Yesterday, the Islanders announced that goaltender Rick DiPietro will be out indefinitely. He missed last night’s game against the Devils — Mike Dunham started in his place — and Wade Dubielewicz was recalled from the AHL’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers to back him up.

The original injury was suffered back on March 13, when DiPietro left the goal crease and collided with Canadiens forward Steve Begin. He missed the three games that followed (all Isles losses), then returned to the lineup on March 22, helping the Isles get back on track with a 3–1 win over the Penguins. DiPietro was also in goal for Saturday’s win over the Flyers, and looked to be in full health.

But in Sunday’s 2–1 overtime loss to the Rangers, there was a sign that all might not have been right; he was absolutely incensed when Sean Avery fell on him during a seemingly innocuous goal-crease pileup. The team said DiPietro will be evaluated daily, and that he will not be available for comment until he has been cleared to play.

“After the game on Sunday, Rick told our medical staff that he was suffering from headaches,” Islanders GM Garth Snow said in a press release. “Until Rick is completely recovered, he will not play. As important as these games are, nothing is more important than Rick’s health.”

Indeed, DiPietro signed a 10-year, $67.5 million contract last summer, and he is without question the face of the Isles’ franchise. So expect the club to exercise extreme caution before reinserting him into the lineup, even though his absence might well prove the difference between reaching — and missing — the postseason.

In 62 games this season, DiPietro has posted an impressive 32–19–9 record, .919 save percentage, and 2.58 goals-against average, and has more often than not been the Isles’ best player. Meanwhile, backup Mike Dunham (4–8–3, .896 SV%, 3.49 GAA), represents a huge step down. The 11-year veteran hasn’t yet played in a single NHL playoff game, and expecting him to backstop the reeling Isles into the postseason seems quite unreasonable.

But the wildcard in this unfortunate situation is Dubielewicz. His numbers for Bridgeport (22–11–5, 2.59 GAA, .925 SV%) are a strong indication that he — and not Dunham — would be the best choice to help the Isles earn a playoff spot in DiPietro’s absence. If DiPietro is still unable to play on Friday against the Sabres, look for Dubielewicz to get his shot.

So here’s how the teams line up this week. Statistically, teams are measured from left to right by games played, W–L–OTL, standings points, goals scored, goals allowed, power play success, and penalty-killing success. Please note that the data are up to and including games played on Monday night, and that our statistics for special teams effectiveness also take shorthanded goals into account. Each team’s ranking from last week appears in parentheses.

1 BUFFALO SABRES (1): The Sabres are getting healthier, and just in time for the playoffs. Ales Kotalik is expected to return to the lineup for tonight’s matchup with the Devils, and Toni Lydman, Daniel Paille, and Maxim Afinogenov are also due back very soon.
75 48–20–7 103 282 224 14.2% 82.7%

2 NASHVILLE PREDATORS (2): It’s been a career season for captain Kimmo Timonen, who has already set career highs in virtually every meaningful statistical category. Now, the unrestricted free agent-tobe will try to lead the Preds to a firstever playoff series victory … or four.
76 48–21–7 103 255 197 17.1% 87.5%

3 DETROIT RED WINGS (3): It is now appropriate to say that Dominik Hasek’s $750,000 contract is the greatest bargain in the NHL this season; the 42-year-old netminder still strikes fear into even the best shooters.
76 46–19–11 103 233 188 14.2%86.6%

4 ANAHEIM DUCKS (4): The Ducks’ “Kid Line” of Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, and Dustin Penner has played quite well of late; but on Monday night, they couldn’t find a way to solve Hasek, falling 1–0 in a tightly played defensive struggle.
76 44–20–12 100 240 195 20.5%85.5%

5 VANCOUVER CANUCKS (5): Former Devils prospect Willie Mitchell has emerged as the Canucks’ most reliable shutdown defenseman; extremely solid positionally, Mitchell has posted an impressive plus-9 rating in his last 14 games.
75 45–23–7 97 203 185 14.7% 88.8%

6 OTTAWA SENATORS (7): The Sens now boast the league’s best goal-differential (plus-60). They are in all likelihood going to finish the regular season as the Eastern Conference’s fourth seed, which would guarantee them home ice advantage in the first round.
76 45–23–8 98 267 207 15.1% 89.4%

7 DALLAS STARS (8): With only one 20-goal scorer (Jere Lehtinen, 25 goals) and without a single player on pace to top the 60-point mark, the credit for the Stars’ improbable success this season must go to goaltender Marty Turco and their stingy team defense.
75 45–24–6 96 204 183 17.2%84.3%

8 NEW JERSEY DEVILS (6) Offensive defenseman Paul Martin has regressed badly over the last 20 games, posting an atrocious minus-10 rating while tallying only four assists. The Devils will need for him to be far better if they’re to succeed in the postseason.
75 44–23–8 96 197 187 14.0% 86.1%

9 MINNESOTA WILD (11): The Wild are 24–5–4 in their last 33 games, and rookie netminder Niklas Backstrom deserves a lot of the credit; he has been absolutely sensational (.925 SV%, 2.12 GAA) and is a very worthy Calder Trophy candidate.
76 45–24–7 97 221 183 16.3%88.8%

10 SAN JOSE SHARKS (9): Jonathan Cheechoo has rebounded to his Rocket Richard Trophy-winning form, tallying 16 points (including nine goals) while accumulating a plus-17 rating over his last 11 games.
76 46–26–4 96 235 185 21.3% 86.1%

11 PITTSBURGH PENGUINS (10): Thirty-one-year-old rearguard Alain Nasreddine is putting together a fine performance in his first full NHL season; the late bloomer’s plus-14 rating is second on the Pens to rookie Jordan Staal’s plus-19.
76 43–23–10 96 259 229 16.9%85.2%

