Denis P. Gorman

The start was strong. The middle was not. The end was not enough. In what was essentially a must-win game, the Islanders fell to the Flyers, 5-3, Thursday night at UBS Arena.

The malady has been clinically diagnosed: A season-long inability to consistently sustain momentum from shift-to-shift, from period-to-period, from game-to-game.

Standing in the visitors' dressing room in Salt Lake City's Delta Center late Thursday night, Ryan Lindgren was asked by reporters for his State of the Rangers address.

They wanted two points. They needed two points. And they got them thanks to Igor Shesterkin.

A sense of dread filled the Garden. Moments later, the fear and the worry were replaced by something resembling incandescent joy and relief.

GREENBURGH — One by one, the Knicks collectively shrugged immediately after it happened. Thirty-nine days later, they collectively shrugged when it was brought up again.

Jalen Brunson scored 34 points to lead the New York Knicks to a 119-110 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Monday. It was the 68th 30-plus point game in Brunson’s career as a Knick, and it helped New York improve to 28-16. Mikal Bridges added 26 points, while New York swingman Josh Hart chipped in with 14 points.

It is not the worst-case scenario. But make no mistake, the loss of Noah Dobson for an indeterminate period of time is another blow to the Islanders and their Stanley Cup Playoff hopes.

GREENBURGH – Sitting in front of the backdrop adorned with the Knicks' logo, Jalen Brunson repeated two themes for a little more than seven minutes.

GREENBURGH – Chris Kreider smirked. The longest-tenured Ranger had been asked for his reaction to division rival Carolina adding Mikko Rantanen and Taylor Hall in a seismic trade with Colorado and Chicago Friday night.