in a 2-on-1 despite the Pens changing guys. Malkin waited out a defender to slide away and beat Ersson straight up for the overtime winner. A huge 5-4 win to at least make up for Tuesday’s embarrassment.
Saturday vs. Boston – The Penguins hosted Boston and they did not build on their win over the Flyers. The B’s went up early. David Pastrnak scored over a minute-and-a-half into the game. Mason Lohrei punished an Evgeni Malkin hooking call against him to make it 2-0. The Penguins had no answer until the third period. Even then it took until the 14 minute mark for Anthony Beauvillier to get the Pens on the board with a shorthanded goal. But the B’s would hold on. While killing a double-minor on Cole Koepke for high-sticking, Charlie Coyle put in an empty net goal. Which mattered as Rickard Rakell scored on that power play seconds after that. It made it close but still a loss at 3-2. A poor week for the Penguins that all but realistically knocked them out of the playoffs.
What’s Coming Up in This Week: The Penguins have two games before the deadline and one on the deadline itself. All three will be tough matchups. On Sunday afternoon, the Pens will host Toronto. On Tuesday, the Pens will make a trip to Denver to play the Avalanche. On Deadline Day, the Penguins will be in Las Vegas. It remains to be seen how many Penguins from today will still be Penguins by next week’s snapshot.
That was the eighteenth Metropolitan Division snapshot of the season. The one before the break was the seventeenth and the check-in was a special edition. We are back on track with a wild card watch and everything. Now that you know what happened and what will happen next, it is now your turn. Are the Capitals finally cooling off? Who will prevail between the Carolina Hurricanes and New Jersey Devils? Is this the season for the Columbus Blue Jackets? Can the Rangers spoil them? What do the Islanders, Flyers, and Penguins really have to play for? Please leave your answers and other thoughts about the week that was for all eight teams in the division and the week ahead for them. Thank you for reading.