N.Y. Islanders: No Rest for the Weary; Complicated Off-Season Ahead

From the desk of:  FIVE FOR FLATBUSH

Hockey Thing One

VS.

Hockey Thing Two

Where do we go from here?  

And by we, I do mean Brooklyn and Long Islanders.

I - Brooklyn's Foster Hockey Club

Hello Islanders fans.  Sorry it didn't work out.

If you are a regular rider of this blog I call The Trolley, then you know I've been a Rangers fan since the mid to late 1970s.  In turn, that once made you my enemy.  But I'm much older now, and no longer harbor such anger within me.

Above all, mine is a Brooklyn-centric blog, and so I think I've handled the Islanders very fairly.  I just call it as I see it without dumping a cooler of Rangers Hate-o-Rade all over them.  In fact, I feel I've been quite supportive, and even suggested the Smurfs Rangers could have learned a thing or two from the Isles.

I hope you'll agree.

I still say this team belongs in Long Island - not Brooklyn.  Understandably, they did not necessarily move to Flatbush Avenue by choice.  So when the residents of Nassau County voted down the final arena proposal, I temporarily named the Islanders portion of this Trolley - Brooklyn's Foster Hockey Club.

Once they settled into Barclays Center, I changed over to - Five For Flatbush - because I thought it would acknowledge the team's toughness, pay tribute to their previous history and the pursuit of a fifth Stanley Cup, and incorporate their arrival on Flatbush Avenue, all in one title.

The old Brooklyn Americans only practiced in Brooklyn.  They never played NHL games here.   Therefore, the first NHL regular season and first Stanley Cup playoffs in Brooklyn history are now officially a matter of record.

The Islanders last won a playoff series back in 1993, or 23 years ago - pick your poison.  But with their first round victory over the Florida Panthers, Brooklyn is now vested in this too..


II - Charles Wang isn't leaving the building, but he'll be occupying a much smaller office.

Upon assuming ownership of the Islanders, Charles Wang's first challenge was restoring a demoralized fan base's faith in the aftermath of the Mike Milbury, Stephen Walsh, and the utterly ponderous Jon Spano era.

Wang seemingly tried as best he could keeping them in Long Island, but ultimately lost tens of millions of dollars floating them until faced with no other alternative but to move the team out of Uniondale.  A sadly outdated coliseum, the doomed Lighthouse project, Nassau County bureaucrats, and a justifiably overburdened and fed up tax base, all seemingly conspired against him.

Right?

By his own doing, Charles Wang will now take a back seat as a minority owner, while new majority owners Jon Ledecky and Scott Malkin take over the helm.

The $99,000 dollar question is what will their personal ideas be for the Islanders?  Will they decide playing in Barclays Center is an untenable situation, and therefore pursue relocating out of the metropolitan area all together?  Or will they continue tolerating their present condition, and just stay?

Then there's the matter of branding.  Is there such a thing as dual identity?  How long will new ownership continue with this split personality?

After four consecutive Stanley Cup championships, the Islanders traditional jersey is still iconic.   Should they opt to stick with it full time, unchanged, they'd be completely within their right.   Flatbush, after all, is still terra firma of Long Island Proper.  There's no real need to change the name, or re-brand for that matter.

But they did just that ... kinda.

The question, then, is will they take an additional step forward, above and beyond the black/white BKLN alternate uniform, and embrace a larger allegiance to Brooklyn, and market themselves as such?

I noticed no attempt by the Islanders to wear their Brooklyn alternative uniform during the playoffs.

That's fine - correct even.  I'm just saying...


III - Garth Snow

Will Garth Snow move forward with the organization, or will new ownership opt to go in a new direction?

Whoever the general manager is, he or she will have major financial decisions to make with regards to Kyle Okposo and Matt Martin.  Among the Islanders soon-to-be free agents, I consider them indispensable.

Afterward, who knows if new ownership is interested in resetting the team's spending limits.  That remains to be seen.  What the Islanders do have is prospects, which they should consider moving a few for more established players.

The Islanders posted back-to-back 100-point seasons.  There's still time to keep this together and win. But they're two quality players short.  Re-Sign Okposo and find both him and John Tavares a quality line compliment.  Then either bolster the 2nd/3rd line, or add a bruising, reliable stay-home defenseman.


IV - So What Happened?

Hard to say....

