NY Islanders red hot January fueling playoff push to start 2025

The Islanders are 8-2-0 in January one of the best starts to a calendar year in franchise history

Colorado Avalanche v New York Islanders
Colorado Avalanche v New York Islanders | Bruce Bennett/GettyImages

The weather may be frigid with snow on the ground but the New York Islanders have been red hot since the start of 2025. After losing their first game of the new year to the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Isles have gone 8-2 since Jan. 5th, tied with the Washington Capitals for the most wins in the NHL.

The team's current five-game winning streak has brought them back into realistic playoff contention, trailing the Tampa Bay Lightning by four points for the second Wild Card, though there are still five additional teams (Columbus, Detroit, Montreal, the Rangers, and Philadelphia) ahead of them. After winning three straight road games earlier in the month, the team took advantage of a season-long seven-game homestand by winning the final five games after two rocky performances.

According to MSG Networks statistician Eric Hornick, the Isles have outscored the opposition 32-19. Their 3.20 goals per game rank 8th, while their 1.90 goals allowed trail only Washington (1.27). The Isles have won an NHL-best 56.4% of their draws over those ten games. That's impressive, and they're doing it despite injuries to Noah Dobson and Ryan Pulock on their back end.

Anders Lee, Pyotr Kochetkov
Carolina Hurricanes v New York Islanders | Bruce Bennett/GettyImages

With their 5-2 win over Colorado on Tuesday night, the Isles are guaranteed their best January since 2019 when they went 8-2-1 in Barry Trotz's first season behind the bench. With a win on Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers, the franchise would register their best first month of the year since the 1983 Stanley Cup champion team in 1983.

Going on a hot streak when the season looks bleakest is nothing new for the Islanders. They've done it each of the prior two seasons to earn a playoff berth. They finished strong and got some help in 2023 to clinch a spot on the final day of the regular season. Then, last year, they ripped off an 8-0-1 run under Patrick Roy to finish third in the Metro Division. This year, the hot streak came earlier and needed to with the trade deadline looming and decisions needing to be made.

To make it matter, their strong will have to carry to February, March and beyond.

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