Biron made 35 saves on Thursday night in a late-season game. But his effort was not for a club in the Stanley Cup hunt. The 32-year-old netminder was still in an Islanders uniform as his team saw its fledging playoff hopes take another hit in a 2-1 shootout loss to the St. Louis Blues on Thursday night.

Rick DiPietro’s uncertain health status prompted the Islanders to hold on to Biron at the trade deadline. Matt Moulson’s power play goal was the only support for the goaltender as the Isles lost its fourth straight game and suffered it’s third-consecutive one-goal defeat after T.J. Oshie and Brad Boyes scored in the shootout.

The Isles dropped to 26-32-9 for 61 points, leading only Toronto (56) and Edmonton (49) for the league’s worst record and the best chance in the lottery for the top overall pick.

“We were getting our chances late in the game and in overtime,” Moulson said. “It’s just a matter of bearing down and correcting those little things like the odd-man rushes.”

The Islanders 28th-ranked power play entered just 2-for-37 in the past nine games. But Moulson capitalized on the man advantage, blasting Mark Streit’s one-time pass to open the scoring with 9.4 seconds remaining before first intermission.

Moulson almost found the net moments earlier when his slot attempt clashed off the left post and out. The winger still picked up his second goal in three games nearly 50 seconds later, beating Blues goalie Chris Mason high from nearly the same location between the circles.

St. Louis’ sputtering play unit responded to the tally when Patrik Berglund’s deflection sneaked inside the left post 6:24 into the second. Berglund tipped Andy McDonald’s shot in front for his 11th goal after Islanders winger Tim Jackman’s hooking penalty.

The Islanders gave the Blues three power play chances in the final period. St. Louis entered ranked 28th with the extra man and the Isles responded by killing 5-of-6 penalties overall to salvage a point for the first time since a 5-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on March 2.

“It’s hard [because] we changed our penalty killing game-plan a little bit the last couple of weeks,” Biron said. “Everybody is trying to get adjusted to that. You’re asking a lot mentally [and] physically to the guys.”

Andy Sutton’s trade to Ottawa and a foot injury to Andy MacDonald weakened the defensive corps that previously lost Radek Martinek to a season-ending knee injury.

Rob Schremp (knee) is also out for the season and the lack of depth has put the Islanders in position to finish in the NHL’s cellar one season after the club compiled the worst record and won the draft lottery for the top overall selection.

“At this time last year, we had all our injuries and going down the stretch the games weren’t even close,” Islanders coach Scott Gordon said. “But our guys are working hard and it’s been harder for us.”

St. Louis (71 points) moved within five points of Calgary for the Western Conference’s eighth and final playoff spot. Blues coach Davis Payne said leaving Nassau Coliseum with a win wasn’t easy despite the home team’s slide.

“The Islanders played us tough,” Payne said. “They worked us start to finish. They put us under a great deal of pressure. There were some offensive chances but we battled as long as we needed to in this one.”

Following Friday’s off-day the Islanders will close out a stretch of three home games in four days with back-to-back weekend contests against New Jersey and Toronto. Game time against the Devils on Saturday is set for 7 p.m. with a 5 p.m. start time against the Maple Leafs on Sunday.

Islanders vs. St. Louis Blues Audio Report

Saying that New York Rangers’ goalie Henrik Lundqvist masked his team’s recent offensive struggles not only describes his 1-0 shutout over the visiting Boston Bruins, but it simultaneously references a connection with a moment that changed the face -– literally –- of hockey history, fifty years ago to the day.

Go back exactly half a century, also on a Sunday, November 1st, 1959, at the same venue.

Montreal Canadiens’ goalie Jacques Plante left the Garden ice that day after having his nose broken by a wrist shot three minutes into the Canadiens’ eventual 3-1 victory over the Rangers.

Plante returned to that game with a mask and only convinced coach Tom Blake that he should continue wearing it after the Canadiens remained unbeaten for another 17 games with Plante’s scarred face safely protected.

On March 8, 1960, Plante discarded the mask at Blake’s request and the Canadiens lost to Detroit, 3-0. The mask returned for good the next night and the Canadiens went on to win their fifth straight Stanley Cup that season.

But, this isn’t all about what happened fifty years ago. No, it’s about what’s happened since.

Plante became an instant pioneer. Ever since that famed day in 1959, the goalie mask has become standard equipment thanks to the Hall of Famer who additionally revolutionized the game by being the first goaltender to play the puck away from the net and to raise his arm to indicate an icing call, while also perfecting the stand-up positional style of cutting down angles.