By Game Five, the damage had been done.  Through Game Four, the Isles had been outscored by an 11-14 margin.  Here's the best way I can explain the 3 goal differential:

• Jon Cooper pulled the goalie late in Game Three, and Tampa tied with just 0:38 left in regulation, then won in overtime.

• In Game Four, Tampa tied the game in the 3rd, and send a second consecutive game into overtime.

• The rest, as they say is history.

Now for the painfully obvious - despite playing without Steven Stamkos and Anton Stralman, the Lightning still won the series by a decisive 4-1 margin.

In hindsight, I'm still not sure where debating Thomas Greiss versus Jaroslav Halak may lead.   Thomas Greiss was screened on far too many shots by Lightning skaters, and that's exactly why I'm not up to having the Jaroslav Halak debate.  Refer instead back to Garth Snow, and on-ice lapses
in effective traffic control.

What I do know is the Islanders continually gave up back breaking goals within the final two minutes of a period.  Two overtime losses in Brooklyn?  Don't know what to say about those either, other than the Isles actually did a lot of things right.  But once you get into overtime ... pffff!  The original misstep occurs in regulation.

Here's another item I refuse to tackle - as John Tavares goes, so go the Isles.  This is no time for finger pointing.  We know who the contributors were, and who the under performers were.  My only answer to that, again, is ... see Garth Snow.

One thing is certain, and they proved it again, the Islanders had the best 4th forward line in all of hockey.  They should look into keeping them together.  They're a tremendous asset most NHL teams can not handle.

N.Y. Islanders: Boisterous Barclays Crowd Celebrates Historic O.T. Victory

From the desk of:  FIVE FOR FLATBUSH

The First Ever NHL Playoff Game in Brooklyn

was an O.T. Thriller!

Islanders lead series 2-1

I - NYI 5; FLA 4

II - FLA 3; NYI 1

III - NYI 4; FLA 3*

IV- WEDNESDAY

*O.T.

GAME FOUR

Florida Panthers

vs.

New York Islanders

FROM

Flatbush Avenue

BROOKLYN

New York Islanders: Smells Like Team Spirit...

Chalk one up for Garth Snow ... whom was slighted last off-season for not having more prospects at the team's disposal.  His detractors argued Brock Nelson alone does not a youth injection make.

The Isles then proceeded to post their second straight 100 point season.

Just saying...

Now all of a sudden his 2013 draft choices are the latest rage.  That's when he selected defenseman Ryan Pulock with the 15th overall pick of the 1st round, and center Alan Quine in the 15th round.   This season he additionally brought in Ottawa's former 2011 2nd round selection, 23-year old center, and native New Yorker, Shane Prince.  None hadn't even appeared on the Islanders radar until late February.

But just like that, the Islanders had youth running wild in Barclays Center - but not before the Panthers took a crowd demoralizing 2-0 lead, scoring goals within the opening minutes of both the 1st and 2nd periods.

The three novices nevertheless helped keep the Islanders within striking distance of the Panthers until late in the 2nd period when the top line of Tavares-Nielsen-Okposo finally took over.

At 5:21, Ryan Pulock converted a power play to make it a 2-1 game.  However, the Isles sustained another punch in the gut when Florida scored just two short minutes later.  They regrouped, and just beyond the midway point Shane Prince cashed in a Pulock feed making it a 3-2 game.

Then at 16:12 of the 2nd, Florida got whistled for a rarely called clipping penalty.  Within a minute of the infraction Frans Nielsen netted the game tying goal off feeds from John Tavares and Kyle Okposo,

... and making the Flatbush Avenue Ice House rock like a Teen Spirit video.

However, the best for Barclays was yet to come, as they were additionally treated to their first ever playoff overtime.  The outcome officially became a thriller at the 12:31 mark when Thomas Hickey scored on assists from Brock Nelson and Josh Bailey, capping off a youth inspired comeback, and an important Game Three victory.

In the meantime, Flatbush Avenue roared.  Shortly thereafter they were having their performance commended by the players.  Both continue venturing into uncharted territory together Wednesday night in Game Four at Barclays Center.

• Suffice it to say, Brooklyn's historic first ever NHL Stanley Cup playoff game was a hit.  The place was packed to 99% capacity - obstructed seats and all.

• The Isles have solid efforts on the penalty kill to thank for their 2-1 series edge, after fending off 6 of 7 power plays through three games.  Their own power play was clicking, scoring two goals in Game Three, and going 3 for 9 to date.

