The Islanders won against the Buffalo Sabres last night, great play by 4th line C Casey Cizikas who had a goal and an assist in that game, Sorokin played like Sorokin which helped the Islanders win this critical game for the Wild Card Race.
Hudson Fasching (along with the rest of the 3rd and 4th lines), led the charge yesterday. Fasching has been nothing short of a perfect fit on this team since becoming a full time starter a few months ago. He fits very well on the 4th line alongside Cizikas and Martin. And there is already mutual interest in an extension for him for a cheap price. Something the Isles should get done this off-season.
Jean-Gabriel Pageau is skating and practicing with the team per reports, he’ll probably be back next week as he’s been on the IR for about a month to this point. He’s been a crucial part of this team. When he (and Barzal) for that matter both return among other injured players, this team is gonna have such a good chance at making a run next year when fully healthy; the lines speak for themselves;
Wahlstrom-Horvat-Barzal
Lee-Nelson-Palmeri
Engvall-Pageau-Parise
Martin-Cizikas-Fasching
Pelech-Pulock
Romanov-Mayfield
Aho-Dobson
Sorokin
Varlomov
Speaking of Sebastion Aho, he’s really picked up his play lately, defensively he’s provided a lot of value down the stretch for the Isles, including multiple blocked shots in yesterday’s win, Aho was ripped at the beginning of the season even past the All-Star break due to his poor performance, but he has picked it up when it’s mattered and he’s been one of the Isles most valuable defencemen since the All-Star break.
Isles Leading Close Wild Card Race
The Isles currently stand at the top of the Wild Card standings with a 33-25-8 record for 74 points, 1 point ahead of 2nd place Pittsburgh who the Isles play on Wednesday. another crucial game for the Isles. Teams like Buffalo, Florida, Ottawa, Washington, and Detroit also continue to hang around in the stacked Eastern Conference. The Islanders playing another essential must win game against the Penguins to separate themselves from the pack, and maybe think about catching the 3rd in the metro New York Rangers, who the Isles are just 5 points behind. Though Rangers have games in hand, it definitely isn’t an impossibility if the Isles keep playing how they have over the last few weeks.
BS Reports 
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