Islanders general manager Garth Snow said he considers his team still in the playoff race. But the GM still chose to build for the long-term rather than make a late push, trading 6-6 defenseman Andy Sutton to the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday in exchange for a 2010 second round pick that originally belonged to San Jose.

The draft choice, expected to be in the 55-60 overall range, will help come June. In the meantime, the Senators obtained Sutton, who entered last night ranked second in the NHL with 153 blocked shots and tallied four goals and eight assists in 54 games for the Isles.

“This is by no means an indication we can’t win,” Snow said to reporters before the game. “We’re only [five] points out and this is a great opportunity for [our] young players to fight for a last playoff spot.”

Goalie Dwayne Roloson could follow Sutton out of Long Island by Wednesday’s 3 p.m. deadline. But Roloson, who is signed through next season, could stay as Rick DiPietro is out indefinitely after experiencing swelling in his surgically repaired left knee.

Snow traded a defenseman to Ottawa just before the deadline for a second straight season. The Isles shipped Chris Campoli, along with forward Mike Comrie, to the Senators last February in exchange for a 2009 first-round pick. Snow packaged that selection in a trade to move up and draft defenseman Calvin de Haan 16th overall.

The 34-year-old Sutton is an impending free agent who totaled seven goals in 135 games over three seasons since signing with the Islanders, going minus-6 in accumulating 199 penalty minutes.  Ottawa leads the Northeast Division by a single point over Buffalo and entered Wednesday in sole possession of the Eastern Conference’s third spot.

“We wanted to get a little more depth on the blue line and I think Andy fits that need,” Senators general manager Bryan Murray said to reporters in Ottawa. “I wanted somebody I could look up to – and I have to do that – and then up front with Matt Cullen it gives us the versatility that I talked about so it doesn’t appear there’s much more going to happen. But who knows at the end of the day what might stick its head up and maybe be available.”

Sutton joins the fifth team in his career. The 10-year veteran has made the Stanley Cup playoffs once, logging zero points and a minus-2 rating in a first-round series for an Atlanta Thrashers squad that was swept in four games by the Rangers to end the 2006-07 campaign.

“It’s an unbelievable opportunity,” Sutton said in an audio clip disseminated by the team. “That’s the first thing I said to Bryan, I thanked him so much for the opportunity. Being an older player and getting the chance to play on such a great team and have a chance to win the Stanley Cup is a dream come true.”

Islanders vs. Blackhawks Audio Report

In moving Gomez, the Rangers clear major space on the salary cap since he is due to make $7.4 million next year, while Higgins only made$1.9 million and is a restricted free agent. Yet, general manager Glen Sather managed to get the talented Smithtown native back in the trade.

Higgins, 26, has skated in 282 regular season contests with Montreal, recording 84 goals and 67 assists for 151 points, along with 96 penalty minutes.  The 6-0, 205-pounder has eclipsed the 20-goal mark three times.  In 2007-08, he established career-highs in games played (82), goals (27), assists (25), points (52), power play goals (12), game-winning goals (five), and shots (241).  He led Montreal in shots, tied for second on the team in power play goals and game-winning goals, and ranked third in goals.  He was also one of only three Canadiens to skate in all 82 games during the season.  Higgins registered 11 points (six goals and five assists) in the first 13 games of the season, and went on to surpass the 20-goal plateau for the third straight year.

And the Rangers shed Gomez, whose contract was becoming an albatross. After signing back in 2007, the former New Jersey Devil was supposed to the answer for Jaromir Jagr, but never could jell with the Hall of Fame right wing. He bounced around looking for the right combination, but it never seemed to work like it did back in New Jersey.

He now becomes the latest ex-New Jersey Devil to become a Rangers’ failure.

The move also signals a busy day tomorrow for Sather as free agency opens. Now with cap space, Sather will look for a sniper, while also remolding the team in Tortorella’s image.

The New Jersey Devils have a great left-right wing combination that’s been known to throw a few punches, with left wing Mike Rupp and right wing David Clarkson on the fourth line, the heart of the team’s toughness.

On a team with a balanced attack of youth and experience, and skill and toughness, Rupp and Clarkson represent the grit that the post-season requires.

