Panthers seize slim edge over Islanders, Penguins in very tight East wild-card race

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Alex Lyon’s goaltending resume isn’t any joke.

The 30-year-old who has spent nearly all of his professional profession within the minors owns no fewer than seven data at Yale, the place he’s the all-time wins chief. He had a shutout to clinch the American Hockey League’s Calder Cup championship final season for the Chicago Wolves. He as soon as stopped 94 of 95 pictures to win a five-overtime AHL playoff sport.

And over the past week, he could have helped save the Florida Panthers‘ season.

They play the soundtrack to “The Lion King” within the Panthers’ dressing room after wins nowadays — a nod to Lyon, who has gone 4-0-0 with beginning netminder Sergei Bobrovsky sidelined by sickness. The most recent victory got here Tuesday when Lyon stopped 39 pictures and Florida beat Buffalo 2-1 to maneuver atop the super-tight Japanese Convention wild-card standings.

“I don’t wish to say it was playoff hockey,” Lyon stated. “Nevertheless it felt extra in the direction of that path.”

Florida has jumped from being exterior the playoff image to controlling its personal future in these final 4 video games — by some means, the primary four-game successful streak all season for a membership that had the NHL’s greatest regular-season file a 12 months in the past.

The Panthers, proper now, maintain the primary wild-card spot within the East with 87 factors. The New York Islanders even have 87 factors and can be behind Florida in a tiebreaker, however nonetheless maintain the second of the convention’s two wild-card berths. Pittsburgh is now on the surface, its 5-1 loss to New Jersey on Tuesday leaving the Penguins caught on 86 factors.

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Florida, the Islanders and Pittsburgh all have 4 video games left. Different groups are nonetheless alive, however want a collection of miracles to seize one of many final two berths. Florida’s odds didn’t look nice every week in the past when the Panthers had misplaced 4 in a row; successful 4 in a row since gained’t trigger the group to chill out, coach Paul Maurice stated.

“There’s not sufficient separation,” Maurice stated. “We’re working neck-and-neck is the best way it feels. We don’t have a lead right here. We’re simply on the end line, full-on dash, as onerous as you possibly can. Seems like we’re working alongside every and the push will come proper to the top.”

Florida is residence for Ottawa on Thursday, at Washington on Saturday, then residence for video games Monday towards Toronto and April 13 towards Carolina. Ottawa is alive extra within the mathematical sense than the rest, Washington has been eradicated and by subsequent week Toronto and Carolina might be locked into their playoff seeding.

The Islanders host Tampa Bay on Thursday, Philadelphia on Saturday, go to Washington on Monday and shut April 12 at residence towards Montreal. It’s not precisely daunting: Tampa Bay is aware of it’ll be enjoying Toronto in Spherical 1, and everybody else on the Isles’ slate of remaining video games is quickly to be on trip.

Pittsburgh performs host to Minnesota on Thursday, goes to Detroit on Saturday, hosts Chicago on April 11 and finishes at Columbus on April 13. Once more, not precisely a rugged stretch.

“We’ve received some necessary video games developing,” Penguins star Sidney Crosby stated Tuesday night time.

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That they do. So does Florida. So do the Islanders. The one certainty is that if the Panthers and Islanders each go 4-0-0 the remainder of the best way, the Penguins can’t catch them. Any slip-ups by both of these golf equipment opens the door good and broad for Pittsburgh once more.

It’ll be a frantic ultimate few days within the East. And Florida, which spent a lot of this season exterior the playoff image, now has an opportunity once more thanks largely to a goalie who had seven wins — mixed — over his first 5 NHL seasons and solely three this season for the Panthers earlier than this four-game run.

“Can’t actually change your method,” Lyon stated. “Can’t get too excessive, can’t get too low. Simply maintain going.”

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