Fast forward back to Sunday, after Lundqvist, a great goaltender in his own right, had a special helmet (not just a mask, these days) made featuring renderings of Plante’s masked face, the dates “1959-2009,” and a ticket stub from that now-famous Canadiens-Rangers game in 1959.

Perhaps an even better tribute though, was the way Lundqvist played in the same building fifty years later, recording his first shutout of the season and the 21st of his career, while notching his 150th career victory.

What better way to pay homage to the anniversary of The Plante Mask Game than an old-school, one-goal, milestone, shutout win in a grind-out type of fashion between two Original Six teams? Especially considering that Sunday also marked another anniversary involving the Rangers’ opponent — the 85th anniversary of the Bruins becoming the NHL’s first team based in the United States, on November 1st, 1924.

And, who better to score the only goal in a game of that style than Rangers’ right winger Marian Gaborik?

The Rangers sorely missed their leading scorer, who was a game-time decision after missing the Ranger’s previous two games with a knee injury.

But, even at less than 100 percent, Gaborik was still exactly what New York needed. His lone score was enough offense for Lundqvist, who stopped all 29 shots he faced. Like all great goalies, Lundqvist relished the pressure of protecting a 1-0 lead in the final period. “It was a fun game,” he said. “The feeling was one mistake could cost us big time. “I like that feeling. I have to be on my toes all of the time.”

Gaborik’s goal came as New York cleared its own zone, and center Vinny Prospal streaked up the left side to move inside the face off circle to the right of Bruins’ goaltender Tim Thomas, whose 22 saves earned him the third star of the game behind Gaborik and then Lundqvist (and, no Knick fans, that’s no relation to the other Tim Thomas who used to play basketball in the same arena).

Prospal made a nice cross-ice pass, leaving it back a bit for Gaborik to get to the puck in rhythm and one-time it low and right, for his 11th goal of the season, just out of the reach of the left glove of Thomas, with 4:09 remaining in the second period. The assist was Prospal’s team-leading 14th this season. Defenseman Marc Staal, a 2005 Ranger first-round pick, who passed ahead to Prospal on the play, was also credited with his fourth assist of the season.

Rangers’ head coach John Tortorella said of the game-breaking ability of the former first round pick spending his first year in New York after eight seasons in Minnesota, “That’s why Gabby’s here, that’s why we made the deal.”

Getting more scoring chances for Gaborik or any other Ranger was a challenge all game long in the defensive-minded contest. “In the first half of the game,” Tortorella said, “I was trying like hell to get Gaborick away from Chara,” Boston’s 6-foot-9, 255-pound defenseman tasked with spying the Rangers’ star who entered the game having registered at least one point in 11 of the 12 games in which he appeared this season.

Tortorella noted Gaborik’s other contributions besides the big goal, saying “Gabby scores a big goal for us, [but] I thought he [also] played very well away from the puck and killing penalties.”

That paid extra dividends for the Rangers in a game like Sunday’s, because as Tortorella pointed out, ”You have to play a real patient, grinding type [of] game [against Boston]. I thought our decision making was good. I thought our grinding was better [than it had been].”

Leading by a goal after two periods, the chances were good that the Rangers, who started the season 7-1, winning seven straight games right before a 1-4-1 slide, would get back on the winning track again. Sunday’s victory pushed New York to 7-1 when scoring first this season and a perfect 8-0 when leading after two periods.

Still, it wasn’t over until the final minute, as Boston made several late charges, including back-to-back power plays early in the third period. Ranger defenseman Michael Rozsival was called for tripping 2:28 into the final period. As soon as New York killed off that penalty however, center Brandon Dubinsky was whistled for slashing at 4:28, creating essentially, a four-minute Boston power play.

“I thought we lost ourselves a little bit when we went back-to-back with the penalties in the third period and then they started coming a little bit,” Tortorella said.

But, the Rangers killed off both penalties successfully, as Boston was held to 0-for-5 on the power play for the game. The Rangers were 0-for-2 with the man advantage, themselves.

Tortorella acknowledged the play of Lundqvist and his defense as the reasons the Rangers held on to win. “I think an important part of winning in the third period is your goaltender,” he said. “I thought [Lundqvist] made some key saves in the third period.”

