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Islanders kick off road trip with 1-0 win over Devils

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Isles’ Casey Cizikas falls while celebrating his goal against the Devils.Julio Cortez/AP

Isles’ Casey Cizikas falls while celebrating his goal against the Devils.

The way things are shaping up in the NHL’s Eastern Conference, playoff spots could be up for grabs right down to the very end of the season, and for the Islanders, there’s an opportunity in front of them to distinguish themselves from the pack.

They rebounded from a Thursday overtime loss to the NHL-leading Capitals by starting their seven-game road trip with a 1-0 win over the Devils Friday night at Prudential Center.

Bookended by local road games — the trip finishes on March 6 against the Rangers at the Garden — the Islanders (31-19-7, 69 points) will truly hit the road for a Tuesday game in Minnesota, when they begin a stretch of five straight games against Western Conference teams currently out of the playoff picture. After Minnesota the Isles will head to Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver and Winnipeg.

Friday’s win was a positive start for the Isles, who entered the game 11-11-3 on the road this season. The two points were especially crucial because they pulled further ahead of the Devils (29-23-7, 65 points,) who remain on the outside looking in for now, and move to three points ahead of fourth-place Pittsburgh.

Casey Cizikas scored his sixth goal of the season just 1:59 into the game. Nick Leddy rushed through the neutral zone up the left wing and his shot was saved by Cory Schneider (23 saves,) but the rebound deflected off an oncoming Cizikas and into the net.

Isles goalie Jaroslav Halak makes a glove save.Andy Marlin/NHLI via Getty Images

Isles goalie Jaroslav Halak makes a glove save.

The Isles got a scare late in the second period when New Jersey’s Jordin Tootoo cross-checked Johnny Boychuk into the end boards with exactly five minutes remaining. Tootoo was assessed a major penalty and given a game misconduct as Boychuk departed for the locker room, slamming his stick on the boards in frustration. He returned for the third period.

Boychuk missed 11 games after suffering a shoulder injury in Buffalo on New Year’s Eve. The Isles went 5-5-1 without him. The Islanders had just one shot on goal during their five-minute power play.

After two straight starts by Thomas Greiss, Jaroslav Halak started the second game of the back-to-back and notched his third shutout of the season, making 27 saves. Halak gave up six goals in two periods against the Hurricanes on Saturday before he was pulled.

The Devils were shut out for the sixth time this season. Their 130 goals scored are the fewest in the NHL.

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