• The Panthers and Islanders have now scored 10 goals apiece.  Through three games, Thomas Greiss, 30 years old, has so far faced 115 shots, made 106 saves, with 9 goals allowed for a .922 Sv% and a 2.83 GAA.

• The Islanders were correct to wear their traditional uniforms for Game Three.  The question is will they don their alternate Brooklyn black uniform for Game Four?

N.Y. Islanders: The Thrill of Victory and Agony of the Seats

From the desk of:  FIVE FOR FLATBUSH

Year One in Brooklyn

45-27-10 (100 Points)

Kings County's second ever NHL season is done.

The Borough's first ever NHL Playoffs is underway!

New York Islanders: The Brooklyn Americans were first to play in Kings County.  The former Long Islanders now bring the Borough into their first ever NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs.

*The 1939-1940 New York Americans qualified for the playoffs.

The Islanders first season in Brooklyn was a difficult adjustment to say the least.

I knew it would be.  

I settled on the blog title Five For Flatbush in order to capture the Islanders' quest for a 5th Stanley Cup, and to inaugurate their arrival on Flatbush Avenue.

There was a reason, however, why I initially titled this blog Brooklyn's Foster Hockey Club prior to their actual move into Barclays Center.  They are here due more to circumstance, than by choice.  An overburdened Long Island (Nassau County) tax base was unnecessarily forced to vote with their wallets instead of their hearts on a new arena proposal - which could have been avoided if local gov't would have simply worked more cooperatively with Charles Wang and his originally proposed Lighthouse Project.

Looking back, the timing couldn't have been worse.  Barclays Center was never intended to host NHL hockey - nor was there a reason to even consider it.

At the time, the New Jersey Nets were still working in cooperation with the New Jersey Devils on a proposed arena in Newark.  When that plan fell apart, native Brooklynite/real estate developer Bruce Ratner purchased the Nets from motivated sellers.

Since the day Ratner announced intentions to move the Nets into a new arena to be built in Brooklyn, and even throughout the construction of Barclays Center a decade later, no one anticipated the Nets and Islanders reuniting under the same roof ever again.  The two ceased being room mates back in the late 1970's when the Nets moved from Nassau Coliseum, and into the Meadowlands Brendan Byrne Arena.  The hockey Devils then moved from Colorado to join them during the early 1980's.  

The situation left the Islanders alone - a situation very unlike that of the Knicks/Rangers, and aforementioned Nets/Devils.

Quite honestly, I have no idea how many locals are attending home games.  I know some due.   Obviously, wearing Isles gear throughout the decades has not been uncommon here, but I see more now than at any other time I can recall.  Long Islanders may very well be carrying attendance largely by themselves, though  I don't know that, but I'm sure of it.  These figures, however, speak truth...

Local Attendance:

• New York Rangers: NHL rank #18.  They averaged 18,006 per game;100% capacity.
• New Jersey Devils: NHL rank #26.  They averaged 15,073 per game; 91% capacity.
• New York Islanders: NHL rank #28.  They averaged 13,626 per game; 86% capacity.

Here's the rub - the remaining 15% of Barclays Center potential seating for hockey games are (terrible) obstructed views.  Were it for more suitable seating, their attendance would perhaps be on par with that of the Devils, if not better (relatively speaking...) considering capacity is roughly 15,000 at Barclays Center for hockey.  In fact, the Islanders ranked #25 during their last season at the Coliseum, averaging 15,334 per game, or 95% capacity.  A now competitive team playing out a swan song season played into that, but they nevertheless outpaced the Devils whom ranked #26 last season.

Therefore, the Islanders' attendance figures might actually be healthier than meets the eye, but still does nothing to help the fact Barclays is somewhat unsuitable for hockey.  The scoreboard isn't even centered on the rink, adding to the general aesthetic detraction.

Then there's the partial re-branding of the team.  What choice did Barclays Center CEO Brett Yormark have?  He had to keep the traditional Long Islanders content, while at the same time entice a new local market with its own very strongly held identity.  As a result, we essentially have a team with an alter ego, donning a completely distinct alternative (or primary?) uniform designed in part to compliment the Brooklyn Nets and the reuniting of one-time arena mates.

At this point, Brett Yormark's mind is undoubtedly pinned on Sunday's first playoff game at Barclays. Only winning playoff games, building a winning atmosphere, and sustained success, make other problems (perceived or real) magically disappear.

