Thursday night in Brooklyn, the New York Islanders hosted their rival New York Rangers for the first of four matchups set to take place over the course of the 2018-19 season.
In the eyes of many, both teams weren’t expected to be competitive this season, yet the two New York teams were tied for second in the Metropolitan Division with 20 points each (17 games for the Islanders, 18 for the Rangers) entering Thursday night’s contest.
Headed into the game, the Islanders were 6-0 against the Rangers at the Barclays Center and had won 11 of the last 12 matchups.