Islanders Gameday News: Officially cooked

It has probably been true for a while, but you can’t even squint your way into seeing hope. Enjoy Brent Sutter Night.

This New York Islanders core is officially cooked.

They are eight points back of a playoff spot and 15th in the Eastern Conference, just two points ahead of the last-place Buffalo Sabres. Not only is the points deficit too large to close, they would have to hop over seven teams, almost all of whom are playing way better and looking a lot more inspired than this country club of a team. It was probably a stretch to think they were back in the race after their last-minute win over Utah this past Saturday, but it gave us a reason to care—and seemed to give the team a reason to care.

Come home after a big and successful road trip riding their first three-game win streak of the season and play seven games, many of them against teams you’d have been battling for a playoff berth, in front of your own fans who were finally juiced up about something for the first time since Opening Night.

And then, two utter duds. Two ugly laid eggs in which the same guys who looked pumped after that win in Utah looked like they decided they didn’t give a shit anymore.

And you know what? Neither do I. Neither do a lot of us. Why should we? Any time it seemed like they were going to give us a reason to care, they wiped their asses with it. It’s miserable; watching these games feels like a chore. Everything about this team, from the top on down, is completely stale.

Speaking of chores, they host the San Jose Sharks tonight at UBS Arena, before which they will honor Brent Sutter by inducting him into the Islanders Hall of Fame or Ring of Honor or whatever. They might win tonight, but who even cares.

FIG picks go here.

Islanders News

• Recaps from the latest debacle: LHH | Islanders | Newsday | Post | THN | Skinny
• The last two games were so bad that they necessitated an emergency Islanders Anxiety episode stating much of what I wrote above. [LHH]
• A preview of tonight’s game. Simon Holmstrom participated in practice yesterday. [Islanders] Patrick Roy said he and Alex Romanov will take warmups and are game-time decisions. [Twitter] And the Hog will be in net. [THN]
• Max Tsyplakov will not be in tonight, or the two games after that: he was suspended for his hit on Ryan Poehling the other night against the Flyers. [Post | THN]
• The most interesting part of tonight’s game is surely the Brent Sutter honoring. Look back on his Islanders career. [Islanders] And spend a day at his ranch with him. [Islanders]
• Now that the Isles Hall of Fame has been reopened, four more Isles who should be in there. [THN]
• Like a broken record: the Islanders need some offense. [Newsday]
• Anthony Duclair is still struggling with his injury. [Post]
• Seems like the Canucks regret choosing JT Miller over Bo Horvat. [THN]

Elsewhere

Only two games last night: the Penguins toppling the Sabres and the Hurricanes holding on against the Golden Knights. More games Thursday night.

• Alex Nedeljkovic scored a goalie goal and had an assist while stopping 38 of 40 shots. Not a bad night. [NHL]
• Might this be Canada’s best chance at finally winning a Cup? We’ll see, but a ranking of who is most likely. [Sportsnet]
• It’s not quite as dire as the Isles yet, but the Bruins are in danger, too. [Sportsnet]