Tortorella noted that the most of the Bruins’ best chances came late in the game, and he was proud of how his team responded defensively. “I think Boston only had two or three chances throughout the first two periods,” he said. “The latter half of the third period they came at us pretty hard but I thought we defended well.”

Two players who helped bolster the defense, who like Gaborik, missed the Rangers’ previous game and were uncertain to play before the puck dropped on Sunday, were left wingers Steve Avery and Smithtown, New York native Christopher Higgins.

Tortorella especially credited Higgins, saying “I thought Higgins had a really good game. It certainly stuck out how hard he played and that’s why he gets on the ice in the last minute of the game because of the way he grinded, blocking shots, killing penalties.”

It was in that final minute that Lundqvist made probably his best and most important save of the game, denying right winger Mark Recchi, the NHL’s active leader in assists, points, and games played, with a pad save, holding on with 47.7 seconds left in the game, after Recchi fired from point blank range, just a few feet outside the crease.

“Henk comes up with a great save there,” said Tortorella.

One that Plante would have probably appreciated himself.

It was certainly respected by the 18,200 fans in attendance, who rose to their feet and serenaded Lundqvist with chants of “Henrik! Henrik!”

Staying undefeated (4-0-1) against the Northeast division and moving to within three points of idle, first-place Pittsburgh in the Atlantic division, the Rangers (9-5-1) will embark on a three-game western trip Tuesday through Saturday, which takes them through Vancouver, Edmonton, and Calgary, before returning home against Atlanta, on November 12th.

The Bruins meanwhile, who played without two key players, center Marc Savard and left winger Milan Lucic, have been the model of inconsistency, starting 6-6-1, having alternated losses and wins over all 13 games this season. Boston will have a chance in the coming week to finally put consecutive wins together during a four-game homestand which commences after a trip to Detroit on Tuesday.

Stephen Valiquette started for the first time this season in the eventual Ranger 3-0 win over the Anaheim, stopping all 18 shots sent to him, while his team dominated on the other end of the ice.

“Valley made some big saves at some key times,” said Rangers coach John Tortorella. “He played very well. I am happy for him. He goes about his business. He is kind of a forgotten man. If we want to get where we want to be, he is going to have to play well for us and he certainly played well for us tonight.”

It isn’t easy to be Henrik Lundqvist’s backup. Valiquette will play probably about 15 games this season, especially toward the beginning of the season as Tortorella wants No. 1 to be fresh for a Stanley Cup run. No matter, the Ranger defense made it easy for the tall netminder as they kept the puck out of the Rangers’ zone.

Rather, they kept peppering J.S. Giguere (35 saves on the night) with shots and kept forcing the puck in the neutral zone, which kept the home team in charge for most of the match.

“I think the strongest point of our defense is how they get up in the neutral zone,” Tortorella said. “There wasn’t much zone time in our end zone. That is due to them getting up the ice. I thought all of the defense, including the forwards fore-checking was important to us. We made some good defensive plays.”

Even with that pressure, the Rangers went into the dressing room tied at love through the first two periods. Much like their win on Thursday in Washington, the Blueshirts were able take control in the third. This time on the power play.

First, just a little bit over two minutes into the period, Ales Kotalik was able to put that heavy shot past Giguere from the left circle. It was for this reason the Rangers signed the former Buffalo Sabre, as he has become a quarterback on the man advantage.

“We played a solid game right from the start,” Kotalik said. “We knew they had a game yesterday, so we were pressing Some chances hit cross bars. We had been saying to just stay with it (and) be patient, and things are going to happen for us. They did (tonight). We made a difference in the power plays. That is why we are up there (in the standings).”

Later in the period, with a little more than five minutes left, Artem Anisimov scored his first goal of his NHL career as a feed from Sean Avery – playing his first game of the year – from behind the net went to Vinny Prospal who found the rookie Russian right in front of Giguere.

Even though that was enough for Valiquette, Dan Girardi was able to add an empty netter for the Rangers’ final score.

Notes: The Rangers play again tonight at the Garden as the Toronto Maple Leafs – and former enforcer Colton Orr – come to town…The Blueshirts improved to 4-1-0 overall, including a 2-0-0 mark at home; the Rangers are in the midst of a six-game home winning streak dating back to last season, and are 10-1-0 in their last 11 regular season games at MSG…New York tallied two goals in five power play opportunities, and have now registered five power play goals in their last three games (5-14, 35.7%).

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.