Even then, the nuances of this whole arrangement will continue dominating any conversation unless parading a Cup down Flatbush Avenue can change more minds..,

...or one of these parties opt out in a few years.

*          *          *          *

Much like life around Brooklyn, the 2015-16 regular season itself can be summed up with a simple - damned if you do, and damned if you don't.

Four teams exceeded 100 points in the Metropolitan Division this season, led by Washington's eye popping 120 points.  The Islanders came in at an even buck, while the Blueshirts finished just a mere point better.

The Islanders arrived in Kings County replete with a genuine star performer - John Tavares.  For several seasons now, his forward line (w/ Kyle Okposos/various third skater) has routinely been the best among any formed by either of the three local hockey clubs.

2015 - 2016

NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE 

PLAYOFFS

Game One Final

Islanders    5

Panthers    4

As presently formed, John Tavares, Kyle Okposo, and Frans Nielsen led the Islanders to a 5-4 victory in Game One of their opening round series over the Florida Panthers.

The seasoned Islanders opted to counter-punch with the feisty Panthers.

Florida opened the scoring within the first two minutes of play.  Just under five minutes later, Brock Nelson tied the game at one.  But the Panthers converted a power play at the 13:51 mark to inch ahead.  Not for long though ...  Frans Nielsen reciprocated at 16:46 with a power play goal of his own, assisted by Tavares.

One again, Florida opened the 2nd period scoring within the opening two minutes.  Flatbush then embarked on a methodical grinding down of the younger cats.  With 0:22 second left in the session, John Tavares converted feeds from line mates Okposo and Nielsen, tying the game at three.

Flatbush continued turning the tables with Kyle Okposo's early score opening the 3rd period - fed once again by Tavares.

At 6:01, Ryan Strome next scored what proved to be the difference in the game, because within another minute, Florida scored giving the Isles their eventual one goal margin of victory.

Goalie Thomas Greiss, starting in place of injured Jaroslav Halak, faced 46 shots and made 42 saves.

For the moment, home ice advantage has switched over into the Islanders hands.

Playoff hockey arrives in Brooklyn this Sunday for Game Three.

N.Y. Islanders: Feeling Loss of Okposo

From the desk of:  BROOKLYN'S FOSTER HOCKEY CLUB

New York Islanders: Losing Kyle Okposo Surely Hurts, But Their Penalty Kill Has Been Brutal.

The tab is already growing.

The Islanders still maintain a one point advantage over the Pens for 1st place in the Metro Division, which technically still makes them #2 in the conference, but Long Island's 65 points now ranks them 4th behind Tampa, Montreal, and Detroit.

The Isles are 1-2 since losing Kyle Okposo.  After defeating the Rangers, they lost a pair of big conference games by a combined 9-3 margin to the Bruins and Red Wings.

Chad Johnson started in net against Detroit.  He only faced 19 shots, but only made 15 saves.  It's hard to place much, if any blame on him, particularly when the penalty kill has been playing so poorly - as bad, in fact, as they've been all season.

The Isles entered the new year with a 75% PK.

• October - 22/33; 67%
• November - 31/38; 82%
• December - 28/37; 76%

Their penalty kill was just (19/29) 66% in January.  They're only 50% (4/8) since Okposo went down.

Against the Bruins, you just have to credit Tuukka Rask.  He faced 43 shots and made 41 saves.  The Bruins got off 38 shots.  But after the Isles tied the game in the 2nd period at two, Boston finished off the Isles with 3 unanswered goals - despite getting out-shot 14-6 by the Isles in the 3rd period.

Next up - games against the Panthers and Flyers, then a rematch against the Bruins.


Mike

The Rivalry: Rangers vs. Islanders - III

From the desks of:
RAISE GRESCH WITH THE GREATS  and  BROOKLYN'S FOSTER HOCKEY CLUB

The Rivalry - III

Islanders lead series 2-0

I - NYI 6; NYR 3

II - NYI 3; NYR 0

III - The Blizzard of 2015

Tuesday Night

New York Rangers

vs.

New York Islanders

from

Where the Lighthouse Project Should Have Been Built!

Long Island

* * * Snow Storm Permitting * * *

New York Rangers: Blueshirts Might Want To Start Growing Their Beards A Little Earlier Than Usual.

NYR- Avoiding The Sniper In The Bushes

This Team is One Cheap Shot Away From Losing Their One Big Shot.

Along with Anaheim and Detroit, the Blueshirts are 8-2 in their last ten games, and looking to extend a 3-game win streak.

