DETROIT — The Islanders are real, and they are spectacular.

The seventh game of a seven-game road trip, no matter who it is against, is as close to a scheduled loss as there could be. Legs are dead. Everyone is tired. Everyone wants to sleep in their own bed.

The Islanders, in the seventh game of a seventh-game road trip, walked into Detroit on Thursday night and demolished a Red Wings team that started the day atop the Atlantic Division by a 5-0 score.

It was their sixth win in seven on a trip that spanned four time zones and in which all seven teams they faced had serious playoff aspirations.

Since losing three straight to open the year, the Islanders are 12-4-2 for a points percentage of — get this — .777.

They are for real. They are a contender, if not for the Stanley Cup then cer

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