Entering their regular-season finale against the Montreal Canadiens at UBS Arena (7 p.m. ET; SN1, MSGSN, RDS, ESPN+, SN NOW), that is what the Islanders need to clinch a Stanley Cup Playoff berth.
The Islanders (41-31-9) lead the Pittsburgh Penguins by one point for the second wild card into the playoffs from the Eastern Conference and are one point behind the Florida Panthers, who hold the first wild card.
The path opened for New York after Pittsburgh's 5-2 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday. A victory Wednesday would not only secure a playoff berth for the Islanders, but eliminate the Penguins from playoff contention after qualifying for 16 straight seasons, the longest active streak in major North American professional sports.
If New York loses in regulation Wednesday, that would lead to a win-and-in scenario for Pittsburgh on Thursday, when it plays its final regular-season game at the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Islanders would then be eliminated.
"I think it'd just be a combination of a lot of different things," New York forward Brock Nelson said after an optional morning skate. "Last year wasn't great but we're also not that far removed from having a couple runs where we went on some long playoff streaks and made some memories, and that's what we strive for. That's what we play for.
"You have one game now to kind of give ourselves [and] the fans that opportunity to kind of embrace that in a new building, which would be pretty exciting, so I think that's the biggest motivating thing for us."
The Islanders are in this position partly because of a 5-2 loss at the Washington Capitals on Monday, when the Capitals were playing without some of their regulars, including forwards Alex Ovechkin and T.J. Oshie.
"Everyone was disappointed [after the loss]," Nelson said. "That one hurt knowing that we had semi-under control of [qualifying for] the playoffs. So after last night, probably a big swing of emotion for sure. Right now, we're right back at it. So I know we came in yesterday and said the main focus is to come out and take care of our business no matter what happens, and [that] we can't control other things. Now we can control our own destiny again, [so we have to] get the job done."
New York holds the tiebreaker with Pittsburgh by virtue of more regulation wins this season (35-31). An Islanders win would vault them past the Panthers into a one-point lead for the first wild card in the East; Florida plays its regular-season finale against the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday after clinching a playoff berth Tuesday.
"Enjoy the moment," Islanders captain Anders Lee said. "I think it's going to be a great atmosphere getting home in front of our fans. I think we will work off each other really well tonight."
