Islanders clip Penguins for key win in first of home-and-home matchup
NY Post
Nobody said it outright in the lead up to the first of a back-to-back, home-and-home matchup with the Penguins on Saturday, but winning this set of games — or at least avoiding a sweep — was as essential a task as the Islanders have faced all season.
For weeks now, the Islanders have hung around on the periphery of the playoff race, too far back to really be a factor, but close enough that a three-game winning streak could in theory vault them above the cutline.
If they’d lost both games to the Penguins, though?
Well, Pittsburgh came into Saturday four points ahead of the Islanders and a point behind Ottawa, which occupied the last playoff spot.
You can do the math on how it would have looked had the Islanders lost a pair of four-point games.
Whether or not they can do more than keep the race at a stasis remains to be seen until Sunday’s match in Pittsburgh.
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New Jets coach Aaron Glenn will stand in front of his team on Monday as the Jets begin their offseason program.
He will be tempting, of course, because by the time all is said and done, Kevin Durant will be on the short list of the greatest players in NBA history. Top 10? Maybe. Top 20? For sure.
So, another game like this winds up in the void column, with a void of scoring accompanied by a void of emotion, and you can select which is the chicken and which is the egg in this scenario.
Carlos Mendoza thought about it.
ATLANTA — Clearly upset that he was pulled before he could get a triple-double, Josh Hart stormed off the court with 90 seconds remaining, but both he and coach Tom Thibodeau took the flare-up in stride.
If you think that winning two playoff series with John Tortorella behind the bench over the 12 years after he left Broadway in 2013 looks good on his résumé and is worth the angst that always accompanies one of his administrations, be my guest and by all means hire this coach who essentially fired himself again last week in Philadelphia.
PITTSBURGH — For a second straight game, Cody Bellinger was out of the Yankees’ lineup on Saturday.
SAN ANTONIO – “Why not?”
A large contingent of Giants coaches, front office, scouts and personnel members were in Colorado on Friday. It had nothing to do with a ski vacation.
It’s going to cost you if you want to see Alex Ovechkin have a chance to break Wayne Gretzky’s NHL career goal-scoring mark on Sunday against the Islanders.
ATLANTA — The captain and his guards were officially back.
The Giants are going to need a bigger plane.
It appears as though the other Rangers prospect at Boston College is staying put.