The New York Islanders meet with the Pittsburgh Penguins in their fifth and final meeting of the regular season in a game that is a matchup of Atlantic Division rivals. The Penguins have a 14-game win streak and are just three games shy of beating the NHL record. The Islanders are tied for the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference and need this win to held cement their spot in the post season. It would be the franchise's first Stanley Cup Playoffs birth in six years.
The Islanders have won three straight games to put them tied with the New York Rangers for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. A shootout victory against the Philadelphia Flyers put them tied in the points standings. John Tavares is leading the team with 21 goals this season and has scored in three consecutive games for the Islanders. New York has won four straight road games as well this season which will be a good matchup for Pittsburgh's 14-4 record at home. Goalie Evgeni Nabokov has a 4.16 goals-against average this season, but he has a 2.13 GAA verse Pittsburgh which will help the team Saturday.
The Penguins have been making headlines in March with their impressive win streak. The will debut the newly acquired Jerome Iginla who came over to the team from Calgary. Sidney Crosby is having an MVP style season, leading the league with 41 assists and 56 points. Evgeni Malkin is also back in the lineup after a nine-game absence which will make the game a lot easier for Pittsburgh. Goalie Marc-Andre Fleury is out with an undisclosed injury. Tomas Vokoun will make the start in the net. He is 5-0-0 with a 1.67 GAA in his last five starts.
