NHL : Isles Continue Playoff Push in Philly

The New York Islanders are fifth in the Metropolitan Division, but that could still earn them a spot in the NHL playoffs. Their quest for a Wild Card berth continues Thursday night on the road versus the Philadelphia Flyers. MSG+ and CSN provide local coverage starting at 7 PM ET.

The Flyers are technically still in the race, too, but with seven games remaining in their regular season, they need to play some serious catch-up. That’s going to be difficult with Philly’s goaltending duo of Steve Mason (.906 save percentage) and Michal Neuvirth (.890 SV%) struggling this year. The Flyers are also 22nd overall in scoring at 2.55 goals per game despite having some of the best puck possession stats in the league.

New York doesn’t control the puck nearly as well as Philadelphia, but the Isles have gotten decent results from No. 1 netminder Thomas Greiss (.914 SV%). Unfortunately for the Isles, health became an issue last week when RW Ryan Strome (13 goals, 17 assists) broke his wrist and LW Nikolai Kulemin (12 goals, 10 assists) suffered an undisclosed upper-body injury. It’s possible Kulemin will be ready for Thursday’s game, but Strome is expected to miss 3 to 6 weeks.

NHL Odds: Islanders-Flyers at the WFC

Losing won’t be an option when the New York Islanders visit the Philadelphia Flyers this Thursday (7 PM ET). A Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference is up for grabs, and both New York and Philadelphia are on the wrong side of the bubble – especially the Flyers, who need to make up at least seven points with only seven games remaining on their schedule.

The Islanders aren’t in quite as much peril. They’ve outperformed Philly this year, but their regular-season series is tied 1-1-1. The Flyers beat them once in overtime and once in a shootout.