While drawing a matchup with the Islanders in the first round of the playoffs was the most favorable out of all the other options coming out of the East for the Penguins this season, it’s tough to forget about how consistently miserable the Isles have made Pittsburgh in the past.
But thanks to former Penguin Brooks Orpik netting the overtime winner in Game 6 of the 2013 postseason, suffering season-ending defeats at the hands of the Islanders may officially be a thing of the past. NYI hasn’t really been able to build themselves back up to an annual Stanley Cup contender for years, and I can’t imagine the Penguins are ready to slip back into the failures of decades past and allow that to change.