The Curtain Falls On a Season Best Let Go Of

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on that sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
- "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night" by Dylan Thomas

Islanders 4: Rangers 3 (SO)

They made it hard.

The Rangers were raring, flying, yearning to sweep the home-and-home. They fired shot after shot at Wade Dubielewicz, throwing bodies left and right, getting chance after chance but never managing to put into the net the one goal that would bury those pesky also-ran Isles once and for all. They brought their A game; they just hadn't wanted Dubielewicz to bring his.

Or Richard Park to bring his, for that matter.

But they did. And because of that, the Islanders didn't go quietly.

For the second time in two years, it took a shootout to end the Islanders' regular season, and they did so with style, winning the shootout 3-2 and the game, 4-3, in a thriller that left Isles fans (hopefully) with a smile on their face despite the fact that this team would not suit up again for the playoffs this season. Dubielewicz made 51 saves in regulation and overtime, and stopped Brendan Shanahan and Petr Prucha in the shootout, while Kyle Okposo, Blake Comeau, and Isles' MVP Richard Park scored to give the Islanders the two points.

It started with the youngsters. Okposo scored his second of the year, firing a shot off of Fedor Tyutin past Henrik Lundqvist at 10:10 of the first period. The Rangers would come back to tie it early in the second, on Dan Girardi's tenth, but then Miro Satan took advantage of a Lundqvist misplay of the puck as it sat between his legs, to put the Isles up 2-1.

Penalties could have been the downfall of the Islanders last night, as they took quite a few to put the Rangers in multiple scoring situations; however, all the success the Rangers PP had the night before against the Isles disappeared as Park flew up the ice on a 3-on-5 penalty kill and flipped the puck past Lundqvist, who couldn't believe it; the score was then 3-2 Islanders (Nigel Dawes had tied it up a few minutes before).

Of course, the Rangers, headed to the playoffs for the third straight year, weren't about to let the upstarts in blue and orange steal the show. Jaromir Jagr let loose and scored his 24th of the year to tie it again, 4:20 into the third, and there it would stay mainly because of Dubielewicz, who made key saves and kept the Isles into it when they missed plenty of chances on Lundqvist. Overtime commenced, where the Isles had a key PP opportunity wasted (again, too much passing, boys- next year please shoot the puck), and then the shootout, where youth was served, as well as work ethic.

Thus, the Isles clean out their locker rooms for the year, and Sean Bergenheim (who would probably have like to win it in the shootout, but no matter- he still has a spot on the team next year as far as I'm concerned) goes off to play for Finland in the world championships, and the rest of the Bridgeport boys go to the playoffs in the AHL, and the vets take their extended vacations despite the looming prospect of UFA status and contract negotiation, all the while with the draft lottery to come on Monday night. The Isles fall into the bottom five of the league, and have a shot at the top draft pick, which would be very welcome. However, whatever the case, we still have free agency and other picks to use, and we should use them to the fullest to ensure that the Isles start off right on the road to recovery and getting back to the playoffs. More posts will come expanding on this, and also reflecting on the season and the players who have stood out on the Isles.

With that said, I will say, for the last time this regular season...

LET'S GO ISLANDERS!!!