All it took was a missed open net by Ryan Callahan, 11: 24 into the first followed by Alexander Semin’s second goal of a game 12 seconds later. Instead of a 1-1 tie, the Rangers faced a 2-0 deficit in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.

Game. Set. Match. Capitals took the game, 4-0.

“It’s tough,” said center Brandon Dubinsky. “It’s the difference between a tie game and a two goal deficit. Those things happen in this game; you see it all the time – a big save and then a goal on the other end.”

The play deflated the Rangers, along with the Garden faithful, whose very loud support was silenced by Alexander Ovechkin and Company. The Rangers didn’t stand a chance.

“I thought we stunk defensively,” said coach John Tortorella. “That was the key to the game. They defended well in front of their net. We were chasing our tails all night long.”

The story of this game is not the 4-0 loss. Nor is it the superb play of rookie goalie Simeon Varlamov, who stopped all 33 of the Ranger shots and outplayed his counterpart Henrik Lundqvist, who may have been the only person in recent times to go to Washington not looking for a bailout.

No, the story here is what happens next. Do the Rangers brush this off as an aberration, like they did in the first round last season and eventually beat the Capitals or does Washington use those 12 seconds as a launching pad, vaulting themselves past the Blueshirts to a possible Stanley Cup birth?

Last week, the story was all about the Rangers. They were the team that kept its cool, while the Capitals were the ones starting to panic. Coach Bruce Boudreau – looking more and more like Don Zimmer every day – changed goalies, went with different looks, and even lost the gamesmanship war with Tortorella, coming across as a crybaby when his Ranger counterpart was just trying to point out the flaws in his team.

But now, after this win, the game is afoot. If the Caps take Game 4 on Wednesday, they only have to win their two home games to take the series. The Rangers will be forced to win another on down in the Nation’s Capital if they have any hope of advancing.

It may be a real tough task, even for a king.

“They are a good team,” said Lundqvist, who stopped 36 of 40 shots. “We knew it was going to be tough and they played well. They have to learn from a couple of mistakes we made tonight and be ready for the next one.”

First the Rangers need to tighten up the defense. Too many times Ovechkin took control of the puck and vaulted himself down the ice. Lundqvist was left naked, for the high scoring Washington team.

Also the penalties need to stop. With the Rangers shorthanded six times tonight, the Capitals managed two power play goals – that’s two more than in Games 1 and 2. Even with a very good penalty kill, the Rangers can’t let Washington get more scoring chances than they normally take.

And finally the Rangers need to play every second of the sixty minutes. It looked like they were sleep walking through the first period before they woke up after eight minutes. By mailing in parts of periods, the Blueshirts will have no chance against the Caps.

But don’t worry Ranger fans, your team is still up 2-1. Just remember this, though. Back in 1996, the Rangers lost the first two games at home against the Canadiens and then took four in a row, including three in Montreal. So don’t feel comfortable with any lead.

It could easily be gone in a matter of seconds.

What the Rangers will attempt is to neutralize Ovechkin attacking a suspect D and veteran goalie Jose Theodore as much as possible, utilizing the more aggressive style that helped salvage a disappointing season. They should be able to score in this series and will call upon Henrik Lundqvist to come up with the momentum turning saves. If they get the goaltending, then perhaps an upset could be in the cards.

Let’s take a look at how the old Patrick Division rivals- who haven’t met in the playoffs since 1994 when the Blueshirts ousted the Caps in five games Conference Semis en route to a Stanley Cup- stack up:

FORWARDS-It’s pretty obvious that the high powered Capitals should have a decided edge boasting league leading finisher Ovechkin (56 goals, 110 Pts) along with super soph Nicklas Backstrom (22-66-88), Alex Semin (34 goals, 79 Pts, +25) and roving defenseman Mike Green (31-42-73, +24 in 68 GP), who basically is an extra threat who must be contained. Their secondary scorers shouldn’t be underestimated either featuring Brooks Laich (23 G), Tomas Fleischmann (19 G), Viktor Kozlov (41 Pts), Eric Fehr (12 G) along with the proven Sergei Fedorov (22 assists) and Michael Nylander (24 A). All this explains why Washington finished third in offense behind only Detroit and Boston.