They are winning 61% of their games, owning a 27-13-4 record, good for 58 points.  

They're 6th in the Eastern Conference; Washington is 7th with 57 points; and Boston is 8th with 56 points.

They are tied with the Habs in the Eastern Conference for the least goals allowed.  However, they only rank fourth within their own division in goals scored.

The Rangers are running in a pack, and the saying is - only the strong survive.  There are 38 games remaining in their season.  They may get to the regular season finish line thanks in large part to a weak field, but, at some point they're going need more grit and grind in their game.

March looms as a pivotal month in their season.

For now, there's Tuesday's first game back after the break (if Mr. Freeze let's them play).  With a victory, the defending Eastern Conference champs can edge to within 3-points of the Metro Division leading Islanders.  

Their prospects for success improved Monday, when it was announced Kyle Okposo will miss the next 8 weeks with an injury.  

Bad break for the Isles; physical relief for the Rangers.

The last time they met, the Islanders held a tutorial on how to slow down the Rangers.  In both their previous meetings this season, the Islanders defeated the Rangers by 3-point margins, as Long Island's distinct size advantage weighed heavily in both outcomes.

New York Islanders: I Thought Everyone Was Taking A Break; So What The Hell Happened To Kyle Okposo?

Coach Capuano said what?

Kyle Okposo will miss the next 6 to 8 weeks with an undisclosed upper body injury.

The injury possibly occurred Monday.

In 46 games played, Okposo is the the Islanders second leading scorer with 44 points; one behind John Tavares.  He has 14 goals, and leads the team with 30 assists and 154 shots on goal.  

His absence also negatively affects Long Island's power play.  Okposo had 4 goals and a team leading 12 assists on special teams.

Ryan Strome and Brock Nelson are the team's second and third leading scorers.  Strome is second on the team with 25 assists, and Brock Nelson's 15 goals are second to John Tavares' 21 goals.

This injury should take the Islanders into March.  There's going to be a price to pay.  Their job now is to minimize the damage.  However, good teams have players who step up.  It will be interesting to see who Coach Capuano selects as Tavares' new wing man.

That said, the Islanders are manned to withstand Okposo's injury, and recover any lost ground in the final month of the season (I think).

After Tuesday's game against the Rangers, the Isles have two big games against the Bruins and Red Wings.

As I said in my last post - now comes the hard part.  

* John Tavares scored four goals in Sunday's All-Star game.

Mike

N.Y. Islanders: Kyle Okposo's Four Goals TKO Penguins

From the desk of:  BROOKLYN'S FOSTER HOCKEY TEAM

Metropolitan Division

1st   NYI    30-16-1  61-points

2nd  PITT  26-11-6  58-points

New York Islanders: Kyle Okposo's 4 goals elevate team to the 60-point club; take 3-point lead over Penguins in Metropolitan Division standings.

The Isles remain in 1st place of the Metropolitan Division 
over the Pittsburgh Penguins,
and lead the Eastern Conference by 1-point over the Tampa Bay Lightning.

They're also the first Eastern Conference team to reach 30 victories this season.

Look what the Islanders did to the Penguins, again!

After losing to the Pens in their first meeting of the season, the Islanders have now rolled Pittsburgh in their last three meetings to take outright ownership of the Metropolitan Division.

Despite a pair of goals from Sidney Crosby, and with Bryan Trottier in the building, Long Island overcame a 2-0 1st period deficit on Kyle Okposo goal in the first, and with Ryan Strome's game tying goal midway through the 2nd.  But, Sidney Crosby struck with just 0:05 left in the 2nd to put the Pens ahead again 3-2.

The third period then turned into Kyle Okposo's personal showcase.  He tied the game at three with his second goal at the 6:41 mark.  At the 11:51 mark, Okposos's go-ahead goal capped off a natural hat trick.  But, he wasn't through.  At the 17:29 mark, his fourth goal of the evening, and 12th of the season, came on an Islanders power play.

This was the first hat trick of his career.  Kyle scored 4 times in 6 shots on goal.

Michael Grabner scored into an empty net to give the Islanders a 6-3 victory over the stunned Penguins.

John Tavares and Josh Bailey registered 3 assists apiece.

Both teams threw their bodies around in this game.  Defenseman Simon Despres led the Pens with 8 hits, while Islanders blue liner Johnny Boychuk levied 5 hits.  Long Island's crash lines made a clear difference.  Pittsburgh's Zack Sill and David Perron led with 5 hits each, while Matt Martin issued 8 hits, and Cal Clutterbuck 7 hits.

