An independent blog on the New York Islanders, the NHL and AHL by a guy from New York.

Sunday, November 1, 2015

Isles Winless In 3


Tonight, Your New York Islanders hosted the Buffalo Sabers in hopes of ending a winless drought over their last 2 games.  It would have to be without the services of John Tavares yet again (illness) and with Thomas Greiss starting in place of Jaro Halak who had played in the loss to the O.T. Devils on Saturday.  But the Islanders would lose by the score of 2-1 in a game that saw no penalties called and in which they would not be able to generate enough quality chances in the offensive zone.  And when they did, backup goaltender, Linus Ullmark kept them off the score sheet.  Calvin de Haan’s (Clutterbuck) 2nd period goal was the lone score for New York.  Former Islander Matt Moulson would tie the game in the third and Sam Reinhart got the game winner for the Sabres with around 6:00 remaining. Thomas Greiss (20 of 22 with a .909Sv%) had another strong effort in the loss.  The Isles failed to add any points & fall to 6-3-3 on the season. They will have a rematch with New Jersey on Tuesday at the Barclays Center wearing their BKLYN Black jerseys.  Calvin de Haan was named 3rd star of the game.



The Islanders met the Devils at the Rock in a Halloween Matinee on Saturday.  Prior to the game, New York announced John Tavares (day to day) would not be suiting up,  breaking his 92 game streak and said they wouldn’t give the reasons until after the game.  A suspicious and concerning set of events for many fans and media, but as it turned out, he was probably affected by the illness that hit Jaro Halak and roommate, Ryan Strome in the past few days.  Head Coach, Jack Capuano wouldn’t give a timetable for his return and that he would be reevaluated prior to the Buffalo game on Sunday.  Despite taking control of the game after the first 5 or 6 minutes, they lost in O.T. to New Jersey.  The Devils took a 2-0 lead in the first period that the Isles erased in the 2nd.  Anders Lee PPG (Zidlicky & Leddy) and Frans Nielsen SHG (Strait) got the Isles knotted at 2.  Neither team was able to score in the 3rd or Overtime periods, so a shootout would be necessary to determine a winner.  It is important to note that the Devils were held without a shot until the final minute of the 3rd period.  Mike Cammalleri scored the 3-2 shootout winner for New Jersey while Frans Nielsen was the lone Islander to score.  Some of the good news in the loss was that special teams had come up big and that the Isles were able to get a point without Tavares in the lineup.  They played well, but they didn’t show up until the 2nd period and spotted NJ a 2-1 lead.  That kind of thing needs to be addressed and the entire team needs to play a full 60 to be successful.


The Isles dominated in shots by a 26-17 margin and went 1 for 2 on the PP and 3/3 on the PK.  That means the Islanders PK stands at an impressive 27 for last 27, good for tops in the NHL.  Jaro Halak (3-1-1) went 15 of 17 with an .882Sv%.  Frans Nielsen was named 2nd star of the game and now has an impressive 9 points in 11 Games played.



On Thursday, your New York Islanders lost in O.T. to the Carolina Hurricanes by the score of 3-2 due to poor puck management.  Matt Martin (Leddy & Cizikas) and Frans Nielsen PPG (Leddy & Greiss) put the Isles up 1 & 2-0 in the 1st & 2nd periods, but the Hurricanes matched their intensity, forced NY turnovers and tied the score each time to force the extra session.  The Isles held on to a point in a sloppy effort, but Ron Hainsey scored the GWG for Carolina.  Thomas Greiss started in place of an ill Jaro Halak & had another strong outing despite his numbers, going 26/29 with a n .897 Sv%.  New York was out shot 29-19 in the game, went ½ on the PP and 2/2 on the PK.  Frans Nielsen was named 2nd star of the game who said, “We were beating ourselves with turnovers.”  Ryan Strome was out of the lineup due to Illness, Steve Bernier played a good physical & defensive oriented game in relief.


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I wanted to thank everyone for their continued support of KoC over the last several years and I enjoy bringing it to all of you.  However, over the last two years, my Fathers health has declined with his progressing dementia and I haven’t been able to bring as much coverage of our beloved Islanders as I would have liked.


Because of this, I will have to modify what I can do with the blog for the immediate future.  I intend to keep bringing you my coverage of the Islanders, but will try to focus on feature articles instead of regularly covering each game.  Although I will recap and comment on games when I am able, my primary focus will be producing articles that give a little more of me, juicy stats and a little less recanting of each and every game.


I hope you will stay with me and cheer on our team for what should be an exciting inaugural season in Brooklyn. 


Until next time fans. Isle be there.





Isles Notes:


Notes from Yahoo on Isles win vs Calgary:  “The Isles' 4-0 win over Flames was first time New York has shut out Calgary since Chico Resch blanked them on Jan. 20, 1981.  Isles' Jaroslav Halak recorded his 38th career shutout to tie Jonathan Quick for fourth place among active goalies.”


Barclays Center & Brooklyn impressions by International Business Times.  



Sound Tigers Notes:


The Bridgeport Sound Tigers have named Michael Picker team President





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