New Contracts Prove Good Chemistry

And lets begin...the game starts, it starts well, we looked pretty good out there, and then it began. An array of scoring takes place. A long breakout pass during a change of lines for both teams from Rob Davison to Mike Comrie was the start of it. Comrie was able to receive the pass at the blue line sneak between the defense, and wrist it into the goal, but it was stopped first then fumbled and put in the net by Comrie, Radek Martinek also picked up an assist. 1-0. Secondly as Lehtonen tried to clear the puck it was stopped by Trent Hunter along the wall, thrown in front of the net right to Joe Vasicek who slipped it in right by the out of place Lehtonen. 2-0. As Bill Guerin waited at the blue line he passed it to Bryan Berard who then passed it to Andy Hilbert as they crashed the net and Hilbert just banked it off his stick into the net. 3-0. 

Now the collapse. 

On the penalty kill Eric Perrin managed to steal the puck and get a breakaway, Bryan Berard chasing him, he dove and took Perrin out causing a penalty shot. The way the penalty shot ended, I wished Berard didnt take him out. Once again DP looked shotty and let an easy one in. (personally I thought it was easy for DP) 3-1. The Thrashers broke into the zone and Colby Armstrong centered it to Ken Klee who slapped it past DP, Eric Perrin picked up an assist. 3-2. An old friend tied up the score next, yep you guessed it Alexi Zhitnik. He grabbed a pass from the side of the net and slapped it by DP. Bobby Holik gave it to Alexi, and Bryan Little who fought for the puck behind the net gave it to Holik, so they both got assists as well. 3-3.

Fight for the point.

The start of the third brought a great amount of emotion and momentum. Mike Comrie was quick to put that to sleep. On a failed clearing attempt Bryan Berard kept it in the zone and gave it to Comrie who was in front of the net about 10 or so feet away from the crease, and he finished it off. 4-3

Dont give up!

Bobby Holik decided not to give up. The Islanders thought they had the 2 points in the bag, the Thrashers were about to pull their goalie. Bobby Holik picked up a pass from Mark Recchi who got a pass from Ken Klee. Holik basically just threw it on net from a little after the blue line and it got by DP.

Crunch Time.

Apparently Trent Hunter and Joe Vasicek decided they wanted two points. After losing a face off in the offensive zone, Vasick pressured a Thrasher behind the net off to the side and once he got it, he got it to Hunter who was placed in front of the net. Needless to say he made a deposit. I guess he figured everyone else was doing it. 

1. Trent Hunter - 1 goal, 1 assist. Game winning goal. (New contract)

2. Mike Comrie - 2 goals

3. Joe Vasicek -1 Goal, 1 assist. Keeping the chemistry going with Hunter and Tenk.

Stat of the night...

Rob Davison got his first point as a New York Islander. 

Islanders in Hot-lanta...My-Lanta

Rick Depietro 25-23-7 2.67 GAA VS. Kari Lehtonen 13-18-2 2.90 GAA

Tonights game is a big game, you want to establish yourself here. Should be the last game or so without Witt. After this game, we have two games at home on Saturday and Sunday against the Flyers and Panthers respectively. After that we have 2 games against the New York Rangers, you know the New York team everyone seems to love. The Yankees of hockey? sick first and second line they have, too bad there not so much better then us, and as for head to head this year, we got that in the bag.
One would have to believe that our great backup goalie, Wade Dubielewicz. So that a very tired looking DP can get some much needed rest before playing 2 huge games in a week, and really 3 huge games. Pick one Panthers? the team that has Oli Jokinen thanks to Mike Milbury and Vokoun the goalie we cant touch. Or a divisional match-up between two teams battling to stay out of last in the Atlantic. If we can take 3-4 of the next 5 including 2 against the Rangers and hopefully the Flyers, we should be in a playoff spot and out of last place in the Atlantic with 2 teams behind us. I wouldnt mind winning all 5 games though.
This season we are 1-1-1 against the Thrashers, the first game I was at a 4-0 loss against Doobie. In-fact I have Doobies stick after he broke it that game after letting up 4 first period goals. Dont think just because Hossa is gone that the team is not as good, they received a good crop of players from the Penguins (also a first round pick).

