UNIONDALE, N.Y. — Facing playoff elimination against the Washington Capitals on Saturday, the Islanders are hoping their crowd can lift them one more time.
But as boisterous and supportive as the crowd has been through this final season at Nassau Coliseum, the fans cannot score power-play goals, or help skaters “manage the puck,” a phrase Coach Jack Capuano has often employed.
And playing with a further depleted defense after the Capitals’ Troy Brouwer leveled Calvin de Haan in Thursday’s 5-1 road loss in Game 5, the Islanders, trailing the series by three games to two, need all the determination they can muster.