The New York Islanders are heading back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs and will face the Carolina Hurricanes in the opening round for the second straight year.
Last season, the Islanders played much better against the Hurricanes than many expected them to but were still ousted in six games.
Nelson
We’ve gone a little run to get into the postseason, but at the same time, we need to reset. It’s a best of seven, and it’s a war. It’s going to be tough. There’s going to be tight checking, but everything goes back to zero.
They play tight, in your face and up-tempo. You got to break out extremely well. They’re aggressive and have D that get up and play up in your face on the wings and get involved in the offense a lot. We’ll have to be sharp and manage pucks.
Palmieri
It’s awesome. The way this season has gone, the ups and downs, it’s been a tough road, and we fought the whole way. We deserve to be here and are excited for this opportunity.
Roy
The penalty kill and the power play are momentum changers. If you score goals, that gives you momentum and if you kill penalties, that gives you momentum, so special teams units will be very important. When I say special teams units, that also means six-on-five. So, all in that area, we’re going to have to be very good against Carolina because that’s a team that puts a lot of pressure.
Holmstrom
It definitely helps. I think we played a very good game today. We battled through it even though it was one of those games. Now, we’re just trying to get revenge on Carolina.
We’re looking forward to getting revenge on Carolina. We’ve been on a hot streak here, and we’re just trying to keep that going.
