There are a handful of times each year when fan loyalties are put aside in favor of certain results that are favorable to playoff position. This is one of those nights.
The free-falling Rangers face those juggernauts from the West, the Colorado Avalanche. Meanwhile, the Islanders face the Buffalo Sabres, who are 8th in the East with 69 points, just one behind the Rangers. It's too early to be doing all this, right? Wrong. If the Sabres beat the Islanders and the Rangers don't take advantage of two gift points againt an awful Colorado team playing 2000 miles from home, the Rangers are in deep trouble. Because if these things happen and if Pittsburgh beats Dallas, the Rangers will find themselves out of the East's top eight. That might not sound like a big deal, but Rangers fans are furious and the players are under a ton of pressure. They don't need to add to this by dropping out of a playoff spot, something that will surely get the fans even madder than they already are. Islanders fans, on the other hand, would love nothing more than to put the screws to their biggest rivals; with a considerable cushion at the bottom of the league, this is a win they'd love to have.
Again, another quality night. It's always awesome to see these teams play on the same night. I just wish they'd start 30 minutes apart so they wouldn't go to intermission at the same time.
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