“I think in the history of the NHL playoffs, it’s kind of cool because it’s not always the most skilled players that make the difference,” Rupp explained.  “You look in the past at guys who have been big in the playoffs, you look at Darren McCarthy in Detroit and some of these guys that just by grit alone are getting the job done.”

Clarkson and Rupp hope to have that kind of impact during the run for the Stanley Cup this season.

Clarkson led the team during the regular season with 164 penalty minutes, many from big hits or fights to defend and inspire his teammates.

“There’s no fighting in the playoffs, or not as much, but going around crashing, hitting guys. If I get a chance to finish a check, doesn’t matter who it is, I need to make sure I finish it,” Clarkson said. “That’s the way I can help.”

Finish he has, scoring two goals in the first five games of the opening round, including the game-winning goal in Newark on Thursday.

Clarkson scored on the power play 11:22 into the second period to give the Devils a 1-0 lead that would hold until the final buzzer. The tipped shot from Andy Greene came as a big surprise; Clarkson doubted he would be used on the power play at all.

Rupp knows what it feels like to score a big goal during the post season, too.

Rupp worked his way into the Devils line-up just in time to score the Cup-clinching goal in game seven of the 2003 Finals. He earned his spot in this year’s playoff line-up by refusing to quit when he was forced out of the starting rotation for several games at a time after the Devils acquired Brendan Shanahan.

“It’s a long ride, and skill can take you so far, but the heart and the determination I think is really what can put you over the top,” Rupp said. “I think a guy like myself and Clarkie, and a lot of our team, we pride ourselves on that and I think that’s good. If your hands are failing every night, it’s a matter of your determination.”

Determination from this duo has led to points during the regular season; 32 from Clarkson (17g, 15a), and nine from Rupp (3g, 6a).

“You know guys are going to turn away from you when you hit them. Our job is to get in the corners, bang and crash, and cycle the puck,” Clarkson said. “We’re going to try to build through it in the series and create more offense for the team.”

Part of the Devils success this year has been the ability of all four lines creating offense, something Clarkson credits to the team’s depth.

“There’s not many teams in the league that have depth we do, where you can have certain guys on your fourth line or certain guys on your third line. I think if a lot of guys on our team were on other teams, they’d be top two, top three line guys and here it’s third or fourth,” Clarkson said.

The experience and the versatility of the team are not lost on Rupp, either.

“We were going around the room and counting how many Cups each guy has and its pretty impressive. You rely on that, you rely on your skill, your youth, your energy. You rely on your grit, your goaltending. We’re able to lean on any one of those crutches,” Rupp said.

The deeper the Devils go into the playoffs, the more they will be able to rely on the toughness of Rupp and Clarkson, when grit alone is what’s needed to get the job done.

While the project’s future is uncertain, the Islanders are starting to secure its spot at the bottom of the NHL’s standings, which received another boost with a 6-2 home loss to Minnesota Tuesday night.

The Wild scored four straight goals to ruin the Isles first game in Uniondale in over a fortnight. Making things more painful for the home fans was the sight of five-time 30-goal scorer Marian Gaborik tallying three points on two goals.

Gaborik scored Minnesota’s first goal and assisted on Owen Tally’s insurance tally that made it 3-1 late in the second. The Isles drafted Rick DiPietro two spots ahead of Gaborik in 2000.

Bruno Gervais ignited a fast Isles start in the club’s first home game in 17 days, opening the scoring 7:37 into the contest. That would be the last bright spot as the Islanders lost for the fourth time in five games. Gaborik, Antti Miettinen, Nolan and Martin Skoula added goals for the Wild.

Minnesota was held to four shots in the second period yet still increased its lead to two goals in the game’s turning point.

“I thought we had a really great first period; probably one of the best first period we had in a long time,” Isles coach Scott Gordon said. “During the second period, we only gave up four shots. We obviously got into penalty trouble.”

The game mattered little in the standings with the Isles (56 points) trailing Tampa Bay by eight points for the NHL’s worst record and Minnesota on the outside of the Western Conference playoff chase. But the lack of postseason implications didn’t temper the emotions as the clubs totaled 58 penalty minutes, including two fights and eight roughing minors.

