NFT: Islanders - Capitals Playoff Game 6, 3pm Game Thread

It's down to a one game series for the Islanders, do or die today. The right outcome gets them to another one game series, but that isn't anything to think about today.These 60 minutes are the only thing on the Islanders' minds. Backs to the wall. Are we used to any other way?

They're saying the right things:

Quote:

“At some point it was going to come to this, right?” Head Coach Jack Capuano said. “We have a chance in our building to take it to a Game 7. Our backs were up against the wall a lot this year. We’ve responded really well and I think we’ll do the same.”

Hickey:

Quote:

“We know what it means to our fans. That can’t be the last game there, it can’t be the last game for them. We’re going to come with our heads on and be ready to play and make sure that it’s not the last game there. We have to find a way.”

Kyle Okposo:

Quote:

We need to keep our emotions in check and make sure that we are focusing on the right things,” Okposo said. “We’re a little bit banged up, but it gives other guys an opportunity to step up. You’re going to have to deal with injuries as a team and we have to find a way to put together a full team and get a big win.”

John Tavares:

Quote:

“We’ve had injuries during the year,” Tavares said. “We’ve found a way to win hockey games and play well. At this time of year it gets heightened and we’re missing some defensive guys, some big presence, but we just have to be better. Individually we still believe in our group. We’ve responded to adversity well, we’ve overcome a lot this year and it’s another chance for that if we want to keep playing.”

Another ally should be the raucous home crowd, who surely are not ready for this to potentially be NVMC's swan song. Cappy also knows this:

Quote:

“There’s going to be a lot of emotion in the building,” Capuano said. “The fans have been great. We work as a unit of one here. We’ve built a lot of energy off them.”

I'm not ready for this to be over and I know you're not, either. We work as a unit of one...despite the challenges we know - will we field the best combo of forwards? The reality of having 3 d-men in there that in a perfect world would not be on the ice? - this game presents the chance to even things up with an all-out assault. Let's be good fans. Let's all row in the same direction here. Let's give the boys our support. Let's all be Islanders today.

Let's Go Islanders!

Commit to Grace Under Pressure
All that we can do is just survive
All that we can do to help ourselves
Is stay alive...