Islanders Check Their Way One Step Closer Over Bruins

The Boston Garden was rocking tonight for Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs between the Bruins vs. the Islanders. A sea of black and gold was in a hockey fan frenzy from before the time the puck was dropped. When Bruin winger, David Pastrnak scored less than 90 seconds into the game, the roof almost blew off the place. For most of the first period, it looked like the Bruins were in full control.

However, late in the first period, Islander center Matt Barzal scored the first of 3 New York power play goals on the evening. Kyle Palmeri and Jordan Eberle had the other two PPG’s but the goal scoring has not been the story of this series. The tale of this series has been the physical play. It hasn’t been a dirty series but it is an old time checking dust up to say the least.

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The goaltending throughout has been phenomenal. Bruins goalie Tuuka Rask has been amazing. He was pulled for the 3rd period tonight after giving up 3 power play goals to the Islanders. Tuuka will surely be between the pipes on Wednesday. In the other net, Islanders goalie Semyon Varlomov, who has been great against the Bruins all year, has been nothing less than spectacular for the Fisherman, after watching teammate Illya Sorokin get most of the ice time in net during the first round Penguins series.

Andrew Gross, who covers the Islanders for Newsday, will join the Drive with Charlie and Dan on Tuesday afternoon, as they preview Game 6 at the Nassau Coliseum on Wednesday night. Can the Islanders keep the dream of “one more Stanley Cup raised in the Barn” alive? We’ll see but there’s a long way to go. One thing is for sure, Islanders Head Coach Barry Trotz wants no part of his team playing a Game 7 in Boston.