8:27 p.m. - Freddy Meyer hits Vaclav Prospal into the padded partition in between the benches, completely wiping him out. Ah, my favorite play in hockey.8:30 p.m. - Martin Biron is playing decent. He hasn't had to be great at all, but he's still got that shutout in tact.
...Can you jinx someone on purpose? I hope so.

8:34 p.m. - Comrie sticks Briere in the face right off the draw, then gets in his face on the way to the box. What could you possibly say to him? Shut up, idiot.

8:38 p.m. - They just showed Kimmo Timonen on the bench which reminded me of how good a job Flyers' GM Paul Holmgren has done putting this team together. When Lupul and Richards come back, this team could make a run in the playoffs if they get any consistency from Biron.

8:39 p.m. - Line brawl! Guerin and Smith, the two captains, fight to a draw along the boards. Guerin started the whole pileup by giving Upshall a shot in the mouth. Stupid penalty or a message to his team?

8:41 p.m. - Well as things are sorted out, the Islanders will carry 1:50 of a power play into the third period. Guerin got two minutes for roughing, but Jason Smith got a double minor, giving New York the man advantage. This could be the break the Islanders needed.

8:45 p.m. - Oh wonderful, another intermission full of Al Trautwig taking shots at the Islanders. He definitely gets my vote for Biggest Rangers' Fan Employed by MSG, at least since the strange disappearance of Bobby Granger.

8:47 p.m. - Stan Fischler just simplified the playoff race as if he was talking to a third grader. Well, I guess most of the audience tonight is Isles fans, so maybe that's not so farfetched. My apologies, Stan. I guess I'm right on par with Al Trautwig, except I'm not being paid by MSG.

8:51 p.m. - Goring is saying the Isles need discipline badly. I agree. But Guerin's forearm into Upshall's jaw seemed to work out for them just fine.

8:52 p.m. - Deb plugs the whole 2-year loyalty ticket plan thing again. I'm now aware that this is an every-period thing. I just wish they didn't take face time away from her in this bi-nightly exercise in futility.

8:55 p.m. - New York is outshooting Philadelphia, 19-16. They need a power play goal here. I hope for the sake of watching bad hockey they get one.

8:58 p.m. - A promo for the Isles' next home game against Toronto on March 18th shows a bevy of Islanders saying how much of a difference the crowd makes. I'm going to rewind the TiVo to make sure I heard this correctly.

8:59 p.m. - Yes, I did. Wow, I'm actually considering suing for false advertising. The only time they manage to get more than a third of that building filled is when they roll out all the fossils from the 1980s Stanley Cup years for some ridiculous anniversary. The one exception to this, of course, is when the Rangers come to town. On these four nights a year, the arena is filled, but not with Islanders' fans. It's fair to assume there are as many people there rooting for the Blueshirts as there are for the home team on those nights.

9:01 p.m. - Halfway through the power play, one shot on goal. The Isles need traffic in front of Biron or they're toast.

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