Conversely, the Rangers had the third worst offense totaling only 200 goals excluding the shootout. It will take a total team effort. Their best players must perform which means Scott Gomez (16-42-58, 7 GW) must elevate his game off a disappointing second year on Broadway. Nik Zherdev (23-35-58) was up and down all season and awfully quiet down the stretch. That can’t happen. Chris Drury (22-34-56, 10 PPG) came on the final month but missed the final game and didn’t practice. He must be healthy. Nik Antropov (7-6-13 in 18 GP) has been a solid contributor whose size and skill have been a welcome sight. Top finisher Markus Naslund (24 goals) did little until the last week. Is that a good sign? Expect the Blueshirts to get contributions from Ryan Callahan (22 goals, SHG, +7), Sean Avery (12 Pts in 18 GP, 34 PIM) and rejuvenated soph Brandon Dubinsky (13 G, 28 A, 7 GW). Each must get involved physically.

Edge: Capitals

DEFENSE-Green (25:45 TOI) headlines a group that is solid but unspectacular. That includes former Ranger ‘fan fave’ Tom Poti (13 Pts, 28 PIM in 52 GP), who gets important minutes (21:08) as does Jeff Schultz (19:45). Milan Jurcina and John Erskine provided physicality and Shaone Morrisonn can move the puck. Bruce Boudreau will rely on Green a ton in all situations. They can be attacked.

A huge storyline to this series is how Marc Staal (15 Pts, 64 PIM, 21:07) will fare against Ovechkin. Tortorella has used the former 2005 No.1 pick along with partner Dan Girardi (18 helpers, 53 PIM, 21:31) as a shutdown pair. Both will need to be physical on Ovechkin limiting time and space. It will be trial by fire. Wade Redden (23 assists, 51 PIM, -5) has been a nightmare but does log crucial minutes (22:20). Michal Rozsival (8-22-30, 3 PPG, 22:30) has looked better since returning playing more steady which must continue. It would also help if he shot the puck. Paul Mara (5-16-21, 94 PIM  in 76 GP) quietly was the Rangers’ best defenseman and Derek Morris (8 A, 4 PPA, +3 in 18 GP) has been a good pickup showing the ability to make good reads along with smart outlets. He also has a rocket from the point.

Edge: Rangers

GOALIES-Washington GM George McPhee gambled on Theodore to replace Cristobal Huet. The one-time Hart/Vezina winner has been alright posting a 32-17-5 record along with a 2.87 GAA, .900 save percentage plus two shutouts. On most teams, those mediocre numbers wouldn’t be good enough. But on a high scoring run and gun team, it has. He’ll be asked to make timely saves in this series. Will he be up to the challenge? He’s the wild card in the series.

Henrik Lundqvist was an NHL All-Star for the first time establishing a new career high in wins (38) while putting up solid numbers across the board (2.43 GAA, .916 Sv Pct, 3 SHO) on a lowscoring team. It’s true enough he wasn’t always consistent but enters playing his best hockey of the season. He’ll have to be in tip top form and might need to steal a couple of games. This will be a huge test.

Edge: Rangers

Special Teams-Special teams are always important at this time of year. The good teams execute cashing in on opponents’ mistakes. This series pits the No.2 rated power play (Wsh-25.2) against the top ranked penalty kill (NYR-87.8 percent). Even though the tandem of Blair Betts and Freddy Sjostom are as good as it gets, it’s still advisable for Tort’s club to stay disciplined. The Caps have many weapons which is why it might be wise. The Ranger PK can attack having scored nine shorthanded goals and the Cap PP did give up 11 during the season.

As for the Ranger powerless play, they’ve driven fans nuts all year placing second to last converting at only a 13.9 clip. If there’s an area the coach must get untracked to win this series, it’s the man-advantage. They also allowed the second most shorthanded goals (14) in the league with just Calgary (15) worse. The encouraging news is they haven’t permitted one since the coaching change. Washington’s PK was middle of the pack (80.6 percent-tied 17th) but scored seven SHG.

Edge: Even

Coaches-Boudreau is in his second year and has guided the Caps to two consecutive Southeast Division Titles. He’s certainly done an admirable job turning this team into one of the better ones in the league. He can motivate. The question is what did he learn from last year’s first round ouster to the Flyers?

Tortorella boasts experience having been behind the Tampa Bay bench when they won the Cup in 2004. He’s fiery and demands a lot out of his players. If someone doesn’t perform, Tort won’t be afraid to bench them. He will doubleshift the players who are going and tinker with lines when things aren’t working. Can he outfox Boudreau?