Witt Update

Brendan Witt is making the trip down to the lovely city of Atlanta. There are no guarantees that he will be playing, but he will definitely be back in the lineup by Saturday.

....This is very good news for the Isles. There were times during Tuesday's game against Pittsburgh where watching Aaron Johnson was actually painful. The new guy Davison looked pretty good except that awkward looking shot on an open net which hit everything on the ice except the back of the net. Witt is a key component of this Islander team and getting him back should be a big boost for the team, and maybe a psychological benefit for Ricky who looked awful last game....

....also I couldn't help but use this picture, it is classic, cracks me up every time I look at it....

Big C is in the Blogger Atmosphere

I have been stealing Anthony's account and posting with his name since we got the site up, but we (Anthony) finally figured it out. My name is Big C, professionally referred to as Bryan, but you can call me whatever you want, except naughty names they hurt my feelings. I look forward to writing more and more about the Isles. Hopefully the playoff push can start and the Islanders can get back on another prolonged winning streak. For now though, I am going to end this post because writing about myself is a waste of time, LETS GO ISLES!

March of the Penguins

Tonight would have been a swell night for Marc-Andre Bergeron, but alas our power play will now suffer more then it has. Without the QB of the power play, the Islanders looked helpless, they just could not find openings on their many advantages. This being stated Ruslan Fedotenko got a nice power play goal with 1 minute left in the game losing 4-1 making it 4-2. It was simple power play thinking. Hunter Pass to Vasicek, slap on goal, rebound, Fedotenko swoops in and deposits the mail into the box. That was the only positive side of our power play tonight. There were 10 penalties called on the penguins, and we had 1 goal...fantastic.
The Islanders came out and played the entire game very strong. With the arrival of Rob Davison, who I feel played very well, midway through the first, the Islanders seemed hopeful. But a tired Rick Depietro could not stop the Penguins on 2 of the first 3 or 5 shots. It depends what you want to call a shot. Evgeni Malkin started it off on the second shot, on a wrist shot that made DP look like a minor league goalie in his first NHL game. Sykora and Taffe retained assists on the play. Then, in the same period only a few minutes later, Jeff Taffe tallied his own goal on the power play which the Islanders had a few fast breaks on. 2-1...assists Kennedy, and Letang. the first shot blocked and then cleared by a sprawling DP out of the crease, into Hilberts right skate and right into the grasp of Taffe who threw it into an open net. Second period starting with an Islander power play, failed to score once again. Midway through the second an unlikely goal scorer on an unlikely line put the puck right by Ty Conklin. Frans Nielson got his first NHL goal. That was an exciting goal for us and him his first goal, keeping us in the game for a little longer, and the start of something beautiful for the Islanders. The beauty?...that would be the potent line of Comeau, Tambellini and Neilson himself, what a fore check they have, what pressure, and some amazing stops by Ty Conklin is the only reason why that line isnt on this score sheet more. Tambo had a few nice chances along with some each by his line mates but all dreams were crushed by a man just trying to keep his job. Maybe the other end of the ice could learn something, not that we could send DP down but how about a Doobie start before the Isles V Rangers tilt comming in March. Neilsons bliss can only last so long. About a period length later, Jordan Stall one of the many Stall brothers put a wrist shot by DP. Malkin and Sykora both got their second point of the night. Mere minutes later, just like the first period, on the power play. Ryan Whitney threw a beautiful pass to Connor James, who got through the defense and made Rick once again look like an amateur, he left the entire net open and Connor just dropped placed it in the net. With a little over a minute left, Malkin took a penalty putting the Islanders on their last power play, Ruslan Fedotenko picked up a rebound off of a shot from Vasicek. Hunter also picked up an assist. The game was still out of reach though. Conklin picked up his second win against the Islanders, he is hte only goalie out of these two teams to win 2 games, every other possible candidate has only 1 win. At the end of the game there was a "pillow fight" (other writer here at weareallislanders) where Comrie and Kennedy went at it. I think Comrie took the loss, but showed heart went he went to one knee but then got back up and threw a powerful right hander.
The only think i can possibly think positive about is that Tambo, Neilson, Comeau line is here to stay and its nasty. Also one more, the Tenk, Hunter, Vasicek line is still hot each. getting a point.