12 CALGARY FLAMES (13): Alex Tanguay has settled in nicely in his first season with the Flames, but if he’s to maximize his effectiveness, he needs to shoot the puck more often (only 99 shots in 74 games).
75 40–25–10 90 239 205 17.4%83.9%

13 ATLANTA THRASHERS (12): The initial burst of energy generated by their pre-deadline shopping spree has worn off, and now the Thrashers are sputtering toward the finish line and a likely firstround exit.
76 39–27–10 88 229 232 14.1% 81.7%

14 NEW YORK RANGERS (16): Though Aaron Ward was certainly not to blame for the Rangers’ early struggles, the Ward-for-Paul Mara trade was clearly a good one for the Rangers, who have gone 10–1–3 in the 14 games since that deal was made.
76 39–28–9 87 219 198 17.3% 87.1%

15 COLORADO AVALANCHE (15): The Avalanche have gone 10–0–2 in their last 12 games, due in no small part to the dominant play of veteran captain Joe Sakic. In his last six games, Sakic has tallied 13 points.
75 39–29–7 85 251 233 19.1% 81.9%

16 TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (14): Like the Thrashers, the Lightning appear primed for a quick playoff exit. After Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis, the rest of the Tampa lineup has shown itself to be underwhelming, from the goal on out.
76 41-31-4 86 235 240 16.1% 82.5%

17 CAROLINA HURRICANES (18): Trading top prospect Jack Johnson back in October was an incredibly foolish maneuver from a long-term perspective; and now that he’s signed with the Kings, it’s become a deal the ‘Canes will regret in the short term as well.
75 38–29–8 84 225 224 13.1% 87.2%

18 NEW YORK ISLANDERS (17): The first tiebreaker for the eighth playoff seed is wins; the Isles are currently two victories behind the Hurricanes, so they will likely need to finish ahead of Carolina in points in order to beat them out for a playoff spot.
75 36–27–12 84 225 218 15.7%83.6%

19 MONTREAL CANADIENS (20): The Habs’ goal-differential (minus-10) and team plus/minus (-24) are a strong indicator that they won’t reach the postseason; the only reason they’re within sniffing distance is their devastating power play.
76 39–31–6 84 225 235 20.9%87.6%

20 TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (19): With Tomas Kaberle back on their blue line, the Leafs still have a fighting chance to reach the playoffs; but with two teams to leapfrog and time running out, it’s far more likely that they’ll miss out for the second consecutive year.
75 36–29–10 82 232 242 14.7% 79.6%

21 FLORIDA PANTHERS (21): Future Norris Trophy candidate Jay Bouwmeester’s impressive upward trajectory has continued this season; with 36 points and a teamleading plus-19 rating, he has been a bright spot in an otherwise disappointing year for the Panthers.
75 31–30–14 76 222 239 16.0%83.4%

22 BOSTON BRUINS (22): With five straight losses, the Bruins have played themselves out of the Eastern Conference playoff race. Looking ahead to 2007-08, their first order of business should be to acquire a puck-moving blueliner to complement Zdeno Chara.
75 34–35–6 74 206 265 12.5%83.3%

23 ST. LOUIS BLUES (23): Top prospect Erik Johnson has decided to postpone his decision whether to turn pro until the fall, thus retaining his eligibility to play another season with the University of Minnesota’s Golden Gophers.
75 31–32–12 74 195 232 9.8% 82.8%

24 COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS (25): Winners of three straight games, the Blue Jackets are looking to build momentum for next year. And though this has been yet another ugly season for Columbus, the team has unquestionably improved under Ken Hitchcock.
75 31–37–7 69 188 228 13.7% 82.7%

25 EDMONTON OILERS (24): Only 1–12–1 in their last 14 games, the Oilers are in need of a dramatic makeover. They never made up for the losses of Chris Pronger and Jaroslav Spacek, so the top priority should be improving their substandard blue line corps.
|76 31–38–7 69 186 229 13.7% 85.8%

26 LOS ANGELES KINGS (27): The Kings prospect Jack Johnson agreed to a three-year entry-level contract worth $850,000 a year, plus bonuses that could push his annual earnings to more than $2 million; they are expecting veteran Rob Blake to mentor the talented young defenseman. 76 26–36–14 66 215 261 16.6% 80.1%

27 WASHINGTON CAPITALS (26): Alex Ovechkin’s second-half swoon (only 17 points and a minus-10 rating in his last 25 games) — along with a knee injury to netminder Olaf Kolzig — coincided with the Caps’ precipitous fall from playoff contention. 76 26–37–13 65 224 270 13.7% 83.7%

28 PHOENIX COYOTES (29): It’s difficult to find any bright spots in what has been a calamitously bad season for Wayne Gretzky’s Coyotes; look for top prospects Peter Mueller and Martin Hanzal to play key roles next year, as the rebuilding effort continues.
75 29–41–5 63 201 259 12.8% 79.6%

29 CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS (28): It’s not surprising that Martin Havlat (54 points) has cooled off considerably; he receives no scoring support. He is the only ‘Hawk to have topped the 40-point mark, despite the fact that he missed 23 games. 75 27–39–9 63 185 239 10.4%84.8%

30 PHILADELPHIA FLYERS (30): When choosing a captain for 2007–08, the Flyers should give serious consideration to Mike Knuble. He recently returned to the lineup after missing 12 games with a fractured cheek and orbital bone, though the Flyers were out of the playoff race. 75 20–44–11 51 194 280 10.3%88.9%

Mr. Greenstein is the editor in chief of InsideHockey.com.