Phoenix 110 Nets 104: The Nets almost pulled it out in a topsy-turvy game, but the Suns proved to be too much. The Nets jumped out to a 10-point lead after one quarter, but Phoenix came back and took a one-point lead at halftime. The Nets got as close as a three-point deficit in the fourth quarter, but they simply couldn’t get over the hump. Vince Carter had 32 points in the loss.Philadelphia 4 Islanders......

Photograph of the Nets' Vince Carter trying to keep the ball from the Knicks' David Lee by Seth Wenig/AP Nets 106, Knicks 91: At this points, with Knicks fans just assuming defeat, the Nets picked a good time to avoid embarrassment and finally take down their rivals. Vince Carter had 27 points and Richard Jefferson poured in 26. New Jersey has faint playoff aspirations. They probably won't make it, but at least they have......

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.......

Photograph of Islanders celebrating a second period goal from Ruslan Fedotenko by Frank Franklin II/AP Islanders 4 Rangers 3 (Shootout): This was not a game for fans of goaltenders. Henrik Lundqvist was terrible, Wade Dubielewicz was too but better when it counted and the Islanders prevailed in a sloppy game. Blake Comeau got things started when he scored by throwing the puck off of Michal Rozsival to put the Islanders in front. The Rangers......

Rangers 4 Atlanta 0: Tom Renney shook up the lines and the lineup and the Rangers responded. Playing the opening game in their consecutive home game tilt with the Thrashers, New York set the tone early and played great defense allowing only 14 shots. Sean Avery, placed on the top line with Gomez and Jagr got things started with a goal at 12:12 of the first period. Brandon Dubinsky scored a few minutes later and......

Islanders 4, Hurricanes 1: New Year's revelers that had to leave the game early in Raleigh didn't miss much last night, because all the scoring in the Islanders victory over the Hurricanes came in the 2nd period. When the Islanders scored, they did most of it in a flurry and on the power play. Three goals came in a 3:39 stretch (on four shots!) and three of their four goals came on the power......

Rangers 6, Maple Leafs 1: Nothing like making opponents pay dearly for their trips to the penalty box. The Rangers scored five of their six goals on the power play -- Blair Betts' icebreaker was the only even-strength goal -- and won their second straight game. This came against a Maple Leafs team that has struggled in the Northeast Division this season, but that won't bother Petr Prucha (two goals) or Jaromir jagr (one goal,......

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 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......

Maple Leafs 8, Islanders 1: Maybe they were worn out from facing the Rangers on Wednesday. Maybe they had a tough time getting through customs. Whatever the reason, the Islanders played an embarrassingly flat game in Toronto on Thursday and suffered their second loss of the season. Wade Dubielewicz was the sacrificial lamb and spent all 60 minutes in net. The Isles continue their three-game road trip in Philadelphia on Saturday night. Panthers 3, Devils......

Rangers 4 Atlanta 3: To say this was a physical contest is an understatement. The Rangers and Thrashers engaged in a heavyweight fight Thursday with New York surviving in the end. Jagr and Rozsival put the Rangers up 2-0 in the first before Eric Belanger cut the lead in half. The Rangers opened another two-goal lead in the second when Marcel Hossa made it 3-1, but Shane Hnidy cut the lead to 1 again midway......

Islanders 3, Devils 2 (SO): Improbable as it may seem, the Islanders have made the playoffs. All it took was four straight wins in their final four games, and do that while third-string goalie Wade Dubielewicz logged significant time. No one will remember that they blew a 2-0 lead in Sunday's game, and the Islanders earned a crack at the conference's best team, the Buffalo Sabres. Orioles 6, Yankees 4: They couldn't repeat the late-inning......

Islanders 3 Rangers 2 (Shootout): Their playoff hopes may be on life-support, but at least the Islanders didn’t have to see their arch-rivals clinch their own spot in the postseason in person. Both team played furiously, which resulted in a wide-open game with both team combining for 72 shots. The Islanders built a 2-0 lead off of a strange deflection and a goal by Satan. The Rangers battled back with a strange deflection of their......

Rangers 6 Flyers 4: The bottom line is they got the two points. Yes, they almost threw away a big lead and yes, they made a lot of mental mistakes, but they got the two points. Henrik Lundqvist rebounded nicely from Tuesday’s shellacking, stopping 33-of-37 shots while Jagr netted two and Prucha got his 20th. The win leaves the Rangers in the seventh spot with four games left. Their margin for error remains razor-thin with......

Devils 3 Carolina 2: Local fans of all affiliations cheered on the Devils tonight as they came up with two goals in the third period to beat the Hurricanes. Martin Brodeur had another stellar game with 38 saves. Carolina’s loss leaves them with 78 points, tied with the Islanders and two ahead of the Rangers in the very tight Eastern Conference. The Devils moved to within two of Buffalo for the conference lead. Ottawa 5......