Stat of the night: The Islanders out shot the Penguins 52 to 21. Thats the first time the Islanders hit the 50 shot mark in 2 years.

Rob Davison Welcome.....Please Don't Suck

Well last year the Islanders got Captain Canada Ryan Smyth. This year the Isles got Rob Davison. You might be scratching your head right now just like I did driving home from class today when I heard this on the radio. Thankfully it only cost the Isles a 7th round pick. I did a little research on Davison quick and he seems like he is all about defense. He is 27 years old and is 6'3 220 pounds. His career high in points in the NHL is 6. No I did not make a typo i mean S I X. But if he can play defense the Islanders do not need him to be racking up the points. In the 05-06 season (the only full season he played more than fifty games) he had the career high 6 points and was a plus- 6, which is pretty solid. This trade was made before the Bergeron trade so I guess that made Bergeron expendable? Initially I thought this was good to bolster the D, but now the Isles are in the same spot they were when today started, lots of injuries and the same amount of D-men.

Bergeron Bounced for a 3rd Round Pick?

I did not mis-remember, as Roger Clemens likes to say, Marc-Andre Bergeron is heading to Anaheim. The lovable, sometimes painful to watch D-man, got the Islanders a 3rd round pick. I'm surprised the Isles could get a 3rd round pick for him. He does lead the team in Power Play Goals but we all know watching Bergeron play defense and carry the puck in his own zone is like watching a man jump off a boat into the ocean with cement tied to his feet. It's just not pretty. I did like when Bergeron would let go that missile of a slap shot though, it was always cool to watch. But now I think this move will help my hear rate drop when watching Islander games especially when 47 is on the ice. Goodbye Marc-Andre and good luck with the Ducks, please cough up a puck in the Ducks zone when the Isles and Ducks play again (sorry I couldn't help myself).

The Prayers Have Been Answered!!

Ladies and Gentleman of Islander Nation you can breathe easy. CHRIS SIMON IS GONE! Simon was traded to the Minnesota Wild today for a 6th round draft pick (even better than a bag of pucks!). Simon's enforcer role was something I think most Islander fans were getting tired of. The Isles have enough trouble scoring to begin with, they did not need a NFL linebacker with a stick on the ice not producing at all (Chris Simon reference). Hopefully this will allow the young kids with talent to gain some more NHL time. I'm very happy about this move, party on Garth.

The trading has begun!!.....the Islanders aren't involved

So D-Day as I like to call it has finally come and GM's have started to pull the trigger on deals.

Here's what has happened so far as of noon (eastern standard time)

The Philadelphia Flyers trade:
Alexandre Picard and a 2nd or 3rd round draft pick in the 2009 draft

to the Tampa Bay Lightning for:
Vinny Prospal

...I don't know how you could make a deal and say 'we'll trade you a 2nd round pick....or a 3rd round pick' but I guess theres things I'll never understand. Great pick up by Philly...

The New Jersey Devils trade:
Cam Janssen

to The St. Louis Blues for:
Bryce Salvador

...I guess this helps the Devils?...

The Toronto Maple Leafs trade:
Wade Belak

to The Florida Panthers for:
A 2008 fifth round draft pick

....Two bad teams in the Eastern Conference making a deal.....

The Buffalo Sabres trade:
Brian Campbell (and his glorious red beard)

to The San Jose Sharks for:
Steve Bernier
a First round draft pick

....I think this trade will work out for both teams, even though I know Buffalo fans are probably jumping off bridges right now....

