New York Islanders' Casey Cizikas celebrates his winning goal in overtime of Game 2 of a second-round playoff series against the Boston Bruins on May 31, 2021. Credit: AP/Winslow Townson
It would be an oversimplification to frame the Bruins-Islanders series in terms of Boston’s elite "Perfection Line" and the Islanders’ blue-collar "Identity Line."
The Bruins have their share of grinders, and the Islanders have several highly skilled players.
But how can we resist, given the delicious contrast in monikers for each team’s most well-known trio – and given how the Islanders see themselves?
Especially so after Casey Cizikas tied a bow on that narrative on Monday night, scoring on a breakaway 14:48 into overtime to give the Islanders a 4-3 victory and even the second-round playoff series at 1-1.