What the Islanders said yesterday and what they feel tonight when the puck drops against the Penguins at the Coliseum might be two separate sentiments.
“For me, it’s not even a rivalry,” coach Jack Capuano told the team’s website after yesterday’s practice. “It’s just another game.”
It might matter a bit more once the boards start rattling and the memory of last Feb. 2 becomes quite a bit clearer.
That was the game last season when the Islanders and Penguins got into a brawl, resulting in 346 combined penalty minutes and Islanders franchise goalie Rick DiPietro taking a left hook from Penguins’ netminder Brent Johnson, breaking an orbital bone in DiPietro’s face.
“We have to concentrate and play our game,” captain Mark Streit told the website. “We can’t have any frustrations in us. The most important thing is to win [tonight].”