Effort wasn’t an issue against a team the Isles have only squared off against nine times. Gordon’s squad held a 34-28 led in shots and a 15-2 edge in hits while Kyle Okposo and Blake Comeau, two forwards not known for rough play, consistently engaged a willing Wild unit that resulted in numerous pile-ups after the whistle.

“I think our guys certainly came out and wanted to set the temp to the game and obviously there was a lot at stake for them,” Gordon said.

Play got so heated that each side was forced to cram three players in the penalty box at the same time almost 13 minutes into the third, resulting in a nearly minute long three-on-three.

Andy Hilbert’s goal 6:24 into the final period made it 4-2 before the Wild’s Andrew Brunette scored and Gaborik banged home an easy pass off a re-direct with 1:17 left for the tack-on goals. Yann Danis struggled as well, stopping just 22 of 28 shots faced.

“He didn’t seem as sharp tonight,” Gordon said. “Other than that, he’s usually pretty good. He’s played well for us. The one thing he wants to ensure is that his play up to this point hasn’t been a fluke.”

Before departing on a six-game road stretch, the Islanders won four of the last five home games. Even if the team recaptured that rhythm, it wouldn’t do much points-wise for the Isles, which is all but certain to lock up the first or second overall draft pick depending on the lottery outcome. There are now nine games remaining with Tampa Bay holding 64 points and Atlanta at 66.

“We definitely need to work on our defense zone play,” Okposo said. “It wasn’t as sharp as it needed to be tonight. We gave up too many chances but we’re going to work on that.”

The Islanders missed the chance to have Gaborik and the Devils Zach Praise with drafting mistakes in the past yet could be assured of getting either of the two most heralded prospects this year in John Tavares, a record goal-scorer in junior hockey, or Swedish defenseman Victor Hedman.

In the meantime, the Isles said they need to play at the level that spurred a streak of six points in eight games that feature promising signs from the young players earlier this month.

“It’s hard to say,” Danis said. “I’m not making the key saves. The last two games are similar where they weren’t getting a lot of shots but they got decent shots or lucky balances.”

Off a faceoff win from the right circle, Gervais took defense partner Mark Streit’s blue-line  pass and fired a hard left-point wrist shot to beat a screened Backstrom high to his stick side for his third goal in the past 11 games. The 24-year-old previously registered zero goals in 160 games before his hot streak.

Minnesota took advantage of two Islander giveaways in its own end, resulting in Gaborik’s one-time tap in off Marek Zidlicky’s pass behind-the-net pass to knot it at 1 just 4:09 later. Pierre-Marc Bouchard’s assist extended that edge to 2-1 when the centerman completed another crisp pass behind the goal line. That feed set up Miettinen’s low right circle-shot for 15th goal of the season exactly 19 minutes into the first.

“It’s disappointing,” Hilbert said. “We’ve been playing well lately but it’s a tough loss.”

Notes: The Isles entered the night 9-2-2 in its past 13 games at the Coliseum…Joel Rechlicz and Minnesota’s John Scott engaged in a nearly minute-long fight almost five minutes into the contest…The listed attendance was 13,332.

Erik Reitz becomes the newest Ranger.

Tom Renney has been looking for some roster flexibility. Now he has it.

Two days after the Rangers waived extra forward Dan Fritche, Rangers general manager Glen Sather shipped the Ohio native to Minnesota for defenseman Erik Reitz.

The 26 year-old  has appeared in 31 games with Minnesota this season, registering one goal and one assist for two points, along with 41 penalty minutes.  He was tied for fourth among Minnesota defensemen in goals (one), and tied for third on the club overall in penalty minutes (41).  Reitz also ranked second on the Wild with 58 hits.  He notched his first NHL point with a goal on November 15 vs. Columbus.  He also tallied his first career assist on November 22 vs. St. Louis.

With Reitz on the roster, Renney will have his seventh defenseman, which will allow him to give his backliners a rest. This is something he was mentioning in the last week as the Ranger schedule heats up down the stretch.

And Fritche was not getting any playing time. Passing through waivers yesterday, the 22 year-old only appeared in 13 games this season, registering one goal with three assists.  He was acquired over the summer in the same deal that brought Nikolai Zherdev to Broadway.

The move will also save the Rangers approximately $162,000 on the salary cap this season.