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NEW YORK ISLANDERS VS CAROLINA HURRICANES- 7:00PM EDT/4:00PM PDT
Fresh off their Game 7 OT win over the Washington Capitals, they’re going to have their hands full with an Islanders team that likely saw how Columbus came out of the gate, and they’re sure to be ready to go tonight.
These teams are pretty evenly matched up with one exception. While Petr Mrazek’s been great, he’s not Robin Lehner, who was one of the reasons the Isles were able to dismantle the Penguins in 4 games. The Canes will need to solve him if they don’t want this ride to end.
SAN JOSE SHARKS VS COLORADO AVALANCHE- 10:00PM EDT/7:00PM PDT
They may have arrived here via different paths, but these teams are a lot more similar than first glance. Balanced scoring and tons of speed, but the deciding factor will be the team whose goalie cracks first. Philipp Grubauer was steady against Calgary, save for Game 1. In San Jose’s crease, we saw the best and the worst from Martin Jones, but he was definitely locked in for the final 3 games. This, and which defence struggles to contain the other team’s speed will dictate this series.
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
37 years ago this week, IRON MAIDEN released their 3rd album ‘The Number Of The Beast’. It marked two significant changes for the band: it was the last album for drummer Clive Burr, but more importantly it marked the debut of Bruce Dickinson as vocalist, replacing Paul Di’Anno. Dickinson’s soaring vocals gave the band a new weapon, and it led to their first Number 1 album in the UK, and top 40 in the US. Here’s the title track, and a neat bit of trivia: one of the guys in the devil suits would replace Burr behind the drum kit: Nicko McBrain.