The Tampa Bay Lightning trade:
Brad Richards
Johan Holmqvist

to The Dallas Stars for:
Mike Smith
Jeff Halpern
Jussi Jokinen

....so far biggest trade of the day. Lots of action coming out of sunny Florida for hockey eh?....

The Montreal Canadians trade:
Cristobal Huet

to The Washington Capitals for:
A 2009 2nd round draft pick

....not sure this one makes sense BUT what do i know....

The Chicago Blackhawks trade:
Tuomo Ruutu

to The Carolina Hurricanes for:
Andrew Ladd

....I like Ladd a lot and you can add him to the vast amount of young talent the Blackhawks already have....

Rumor Mill

Word has obviously developed on the re-signing of Mike Comrie, and im glad hes back.
But now its time to see what is a possible loss for us. Interviews with Garth Snow has given us nothing except he regrets not retaining Ryan Smyth. He claims he would do the trade 'all over again' would you? For those of you who dont know, Ryan Smyth signed a 6 year contract over in Colorado.
Ruslan Fedotenko - Has been linked to many rumors, none of which state where he would go. I wouldnt mind Tenk for Hossa, but we all know that wouldnt happen without a pick or Kyle Okposo so we can let that go. Fedotenko is in his last year of his contract which makes him expendable.
Dont expect big names to come to the island again this year. I dont think Snow will take the risk again, and blowing our farm system for a guy who will play less then half a season with us.
Miro Satan - has also been involved in trade talks. Miro has a full no trade clause, and as of 2 days ago has not been asked to waive it at all. I would be sad in seeing him go, he is not a top line man anymore, but Miro takes the second and third lines and really helps out the other players, I feel he shows determination and hustle. Some players could learn from him, especially younger players.
Brian Mccabe - Rumored to be on his way out of Toronto, he and his wife claim they want to stay in Toronto. I know for a fact that Mr. Mccabe has a nice house on Long Island, that was recently built. How do i know this? well its around the block from the other blogger n this site. He used to be an Islander and apparently doesnt mind the Island if he lives there some of the year. Also we are down some Dmen so he looks to be a good fit, we took a chance on another old Dmen this season, and he turned out okay (Bryan Berard)

Ill keep you posted. Heres a good site anyway (along with Tsn.ca)

Done Deal: Comrie Thinks to Ink

Welcome home. (not a native to New York) We here at weareallislanders.blogspot.com want to welcome Mike Comrie and his second year as an Islander. Good Luck.
Here is a quick link to the only source that I have...

TSN.CA

Comrie staying? I thought he was the first one gone, he doesnt seem happy on the Island aside from Ms. Duff keeping him happy here. Offered a 4 mill 1 year contract, which he has reportedly signed.
So all you trade rumors can go away for now.

It's Penguin Season

Rick Depietro 25-22-27 2.65 GAA Vs. Ty Conklin 16-4-5 2.19 GAA

No matter what I say about people playing in tonights match-up, its not set in stone. Anyone can move at the deadline. Do we have someone on the way to Long Island? Are they passing someone in the airport who just took their job? we wont know until around 3pm today (I get out of class at 12:20, so ill be on the wire checking for updates so you can rest easy)
You want an interesting fact about tonights game? aright here you go
No goalie has won twice in this seasons contests'
Nov 3 2007 - Dubielewics
Nov 15 2007 - Fleury
Dec 15 2007 - Sabourin
Dec 21 2007 - Dipietro
Feb 7 2008 - Conklin
If there is a pattern here its Isles win 1, Penguins win 2. There is no telling what could happen tonight. The Islanders are 1-1 at home and 1-2 on the road. The win we have at home was 'Al Arbour day.'

