Rangers 4, Islanders 1: Two days after having their dramatic rally ruined in a shootout, the Rangers crushed the Islanders, 4-1, and continued their surge at the season's most critical times. They drew Wade Dubielewicz in goal -- Rick DiPietro had missed too much time following the death of his grandmother -- but most goalies would have had trouble Thursday. The Rangers led this one 89 seconds into the game on a Brendan Shanahan goal.......

The Islanders keep giving Garth Snow a reason to believe. Thursday it was a 1-0 victory over Tampa Bay that put New York back into a playoff spot. New York welcomed back Chris Simon from his latest suspension, but the Uniondale crowd didn’t exactly welcome Simon. When he skated his first shift the boos were louder than the cheers, but things settled down and Simon ended up with nine uneventful shifts on the night. It......

Nets 87, Bucks 80: For one night at least, Jason Kidd did his best to help the Nets get maximum value in a trade. The Nets also proved that even they couldn't find a way to lose a weak team playing without its best player (Michael Redd). The fans cheered loudly for Kidd before the game, so they either want him gone -- and are cheering his efforts to leave -- or love him so......

Timberwolves 98, Nets 95: Minnesota, with only eight wins on the season,hasn't been a complete rollover during the past 10 days, but that doesn't mean the team is any good. It was a good night for the Jeffersons -- Minnesota's Al had 41 and New Jersey's Richard had 35. The Nets have lost nine straight. The last six of those have come on the road against Western Conference teams. See for yourself which conference is......

Bruins 4, Rangers 3 (SO): Sometimes teams are happy with a single point, but the Rangers won't be in this one. They blew a lead in the third period -- after rallying from a 2-1 deficit -- and then saw things go against them in the shootout. A sluggish January for continues for New York. Scott Gomez had two assists and a goal, but it didn't help the Rangers avoid dropping to 2-4-1 in the......

Knicks 111 Nets 105: Something’s different with the Knicks. Not only did they win their third-straight game (a season high) Wednesday, but they did it with a comeback. New Jersey jumped out to a 15-point lead at the end of the first quarter and the Knicks responded. For some reason, they didn’t pack it in like they have on so many other nights. Jamal Crawford led the way with 35 points and eight assists, including......

Devils 2, Sabres 1 (SO): Aggressive play cost the Devils the win in regulation, but Martin Brodeur, Brian Gionta and Patrik Elias too center stage in the shootout to allow the Devils to continue their home dominance. They have picked up 21 of 22 points at their new Prudential Center in the last 11 games. Things didn't look so rosy when Jason Pominville tied the game with 1:47 to go, but the Devils bounced......

And now it’s the Islanders turn to head out to Western Canada and based on Monday’s 4-0 thrashing, they may have the same problems the Rangers did. Early in the second, Ales Hemsky skated in on two defenders and through a harmless shot towards the net, that Rick DiPietro somehow let in and the rout was on. The Oliers added two more goals in the second and another one in the third to complete the......

Edmonton 3 Rangers 2 (shootout): Pinching defensemen have become a vital part of the Rangers’ offense and Dan Girardi showed that again Saturday. With New York stymied offensively and losing 1-0 midway in the third, Girardi came in and put the puck on net. The bounce was odd, but the result was good as the Rangers tied the game at 1. Unfortunately for New York, Ryan Hollweg took a stupid boarding penalty and his five-minute......

Vancouver 3 Rangers 0: They kept trying and trying, but they simply could not break through. Roberto Luongo made big save after big save as he withstood 27 Rangers' shots to record the shutout. Ryan Kessler scored the first goal of the contest in the second period off of a tough angle that Stephon Valiquette couldn’t handle. Fedor Tyutin got caught on a pinch late in the third period that the Canuks turned into a......

Senators 5, Islanders 2: Any time Wade Dubielewicz is seeing significant time in goal for the Islanders, things can't be going that well. He made 32 saves -- but allowed five goals -- as the Senators romped past New York and snapped the Isles' three-game winning streak. Dubielewicz played because Rick Di Pietro sprained his ankle in Wednesday's win over Toronto. The No. 1 goalie is day to day -- aren't we all? -- and......

Rangers 4 Carolina 2: Putting Gomez on the top line certainly looked like a smart decision Wednesday. Gomez fed Jarmoir Jagr, helping him get nine shots and setting him up on both of his goals in the Rangers’ win. Chris Drury and Dan Girardi also scored for New York. The game was stopped midway through the second period after an ugly collision between Colton Orr and former Ranger Matt Cullen. Cullen took this worst of......

Islanders 3 Phoenix 2: Bill Guerin had a big night scoring two goals in Phoenix’s first visit to Long Island in over five years. Guerin got the Islanders on the board jumping on a lose puck in the crease in the second period. Marc-Andre Bergeron made it to 2-0 New York and Guerin pounced on another rebound to give the Islanders their third goal. Things got testy at the end of the game as Shane......

Sonics 117, Knicks 110: Knicks fans deserve a lot of credit. No one's pointing out how hard it is to chant "Fire Isiah." That phrase has a ton of vowel sounds. They held off for part of this game, but at the end, the result was the same. Zach Randolph is the only self-respecting Knick, though Jamal Crawford has been putting up better numbers with Stephon Marbury still out. The sum of the parts is......

Knicks 100, Nets 93: No Stephon Marbury, and the Knicks take down the Nets. Of course, the Nets didn't have Jason Kidd (headache), so who knows which team was worse off. Richard Jefferson's heroics couldn't get the job done for the Nets, who continue to play inexplicably poorly at home following road games. Jamal Crawford filled the backcourt "void" for the Knicks with 29 points, and Zach Randolph had 25. Richard Jefferson had 31 points......

