The New York Islanders have lost six of their last seven and four straight. The slump have seen them drop out of the top three in the Metropolitan Division and they need to snap out of it ASAP to hold onto the first wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. I think they're catching the Ottawa Senators at a good time and I'm banking on the home-team in tonight'scontest.

Here are my keys to the game:

1. Situational/Motivational - The Sens are coming off a 4-2 home-loss against Washington last night and they now find themselves seven points back of a wild card spot in the East with three teams in between. They're 1-4 in their last five games playing on back-to-back nights and 0-7 in their last seven in the fourth game of a 4-in-6 situation.

2. Home Cookin' - The Islanders fell 4-1 against the Flyers here at Barclays Center Monday but they had won six of their last seven in front of the home town crowd prior to that setback. Ottawa has lost 19 of its last 26 on the road.

3. X-Factor - The Islanders have the second best penalty kill in the NHL and the Sens are 0-for-27 on the power play over the past 10 games.

Selection: This is a play on the New York Islanders (8*)