Rangers move into tie for wild-card spot after shutting out Islanders in lopsided rivalry win

There haven’t been many Battles of New York in recent memory with as many playoff implications as the last couple games between the Rangers and Islanders.

And for the second time in a week, the Blueshirts asserted themselves in the Eastern Conference postseason race with a definitive 4-0 victory over the Islanders — one of several teams they are vying against for a playoff spot — to move into a tie with the Red Wings for the second wild-card spot.

“It sometimes works for you like a snowball, if you keep going, and then just keep scoring, keep winning — that’s confidence,” said Artemi Panarin, who posted two points, including an empty-net goal, in the win. “You’re making better decisions with the confidence that you get.”

Whichever way this one went, it was going to have significant meaning for the winner.

That it was the second-to-last game before the trade deadline for both teams only added to the magnitude.

The Islanders were three points behind the Blueshirts coming into the game, with just a single point separating the six closest teams in the East looking from the outside in on the postseason bracket.