Edge: Even

Intangibles-The Capitals believe they’re better than a year ago and ready to make some noise. So, there’s some pressure to deliver. Losing again in the first round would be a bitter pill to swallow following such a good season. The Rangers will also be expected to perform under Tort, who doesn’t take to losing well. Still, the pressure really isn’t on them in this series which might work to their advantage.

Edge: Rangers

Prediction-In assessing this series, it becomes clear that it’s basically offense against defense. Well, really the goaltending of Lundqvist to be exact. The Ranger blueline looks to have an edge. It might all depend on if the forwards score enough or what kind of series develops. A wide open one favors Ovechkin’s club. But a tighter series where defense and timely saves could factor in would bode well for the Blueshirts. They also haven’t performed well on the road winning just four times in the final 19. Plus the Caps went 29-9-3 at Verizon Center. Washington has never been kind to the Rangers. Due to that, it seems like almost too many things have to break right for them to pull it off.

Capitals in 7

But the current Islanders and Flyers harkened memories of when the Islander dynasty teams used to battle the Broad Street Bullies two decades ago. Unlike those four Stanley Cup winning teams, the Isles couldn’t close the deal thanks to three Flyer third-period goals in a 4-3 shootout loss.

Mike Richards’ backhand goal in the second round of the shootout put the Flyers ahead in the skills competition and Martin Biron (30 saves) made it stand up, blanking Mark Streit’s attempt to secure Philadelphia’s victory.

Despite playing only for pride, the Isles still picked up a point against a playoff bound opponent for a second straight night and accomplished the feat with flying fisticuffs. Yet the Flyers erased a 2-0 third period deficit with three third-period goals in a 3:34 span, led by Joffrey Lupul’s two goals. The Islanders power play struggled, going 0-4.

Radek Martinek and Jeff Tambellini helped the Isles surge to a 2-0 lead one night after the club knocked off the defending champion Red Wings in Detroit. Goalie Yann Danis (33 saves) helped the Isles extend the team’s shutout streak to 105:41 before Lupul’s right circle shot beat him to cut the lead to 2-1 4:24 into the final period.

“I thought we played well enough to win,” Danis said. “Overall, we came out strong, especially with back-to-back games. We certainly deserved better.”

Philadelphia tied it 2:14 later. Danis made a pad save on Jeff Carter’s right circle shot that bounced right to Scott Hartnell for the redirect. Danis got a piece of the rebound but couldn’t prevent it from trickling past the goal line. Lupul’s second tally almost a minute and a half later gave the visitors a 3-2 lead. Streit salvaged a point for the Isles when his hard shot in the slot beat Biron 49 seconds later.

“It was great,” Islanders coach Scott Gordon said regarding the effort level. “With the exception of not stepping up on the power play and not scoring, we could’ve had a pretty big lead after two periods. We got some tough bounces in the third. I think the first one, Yann would probably want back.”

Following Joey MacDonald’s 42-save shutout performance, Danis blanked a contending Flyers team through two periods before facing a third-period onslaught. The Isles also engaged the Flyers in an emotionally charged contest that featured four fights, including three in a 3:16 span during the second period.

“It’s an infectious thing when there is confrontation and hitting,” coach Scott Gordon said. “The more physical you are, the more exception the opposition takes to it. Our team is more engaged in the game.”

The two teams combined for 70 penalty minutes just after the game’s midway point before the flow of the game changed course. Instead of free-wheeling fights and post-whistle scrums, the teams did not rack up a single penalty minute in the third period or overtime.

“We’ve been playing a lot better,” Islanders rookie forward Kyle Okposo said. “We know we can win with the guys in this locker room.

“It was a lot of fun to play. Those guys needed the points. We wanted to come in and beat them. Hopefully next year, we’ll be able to jockey for position with those guys.”

Gordon’s team will likely finish the season last in the NHL in points. But the first-year head coach has his team playing with passion and a chip on its collective shoulders that seems to grow exponentially as the season unfolds. The Isles lost to Minnesota Wednesday in a game that featured two fights and eight roughing minors. A more controlled, tight-to-the vest style paved the way for a gritty 2-0 victory over Detroit, which entered Saturday tied with San Jose for the league’s most points at 107.

Instead of a road-weary effort, the Isles came out strong against Philadelphia, which is entrenched in the Eastern Conference’s fourth spot. The Flyers (92 points) stayed in that position, moving one point ahead of No. 5 Carolina with eight games remaining. The Isles have 59 points with seven games left.