The Islanders have now won four straight games.

*Goalie Jaroslav Halak will join John Tavares at the NHL all-star game.



Mike

New York City's NHL Stadium Series

From the desks of:

RAISE GRESCH WITH THE GREATS  ~ THE BRICK CITY DEMONS ~ BROOKLYN'S FOSTER HOCKEY CLUB

Sunday, January 26, 2014

NEW YORK RANGERS

vs.

NEW JERSEY DEVILS

AT

YANKEE STADIUM

Bronx, New York

Scene From Sunday Afternoon

FINAL

New York Rangers   7

New Jersey Devils    3

The standings remain a problematic situation for all three local teams.  Heading into tomorrow night's showdown in the frozen tundra of Yankee Stadium, a mere four points separate the Rangers from the Devils, and nine points separate the 2nd place Rangers from the last place New York Islanders.  The Devils play tonight.

After all these years, the Devils still have us asking ourselves - how do they do it?  But the answer is a different this time.  For starters, they have one identity during regulation time, but another beyond that.  New Jersey has 11 OT losses, good for 2nd worst in the league.  If they start converting some of those OT situations, the Blueshirts had better look out.

During Sunday's first period, it looked like New Jersey's geezers had Henrik Lundqvist and the Rangers off their game.  Patrick Elias, the all-time Devils scoring leader, who will turn 38-years old in April, opened the afternoon's scoring with a goal 5:36 into the match.  After Dominic Moore tied the game, Elias scored again on a feed from Jaromir Jagr.  Travis Zajac then made it a 3-1 game on another feed from Jaromir Jagr.

Patrick Elias now has 384 goals in his long Devils career.  However, the Devils leading scorer this season is, of all people, Jaromir Jagr, who will turn 42-years old next month.  In the game, Jagr passed his one time former team mate Mario Lemieux, and now owns the 10th spot on the NHL's all-time assists leaders board, with 1,035 for his career.  He has 44 points in 53 games this season, while his 16 goals give him 697 for his career.  Only six players in NHL history have scored 700 or more goals in a career.  Jagr most recently passed Mark Messier on the list.  Since returning in 2011-12, after three years playing in Russia, Jagr has scored 51 goals in 171 games played.

Another Devil chasing the number 700 is Martin Brodeur.  He is 18 victories away.  He was respectfully given Sunday's start at Yankee Stadium.  But his first start ever in an outdoor game, turned into one of his worst.  After the Devils jumped out to a 3-1 lead Sunday, Brodeur went on to allow five unanswered goals, for a total of six on the day.  After the game, Brodeur complained of very poor ice conditions, and the Rangers coach agreed.  Nonetheless, instead of gaining career victory number 683 Sunday, Brodeur earned his 392nd career loss.  Marty will turn 42 years of age in May.  At this stage of his Devils career, there is no getting around the fact Cory Schneider is the better net minder, or, has been playing that way. Schneider started in each of the last five games prior to Sunday.  Perhaps Brodeur will agree to come back next season in a back-up role.

For the Rangers, Michael Del Zotto drew the ire of two coaches, and was dispatched out of town.  Rick Nash is playing with the consistency originally expected of him, but collectively, Henrik Lundqvist and the team were giving up more goals than scored...., until Sunday that is.  They exploded for seven goals in total.

Henrik Lundqvist is arguably having his worst season as a Ranger.  In my view, his newly minted contract, his play this season, and the play of Cam Talbot have created an interesting dynamic.  It will be interesting to watch this unfold.  It's a good thing you haven't heard from me in a month.  You don't want to know what I was really thinking.

WEDNESDAY NIGHT

New York Rangers

vs.

New York Islanders

From

YANKEE STADIUM

On Sunday, Rick Nash scored for the 5th straight game.  He now has 27 points in 37 games played, with 18 goals and 9 assists.  Wednesday night, he'll square off against the Islanders John Tavares.  The Isles star has 64 points this season, with 23 goals and 41 assists. Kyle Okposo joins him with 23 goals and 57 points, and Thomas Vanek now has 38 points in 39 games played.  Brad Richards leads the Rangers with 38 points. There's a punchline in there somewhere.

What's with the NHL scheduling three NYR/NYI games in January?  Freakin' brilliant!  I'll be at the game.

