In game 3 of the Isles, Devils trilogy, your New York Islanders lost by the score of 2-1. Against the Rangers, they fell by the score of 4-3 in O.T. That’s two more losses in must win games for the fight to make the playoffs.
Now 28-31-10, the Isles sit 10 points behind the 8th place Washington Capitals and in 14th place with just 13 games to play. Sounds like it’s a good time to raise the cost of season tickets for next season.
While Anders Nilsson made 26 saves with a .943 Sv%, and Evgeni Nabokov had 22 saves and a .889 Sv%, the Islanders defense let them down with a declining PK and sloppy play that resulted in untimely penalty chances for the opposition. The Islanders had both games in hand as they went into the final 3 and 10 minutes of each game.
John Tavares, Matt Moulson, P.A. Parenteau, Travis Hamonic, Mark Streit and Milan Jurcina figured into the Islander goals over the two game span. While its great to see the defense chip in, it tends to be the same guys that tend to score all the points, game in and game out.
Consistency and a high compete level have been the Isles the chief problems all season long. Secondary scoring is a frustrating puzzle that hasn’t ever been fully addressed. Although there has been improvement in their games, players like Michael Grabner, Kyle Okposo, Josh Bailey, Mark Streit and Nino Niederreiter haven’t had the type of season that Management had projected. Chris Botta points out that the “4th liners have a combined TWO goals. Nino (1), Pandolfo (1), Reasoner (0): Haley, others: 155+ games played, 2 goals.”
After a tough start, the Isles were near the top on the PP and PK in the NHL, but in recent weeks, they have been awful and fallen off sharply. The defense is guilty of poor play in their own zone and the teams psyche seems to constantly fail them at the worst possible time. They either start slow and give away a multiple goal lead or come out strong and play hard, only to give the game away at sometime, late in the third period. I can say that despite the highly underachieving stopgaps of Staios, Mottau, Reasoner, Rolston and Pandolfo, the Isles still found a way to look good in several games this season and win in some big ones as well.
I have come around to start pinning the blame on Coach Capuano and his staff after being a big supporter for most of the season based on the lack of team motivation and inconsistency. These characteristics seemed to be a more regular style of play than the team being prepared and focused. While I am not calling them a serious playoff contender, I still think that they are still capable of winning more than they have shown us.
The Ownership and Management are easy targets for the frustrated Islanders core fan base and seem to always have their negative results turn into the focus of the franchise. As I have said before, if it wasn’t for Charles Wang, the Islanders would have been gone from Long Island a long time ago. I know D.P.’s contract was a mistake and a joke to many at 15yrs-67+M (for a goaltender, a position so susceptible to injury.) Remember though, that before he fell into the disrepair he is in today, he was an All-Star and world-class goaltender who looked to be getting better. You cannot fault him for his compeditive nature and how badly he wanted to win and be a member of the Islanders.
With the New York Islanders as an organization that is often ridiculed, why then, did several other “more reputable” teams began to sign players to contact lengths (or dollar amounts) to the one the Isles offered to D.P.?
Chicago with Hossa at 12yrs-63+M
Buffalo with Ville Leino 6yrs-27M, Erhoff at 10yrs-40M
Florida with Wisniewski at 6yrs-33M
Montreal with Markov at 3yrs-17+M
Philadelphia with Pronger, age 37 at 7yrs-34+M and Bryzgalof at 9yrs-51M.
Vancouver with Luongo at 12yrs-64M
Vancouver with Luongo at 12yrs-64M
How ridiculous are those deals? Was it a joke for the Penguins to lock in Sidney Crosby for 5 yrs at 43+M now that he suffers from debilitating concussion like symptoms on a regular basis?
I feel Garth Snow has done a good job in his tenure as GM thus far. He has definitely made some mistakes, but when you look at the prospects in the system, you have to be impressed. How about Poulin, Nilsson, Cizikas, Strome, Sundstrom, Ullstrom, DiBenedetto, deHaan, Kichton, Donovan, Ness, Kabanov, Petrov, Lee and Nelson? How about adding players like Moulson and Parenteau?
To reiterate, the Arena uncertainty is keeping major the free agents away, and the Isles have still managed to make some noise this season. Brooklyn is a nice thing to hope for, but its just another rumor right now. It will be another summer of looking forward to the draft party unless a miracle happens, but I still believe in what should be for the Islanders.
Remember, the Dynasty team took Mr. Torrey 8 years to build. To those of you who hate ownership and management so much, don’t worry.
It may not matter after 2015.
Isles Notes:
Per Arthur Staple, The Islanders send F Micheal Haley and G Anders Nilsson back to Bridgeport. Al Montoya ready to back up, M. Martin/C. Cizikas back from flu bug.
Prospect Anders Lee’s season ended tonight at Notre Dame. Will he turn pro right away within the Isles system?
Per a team press release on Saturday, The Islanders signed Mike Halmo to an entry level contract on March 10. Halmo is ranked fifth overall in the OHL in scoring with 84 points. Halmo had this to say after signing with New York, “There were some other teams in the mix. It came down to the best opportunity for me to play NHL hockey.”
“Halmo, 20, led the Owen Sound Attack and ranked fifth overall in Ontario Hockey League (OHL) scoring with 84 points (40 goals, 44 assists) this season. In his four-year OHL career with Owen Sound, the Waterloo, ON, native has 76 goals and 88 assists for 164 points. He served as captain during his fourth season.
In 26 career OHL playoff games, Halmo has five goals and 11 assists for 16 points. He helped lead the Attack to an OHL championship in 2011 with 15 points (5 goals, 10 assists) in 22 games.”
In 26 career OHL playoff games, Halmo has five goals and 11 assists for 16 points. He helped lead the Attack to an OHL championship in 2011 with 15 points (5 goals, 10 assists) in 22 games.”
Mike Halmo continued to make the news when he delivered what most are calling an illegal hit on top prospect, Nail Yakupov of the Sarnia Sting, knocking him out of the game on March 10th. He required stitches and tried to get up on his own before falling back to the ice where he was seen by the team trainer and doctor. He will miss the final 3 games of the regular season and be re-evaluated. The hit may result in a suspension by the league.
In other news:
Per @ dchesnokov, Brooklyn Nets arena will host KHL regular-season games, according to Medvedev/Puck Daddy - Yahoo! Sports.
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