“If we don’t take care of ourselves then it doesn’t really matter what anyone else is doing,” Flyers coach John Stevens said. “We’ve just got to take care of ourselves.”

Doug Weight picked up a rare fighting major, dropping the gloves against Darroll Powe just minutes into the game behind the Islanders net.

“I mentioned it all year that the maturation of the team is moving quickly,” Weight said. “If we can be a healthy team come October next year, I believe they’ll be some real good things here.”

Nate Thompson and Joel Rechlicz, the more conventional heavyweight fighters on the roster, participated in more prolonged battles in the third. Thompson and Daniel Carcillo earned an ovation from the crowd for a prolonged fight 6:02 into the second. Just one second later-off the ensuing faceoff-Rechlicz and Riley Cote exchanged haymakers that left both players with welts around the eyes heading into the cramped penalty box.

Martin Brodeur took home the net he guarded during the third period of his 552^nd win, the win that pushed him past Patrick Roy to first on the all-time victories list.

The Devils beat the Chicago Blackhawks Tuesday night, 3-2, in a special night for New Jersey’s net minder.

“It was an exciting night, I’m definitely happy its over, it’s been a little chaotic for me the last few days but it was an awesome night. It was a great reception from the fans… it was pretty cool. I thought it was pretty cool in Montreal and this topped it,” said Brodeur after the game, referring to tying Roy’s record Saturday.

Brodeur leapt off the ice as the final buzzer sounded, and began dismantling the net with help moments later. As his teammates finished the equipment surgery, Brodeur took a lap around the rink, waving to the delirious Prudential Center crowd.

“Jamie (Langenbrunner) came over and said, ‘Go take a lap, we’ll cut it down. The fans deserve it,’” explained Brodeur. “I’ve done it with the Stanley Cup on top of my head, and that was a team thing, but that was really a personal thing. It was really cool.”

Chants of “Marty! Marty!” began early in the night, and with each of his 30 saves the crowd’s approval grew louder.

His teammates showed their dedication to the pursuit of the record early in the contest. Langenbrunner took a backhand pass in the slot from Zach Parise 38 seconds into the game and fired a shot past Chicago goalie Nikolai Khabibulin.

At six minutes, just after a power play ended, Paul Martin sent a pass to Parise deep in the right corner. Parise found Travis Zajac set up on the left side of the crease, and Zajac put the puck behind Khabibulin.

Another Devil hit a milestone in the second period. With Johnny Oduya in the penalty box for closing his hand on the puck, Patrick Elias cleared the puck out of the
Blackhawk’s offensive zone to Brian Gionta on the left wing. Gionta put the puck over Khabibulin’s outstretched leg.

Elias’ assist marked his 702^nd career point as a Devil, moving past John MacLean for first all-time in the organization. The crowd gave Elias a standing ovation for accomplishing the mark, and did not stop despite the fact that Chicago converted on the remaining power play time at the other end.

Cameron Barker fired a shot from the point, and the puck went past Brodeur on the left side. Brodeur, sprawled on the ice, banged his stick in disappointment.

The Blackhawks made the game interesting, making sure Brodeur worked the entire 60 minutes for the record, by scoring with 2:03 left on the clock.

The Devils were unable the clear the puck out of the Chicago offensive zone, and Dustin Byfuglien fired the puck over Brodeur’s glove hand.

Chicago kept the pressure on by pulling the goalie, but Brodeur made a final kick save as the final horn sounded, and the celebration began.

“It’s special, obviously. There’s so much emotion in the building again tonight, this obviously being a home game and having the tremendous support that the fans give this hockey team and to see the way it was here tonight, and obviously everyone was aware of what was going on,” said coach Brent Sutter.

“It’s a special night. There’s not question about it. And to be part of it is pretty neat,” he added.

Brodeur’s family was in attendance, including his father, Denis, who photographed the game from his seat. The goaltender was anxious to see his children after his media duties were complete.

Commissioner Gary Bettman was in attendance, but declined to comment in person. He released a statement through his office to congratulate Brodeur.

In nine games since returning from injury, Brodeur won eight games to reach the milestone.

The Devils traveled to Carolina to face the Hurricanes Wednesday. Kevin Weekes will start in goal in relief for Brodeur.

Brodeur has been the safety net for the Devils for 552 victories since he entered the league 17 seasons ago. Tuesday, the net was for him alone.