We Want Playoffs: Islanders Playoff Scenarios Best and Worst

Over the past few home games Islanders fans have been very loud and clear with on point, they want playoffs. It has been very clear that the team has responded with an unprecedented 7-1-1 run over their last nine games. This run has bolstered the Islanders to 44 points tied for 6th best in the Eastern Conference. Why is the 6th seed so important? Well, the 6th seed plays the 3rd seen, which is given to the team that is leading their division with the least amount of points. As the standings currently sit the Washington Capitals have that spot with only 44 points. If the Islanders can capture that 6th seed that get a very favorable match up and chance to win a playoff series for the first time in about 20 years.





The 6th Seed: Unfortunately the Islanders currently do not control their fate for the 6th seed as the Senators currently have that as they have played one less game than both the Islanders and Rangers. But, if the Islanders, Senators and Rangers all have the same amount of points, the Islanders would gain the 6th seed as the have the most wins not including shoot outs. They current sit at 17, two above the Senators (15) and one more than the Rangers (16). April 16th is key date on the calendar. That is when schedules finally line up and the Islanders could gain control of their own destiny. The key game for Islanders will be April 13th at home against the Rangers. A regulation win there would give them two points and another win over the Rangers, therefore would have every tie breaker in their favor.

The 7th Seed: This where the Islanders currently sit, in 7th place. Assuming the Senators pick up at least one point in the extra game they have in hand, the Islanders just need to play even with the Rangers and the 7th spot is theirs. This isn’t the worst spot to be as they would play the 2nd seed, which as it stands is the Montreal Canadians. The Islanders went(2-1) against the Canadians this year and this could turn into a favorable match-up. Not as good as the 6th seed but if the Islanders have dreams of getting to the second round, this would be last hope. 

The 8th Seed: Just as easy as the 6th seed is available to the Islanders, so is the 8th seed. As previously stated, a match-up with the Rangers on the 13th could very well decided who gets the 8th seed, as it could fall to the loser. With the Devils and Winnipeg not playing very well in their last 10 games, the Islanders would need some sort of free fall in order to not get the 8th seed. But as we have seed over the last few years the Islanders can go a month where they on get 3-5 points. If the Islanders fall the 8th seed it would be an absolute disaster. It would mean they would face off against the re-tooled 1st seed Pittsburgh Penguins. The Islanders played to a (1-4) record against the Penguins, which in a 7 game series, means they would be done in 5 games. Here are the remaining match-ups for the three teams fighting for the 6th seed:

Islanders	Rangers	Senators
Bruins 4/11	Islanders 4/13	Flyers 4/11
Rangers 4/13	Flyers 4/16	Devils 4/12
Panthers 4/16	Panthers 4/18	Bruins 4/15
Maple Leafs 4/18	Sabres 4/19	Hurricanes 4/16
Jets 4/20	Devils 4/21	Capitals 4/18
Hurricans 4/23	Panthers 4/23	Maple Leafs 4/20
Flyers 4/25	Hurricaes 4/25	Penguins 4/22
Sabres 2/26	Devils 4/27	Capitals 4/25
---	---	Flyers 4/27