Tonights game is at 7pm on FSN NY (TV) and Bloomberg 1130

Shawn Bates...Don't Act Like you Don't Know the Name

Anybody remember Shawn Bates? Mostly whenever I bring up that name when I am talking with my friends, there are a lot of curse words involved in the sophisticated conversation. It seems like he could get hurt doing basically anything. "Hey Shawn can you hold this grocery bag for this old woman?" "Sure I can" back tightens up and misses the rest of the season. Despite everyones problems with Bates he is like an iconic Islander figure to me. The memory that stands out the most of Bates is the penalty shot against the Maple Leafs in the playoffs. How sweet was that? I don't dwell on his injuries because he is not really a spectacular player. Anyone could fill in and do exactly what he does, but I think Islander fans admired how he put his heart and soul into the game. I believe this is exactly why people get frustrated when he is constantly hurt. So for all your Shawn Bates memories keep the happy thoughts in mind and forget about the injuries. Rock on Batesy maybe you can come back and play more than 5 games without getting hurt one day I really would love to see it.

Sound Tiger Weekly

Welcome to our first installment of "Sound Tigers Weekly" our in depth look at the New York Islanders minor league's. In our installments we will update you on standings, stats and specific players. 

Chalk February in the win column for the Sound Tigers, With just two games left for them in the current month (one being played right now, and another on friday the 29th) the Sound Tigers put up a respectable 7-4 record. This month will be an above .500 month, last month they put up a 6-5 record. The arrival of coveted prospect Kyle Okposo has surely contributed to recent success. Though he is not the only one.

This week Kyle has posted 3 points in 4 games (not including tonight's game) 2 assists and 1 goal. 6 penalty minutes in the last 4 games, but only 8 total in a total of 20 games (his entire AHL career).  

The Sound Tigers are currently 17 points out of first place in the east division of the AHL. But they are only 5 points out of second place. The lead the league in penalty minutes with 1378 minutes, Kip Brennan leads the team with 230 minutes, Matthew Spiller is second with 164. This past week Spiller Totaled 19 of those minutes in the last 4 games.

Check out Kyle Okposo's first AHL goal

Also Matthew Spiller flashing his fists 

Opinion: Hunter's Contract

....Personally I am very happy the Islanders offered an extension to Hunter and I am very happy Trent chose to stay with the Islanders. It only averages 2 million a year (10 million over course of contract) and I think that is a bargain for the Islanders. Trent is not a "sexy" player but he does everything right (except score all the time). He is always near the top of the league in hits, and is what I think personifies an Islander. Listen as Islander fans, at least the fans who were not yet born when the Islanders dynasty existed like myself, the team has not been good and always seems like it is in a bit of an identity crisis. Sort of like going through puberty, but now the Islanders have finally defined what kind of team they are and what kind of players work good in their system (I cant believe the Islanders finally have a "system"). Trent has put up very respectable numbers when he was playing in Bridgeport, before he came up to play with the Islanders, and maybe with a little work his goal scoring will increase. I do not think the Isles need him to be that kind of player, but it definitely would not hurt if he started averaging 20 goals a season. I'm looking forward to watching Trent Hunter flourish with the Islanders.....

Devils snap streaking Islanders

Todays loss keeps the Islanders in 9th place, still 1 point out of the playoffs. the three teams in 8th place play today, Boston has a game tonight, and the Sabers and Rangers square off tonight. We need a Bruins loss, and a Buffalo win in regulation. Todays game was tough to swallow our first ever loss at 'The Rock' and first loss this season to New Jersey. Josef Vasicek started off the scoring in the first before the 10 minute mark, firing a slap shot passed Marty Brodeur. Andy Hilbert picked up the assist. Also picking up assists were Trent Hunter who signed a 5 year extension last night and Frans Neilson who picked the points up on another Ruslan Fedotenko goal. That is his 5th goal in 7 games. He was a huge part of the winning streak along with DP, Satan, and Vasicek and our makeshift defense. In between the goals by the Islanders 2 special teams goals were scored by the Devils first a power play goal by Pat Elias. Then a short handed goal by John Madden. the assists on those two goals are David Johnny Oduya and Zach Parise on the Elias goal. Paul Martin on the Madden goal.

