Lubomir Visnovsky News

Now that their season is over, the New York Islanders have time to reflect on how far the franchise has come the past few seasons.

The New York Islanders were eliminated from the first playoff appearance in quite some time over the weekend, falling in Game 6 to the Pittsburgh Penguins .

The 2013 NHL free-agent crop isn't as loaded as it could have been due to elite players such as Corey Perry , Ryan signing extensions during the season.

He even sat out 25 percent of the games in this strike-shortened 48-game regular-season with a broken jaw.

Game 6 of the Stanley Cup playoffs first-round series between the New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins was the only game in the NHL on Saturday, which means that it drew the undivided attention of the hockey world.

Tomas Vokoun had forgotten what it was like to start in the playoffs. Tyler Kennedy wondered if he'd ever get the chance again.

For most players, a 1-on-2 gambit isn't advisable. It's a little different when Sidney Crosby is the 1. Crosby split the Islanders' Thomas Hickey and Lubomir Visnovsky, then beat goalie Evgeni Nabokov with a sharp wrister for another highlght-reel goal.

Five reasons why the No. 8 New York Islanders are tied 2-2 with No. 1 Pittsburgh Penguins going into Thursday's Game 5 in Pittsburgh PITTSBURGH - Five reasons why the No.

Brian Strait of the Islanders celebrates his first period goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins with teammate Lubomir Visnovsky during Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.

Arthur Staple of Newsday reports blue liner Andrew MacDonald broke his hand in the third period of tonight's game and may be done for the remainder of the playoffs.

May 5, 2013; Uniondale, NY, USA; New York Islanders defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky takes the puck as defenseman Brian Strait keeps Pittsburgh Penguins right wing Beau Bennett on the boards during the second period in game three of the first round of the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

One seat even sold for $200. When one of the nine women in his limousine complained about smoke, Orville Brown pulled to the side of a San Francisco Bay bridge to check.

The New York Islanders' rallying cry in their return to the postseason for the first time in six years is "Believe." Even the most ardent of supporters might find that optimism difficult following a deflating home loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The Pittsburgh Penguins begin their march for the Cup tonight, as hockey analysts around North America have confirmed what all hockey fans have known since the trade deadline: the Pens are the most complete team in hockey.

A pre-series chat with our rival's blog covering topics of interest to Penguin fans from the Islander perspective.

This is the matchup no one wanted, the mighty Penguins, a team so deep their record shows no indications of the large swaths of time their star players missed because of injury.

Middletown, N. J. - We have all seen the movie played out before our eyes : Heavily favored team heading into a professional sports tournament that decides the champion of the league falls flat on their face and fails to live up to the heavy weight of expectations.

Despite their respective positioning in the standings, tonight's game looks to be an evenly matched affair, considering the recent play of both teams.

Lauridsen scored his second career NHL goal on a slap shot high above the circle late in the third period to lift the Flyers to a win in their home finale.

Having clinched a playoff spot, the New York Islanders are making a few lineup changes, but this clinch-hangover game is far from meaningless: Depending on how this and other games go tonight, the sixth-place Islanders could end the evening in anywhere from fifth to eighth place.