East Division Update - February 8th

Today, I got a good one for y'all. This matchup is still a pretty darn good rivalry, even if it's not as nasty as it used to be back in the 80's. This battles features the New York Islanders and the New York Rangers. This game turned out to be a good one, tight right down to the wire. Coming into tonight's matchup, the teams had both won their previous games, with the Rangers winning in Washington 4-2, and the Islanders beating Pittsburgh at home, 4-3.

(Photo from Getty Images)

ISLANDERS @ RANGERS

The contests between these two is always a little intense, given their storied past's and never fails to entertain. This particular game was no exception to that, with the game coming down to the wire. The goaltending was on full display tonight, with Rangers Alex Georgiev and Islanders Simian Varlomov putting on a show. The two netminders stopped 28 shots a piece, to preserve a scoreless game until about six minutes left in the third period. However, this score would not last, as the young and inexperienced Rangers "D" turned over a puck in their own zone. The mistake led to a few chances for the Isles, ultimately being put home by center Casey Cizikas. This put pressure on the Rangers, and forced another mistake in their own end, which led to a bounce off the leg of Matt Martin, and an extended Isles lead. The Rangers would push a bit late, but ultimately fall 2-0. This win was a hard fought one for the Islanders, and the Rangers should've been proud of their effort (besides the late mistakes). The New York Rangers are getting better, and are starting to gel as a team, but it will take a bit longer for them to be entirely as dangerous as they can be. As for the Isles, Barry Trotz's message to the team of a tight defense continues to sink in, especially in close games.