Brrrrrr!

Mike.BTB

N.Y. Islanders: Long Island Big Shots Fall One Punch Short

From the desk of:   BROOKLYN'S FOSTER HOCKEY CLUB

2012 - 2013

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS

ROUND ONE

 

Game Three Final

Penguins  5

Islanders  4

overtime

 

 

Pittsburgh Leads Series 2-1

 

NEW YORK ISLANDERS - Three Penguins Power Play Goals Obliterate Long Island From Game Three.

WANTED: More Cartwheels and Handstands from Evgeni Nabokov

With the series tied, and in between a bevy of tripping, hooking, roughing and slashing infractions throughout Game Three, the Islanders and Penguins seemed content on trading hay-makers.  The lone question who was going to land the biggest shot of the game, and when.


The Isles opened the scoring with an early goal by Matt Moulson just 1:43 into the game.  Four minutes later, the ol' Barn shook when Casey Cizikas netted Long Island's second goal, off a feed from Grabner.  Uniondale was rocking loudly, but not for long.  Pittsburgh scored three unanswered goals against Evgeni Nabokov before the period expired.  Two costly Islanders penalties thirty seconds apart, inevitably resulted in two Penguins power play goals by Jarome Iginla and Chris Kunitz, just twenty seconds apart.  By 13:38, the game was tied at two.  Then with exactly one minute left in the first period, Pascal Dupuis put the Pens ahead with his third goal of the playoffs.  The Long Island crowd spent the first intermission silently.


Douglas Murray scored in the second period to extend Pittsburgh's lead.  The Long Island crowd again spent the second intermission silently.  However, the Isles have shown a lot of fortitude in this series, and continued their efforts in the third.  Kyle Okposo scored at 5:31, followed by John Tavares' first goal of the playoffs at 10:48 to tie the game at four.  With the ol' Barn rocking again, into overtime they went.


In the extra session, yet another penalty doomed the Islanders.  At 8:11, you guessed it, Brian Strait got whistled for holding Sidney Crosby of all people.  Then a 8:44, Chris Kunitz sized up a Crosby feed, and scored his second goal, and the game winner.


Although the first playoff game after a considerable time on Long Island was a loss, the game was not a lost affair.  The Islanders have proven they want to play with the #1 seeded Penguins.  The offense has been there for Long Island.  It's discipline that is currently lacking.  They just need to stay out of the penalty box.  Surrendering three power play goals was their downfall.  If Long Island keeps things at even strength, and they themselves score like the NHL's 11th ranked PP can, the series will go deep. Plus, John Tavares may have finally popped his cherry.  Perhaps better games loom ahead for him now that his first goal is out of the way.  Matt Moulson and Kyle Okposo now have multiple goals as well.  The Islanders out-shot the Pens 36-25 over the course of the game.  They especially outperformed Pittsburgh 13-3 in the third period.  In overtime however, the Isles only got off two shots versus six for the Pens.  Other than that minor detail, there are reasons for optimism.  The Islanders are now pressed however, to recover and win Game Four before heading back to Pittsburgh for Game Five.


With seemingly enough scoring in place, Evgeni Nabokov holds the keys to the Islanders near future against Pittsburgh.  He stopped twenty of twenty-five shots Sunday, thirty of thirty-three in Game Two, and got blown out in the series opener.  Nabokov can be better, and has been batter this season.  The Islanders can greatly benefit if he can provide a few more hand-stands and cartwheels than he has so far.




Mike.BTB

New York Islanders Gain A Split In Pittsburgh With Huge 4-3 Win

From the desk of:  BROOKLYN'S FOSTER HOCKEY CLLUB

GAME TWO FINAL

ISANDERS    4

Penguins        3

 

Series Tied 1-1

NEW YORK ISLANDERS - We Have A Series!  Isles Take Game Two In Pittsburgh, Gain Road Split.  Next Stop - Long Island.


After going down 2-0 to the Penguins in Pittsburgh just over three minutes into the game, it seemed a perfect time for Long Island to lie down.  Then after falling behind 3-1 after twenty-minutes, with two goals already coming from Sidney Crosby in his first game back from a broken face, it seemed like a perfect time to just punch out, or punch him.  But twenty shots on goal by the Isles were telling a different story.  The Penguins took twelve shots by comparison.  Matt Moulson scored on what is a good Islander PP unit to keep the period respectable.