Rangers 5 Ottawa 2: The Senators may be in a funk of late, but they still have the best record in the Eastern Conference. That may not last for too much longer as the Rangers beat Ottawa soundly Saturday afternoon, scoring three goals in the first period and forcing a goaltending change. Everything seemed to work for New York as the power play scored twice, Brendan Shanahan had two goals and Blair Betts even got......

Rangers 4, Islanders 2: It's a good thing these teams play each other eight times each season. Otherwise, the Rangers might have a confidence problem. Given enough opportunities to beat a particular opponent, any team is bound to cash in sooner or later. After losing the first three games against the Islanders, the Blueshirts finally broke through. Jaromir Jagr and Chris Drury each had a goal and an assist against Rick DiPietro. The Islanders still......

Islanders 3 Ottawa 2 (Shootout): The Islanders got a huge victory Wednesday night thanks to some great goaltending from Rick DiPietro. DiPietro made 35 saves during the game and an additional 5 in the shootout to propel New York to victory. Ottawa came back from a 2-1 deficit in the third with a goal with under two minutes remaining in the game. Both teams had power plays in overtime, but were unable to convert and......

Knicks 85 Chicago 78: Seriously, that isn’t a misprint, the Knicks won the game! Afterwards, while the fans stormed the court and the tickertape rained down, Isiah Thomas took a minute to point out that everyone was wrong about him and that this triumph was his vindication. Ok, it didn’t quite happen that way, but based on some of the reaction you had to assume that the Knicks had actually won a big game, rather......

Islanders 2, Rangers 1: For all the success the Rangers have had against the rest of the league, they still can't solve the Islanders. Five-game winning streak? Poof! Rick DiPietro made 18 saves and the Islanders won for the third time in three games between the two clubs. Ruslan Fedotenko and Josef Vasicek each scored in the second period, and Michal Rozsival scored a short-handed goal for the Rangers. He now has seven goals......

Sacramento 123 Knicks 118 (2OT’s); You weren’t dreaming, that really was Stephon Marbury playing defense. Marbury didn’t start, but he had a nice game off the bench as Isiah went to a three-guard lineup in the fourth quarter. With Crawford and Robinson sharing the point, Marbury took over at the two and did well. Eddy Curry had a huge game with 27 points including a game-tying rebound and layup with 10 seconds left in regulation,......

Hornets 84, Nets 82: As much as the Nets appreciate the start to the season Antoine Wright has had, they probably don't want him taking their final shot at the buzzer. But Wright did just that after starting for Vince Carter -- out with a sprained ankle -- and the result wasn't pretty. Carter's injury will have him out the always mysterious "indefinitely," and the Nets will have to find offense elsewhere. Richard Jefferson (32......

Rangers 2, Devils 1 (SO): Petr Prucha did enough to finally earn a second "E" for his name. He set up the only goal in regulation and scored the only goal in the shootout. Scott Gomez struck against his former club. The Rangers had other chances, including Chris Drury's breakaway in overtime, so this win helped them sleep better at night. Islands 3, Penguins 2: This could have been a Pyhrric victory. Rick DiPietro got......

Rangers 2 Washington 0: It wasn’t an offensive explosion, but it was enough. Chris Drury put the Rangers in front with a goal 6:45 into the second period and the power play clicked again a few minutes later when Michal Rozsival made it 2-0. That’s all that Henrik Lundqvist needed as he recorded his 3rd shutout of the season by making 31 saves. Lundqvist has played every game of the year so far for New......

Islanders 2 Rangers 1: Bryan Berard is a guy you have to root for, regardless of what team he plays for. In 2000 he suffered a horrific eye injury, one that should have made visors mandatory for all players, but he came back and played again after seven eye operations. The former rookie of the year with the Islanders missed most of last year after back surgery and he had to fight his way onto......

You may not have noticed that the NHL season started last weekend. While two games between two California teams in London may not have captured your interest, the three local teams that begin play tomorrow and the next few nights will all be fascinating stories throughout the season. No team enters the season with bigger expectations than the Rangers. After landing two big centers in free agency, Chris Drury and Scott Gomez, New York......

Yankees 5 White Sox 1:If the Yankees are going to get off the deck and get back into playoff contention, they will need a lot more nights like this. Chien-Ming Wang was brilliant, going the distance while allowing only one run and six baserunners. Wang also struck out four as he cruised to an easy win, his fifth of the season. The Yankees scored the bulk of their runs in the fourth. Johnny Damon......

Rangers 2 Thrashers 1: New York took a commanding lead in their playoff series thanks to an incredibly lucky bounce and a beautiful goal from Brenadan Shanahan. The Rangers head home with a 2-0 lead in the series. Islanders 3 Sabres 2: Rick DiPietro returned and stopped 32-of-34 shots to lead the Islanders to victory. Marc-Andre Bergeron scored a power-play goal in the third period to give New York the victory. Lightning 3 Devils 2:......

For some inexplicable reason, the NHL has scheduled all three local clubs to start their playoff chase tonight and to overlap with each other most nights. Because of that, fans of the various teams should get to know this website to figure out where they can watch the games. As for the actual series, the Islanders have clearly drawn the toughest test. Buffalo started out the season on fire and hasn’t let up, earning the......

Mavericks 105 Knicks 103: This would have been sweet. The Knicks almost came away with the win of the year, actually the win of the past two years, before losing in the final second to the 61-win Mavericks on the road. Stephon Marbury had an amazing night, scoring 43 points while almost single-handedly leading the team to victory. The Knicks out-shot and out-rebounded the Mavericks, but were done in by 25 turnovers. Pistons 110 Nets......