Then at just 5:12 of the second period, Colin McDonald gained the crowd's attention when he stuffed a puck past Marc Andre Fleury to make it a 3-2 game.  That came on the heels of Kyle Okposo's first ever fight, as he got in some knuckles in against Matt Niskanen.  In fact, the Islanders spent a lot of time in the Pens zone after the fight.  A little later on, when Sindy Crosby got rolled by Brian Strait, Ivgeni Malken got whistled after sticking up for his girlfriend, and the Igloo fans started littering the ice with stuff.  Sensing the home town situation was rattled, Matt Martin tied the game at three goals each at the 10:37 mark of the period.  Shots on goal were a lot more even during the second twenty minutes of play.  But the Islanders were alive and well, and had the Pittsburgh crowd in a really foul mood.  Ivgeni Nabokov made thirteen saves in the second session.  Long Island took fourteen shots against Fleury.


Playing in only his sixth period of playoff hockey, Kyle Okposo translated all his game energy into an ugly, Fleury gaffe, go-ahead goal at the 12:23 mark.  And that's the way this game finished - effectively wiping out a drubbing the Isles suffered in Game One.


Ivgeni Nabokov rebounded from a sub-par Game One, in which he may also have had his bell rung via a puck to the head.  Friday, he made thirty stops in thirty-three chances.  He remained perfect after the Pen's three early first period goals.  The Islanders took forty-two shots on goal.  Fleury made thirty-eight saves.  The Islanders can stand to win some more face-offs though.

It's never a series until the home team loses a game.  Both teams travel back to Long Island now for Games Three and Four.



Mike.BTB

N.Y. Islanders ~ Long Island Clubs the Penguins..., TWICE!

From the desk of:   NYR  ~  A "RAISE GRESCH WITH THE GREATS" - Special Report!

THURSDAY NIGHT FINAL

New York Islanders   5

Pittsburgh Penguins   3

NEW YORK ISLANDERS:  Hey Rangers!  Look What Long Island Did to Pittsburgh..., Again!


Tonight, the New York Islanders completed a two game drubbing of the Pittsburgh Penguins.  And no one is more happier than Blueshirt Nation.


In the series' first game played Tuesday evening in Pittsburgh, the Islanders repeatedly beat Marc Andre Fleury high on his glove side, on their way to a 5-3 victory.  Frans Nielsen netted two goals for the Islanders.  Kyle Okposo, Michael Grabner, and David Ullstrom, also scored for Long Island.


The Isles jumped out to an early 2-0 first period lead.  But Pittsburgh answered back within the first five minutes of the second period to tie the game at two.  Long Island then reeled off three goals to close the period.  The Penguins picked up one more goal in the third.


Early in the third period, Ivgeni Nabokov left the game with an injury.  Al Montoya filled in.  He and the Isles held on for a 5-3 win.


The series shifted to Long Island Thursday night, where the Isles picked up where they left off.  Only this time, the Islanders found success against Pittsburgh's goalie by simply keeping the puck on the ice and sliding it passed him.  In the two games, the Isles wound up giving Marc Andre Fleury the 'ol High-Low treatment.  In outplaying Pittsburgh over the course of six periods, the worst scoring team in the Eastern Conference clubbed the Penguins with ten goals.  The NHL's top scoring team responded with six against two different Islander goalies.


Former Rangers' farm hand, Al Montoya made Thursday's start for the Isles in place of injured Ivgeni Nabokov.  He faced twenty-nine shots.  And over the first eighteen and a half minutes of the game, he limited the Penguins to just two goals.  In all, he stopped twenty-six shots for his seventh win of the season.


In the first period, Marty Reasoner scored his first goal of the season to stake the Isles to an initial lead.  After Pittsburgh tied the game 1-1 midway through the second period, Kyle Okposo scored on a power play, and Josh Bailey scored a shorthanded goal to close the period.


Kyle Okposo's third period goal was his third in two games against Pittsburgh, and his second of the night.  Then Pittsburgh struck back.  After Jordan Staal scored to make it a 4-2 game, Al Montoya gave up a late goal to Ivgeni Malkin with a minute and a half left in regulation to bring the Penguins to within 4-3 of the Isles.  But with ten seconds left, Josh Bailey out hustled Pittsburgh who had six skaters on the ice, and scored his second goal of the game into an empty net.


The Islanders skated away with their second straight 5-3 victory over the Penguins.


Brilliant!  Great freakin' job!





Mike.BTB