The start of the third period was the start of the end for the New York Islanders, out shot 20-4 in the third. The Devils added 2 more goals against their rivals. Zach Parise tallied his second point of the afternoon with a goal. Which he created with hard work, flying past a young Aaron Johnson. Then broke in on DP and flung one right by him. the goal was assisted by Travis Zajac and Martin Brodeur. Sealing the deal was Brian Gionta who picked up his own rebound coming across the net and wristing it in. That last goal of the day was assisted by Colin White and Dainius Zubrus.

Tonight's three stars

1. Zach Parsie

2. Brian Gionta

3 Patrick Elias

Todays stat of the day: Zach Parsie's goal has him in the lead for the Devils with 25 goals.

Todays wish of the day: I wish Zach would play for the Islanders like his wonderful father.

Loose Ends: Silly, Hunter, Gervais

Mike Sillinger is officially out for the season. He will undergo season ending surgery within the next week. Sillinger hasnt played in a game since the 15th of Feb. The faceoff artist still has a year left on his 3 year contract.

Trent Hunter has signed a 5 year deal that keeps him on the island until the 2012-13 season. I like this move Hunter is having a pretty good season this year he makes 1.55 million this season. The deal is for 10 million over 5 years.

Bruno Gervais is back after missing a slew of games with an oblique injury. now with an extra Dman we can have some rest for others. Personally i wouldn't move that first line pairing with Martinek and Meyer. I would like to see Gervais on a line with Bergeron or Berard.

MIRO THE HERO? or RICKY THE RELIABLE

Tonight the Islanders have caught lightning in a bottle, posting a point in 7 straight games and winning 6 straight. Its hard to believe players like Witt and Campoli have nothing to do with this. (besides moral support for younger players) This is a team effort, though we are all so quick to point the finger in our 7 game skid. Tonights score was a 1-0 win. The goal? ill give you a hint its his second in as many nights and he also has 5 points in the last 5 games. (3 goals 3 assists) Still nothing? its none other then "MIRO THE HERO" (I don't think anyone has coined that name so I am now) DP (which on the other hand has more coins then the bank he brings his check to) played great, which is a breath of fresh air to what he has been of late. Miro tallied the games only goal just after 5 minutes in the third. Leaving little room for error on both sides. The shot was assisted by Bergenheim and DREW FATA his first NHL point in his second game this season. hes catching up to Chris Simon. Normally this is a hard decision to give the "Game Hero" to. Satan scoring the only goal...Fata getting his first point (congrats by the way) but it goes to Rick Depietro who stopped all of Tampa's attacks totaling 31 shots.

The Return...

Chris Simon is in the lineup for tonight's game, maybe adding defensive depth. Which is the only way I can fathom him playing. My other news is, one man comes in, another leaves.

Jeff Tambellini has been sent down to the Bridgeport Sound Tiger's.

GAME PREVIEW: ISLANDERS VS. LIGHTNING

Rick Dipietro 24-21-7 2.67 GAA Vs. Johan Holmqvest 20-15-6 2.96 GAA

I liked when i realized the Lightning were on the road, but as different from the early party of the season to even the midterm, the Lightning have turned it on while on the road. Here are some supporting facts.
The entire season Tampa Bay has collected a 10-15-5 road record. (2 O.T. Wins)
As of Tuesday January 8th they posted a 7-0-2 road record. (1 O.T. Win)
The Lightning played Buffalo last night losing in overtime, that game was on the road for them as well.
Tonight we see what injuries do to a team. A healthy New York Islanders would throw out...
Witt - Martinek
Meyer - Gervais
Sutton - Bergeron/Berard
Campoli is out for the season so theres no need to include him, though he is a major contributer to our team.
But do to obvious team injury, this is what my projected D-pairings will be.
Meyer - Martinek
Berard - Bergeron
Johnson - Fata
Last night the Meyer & Martinek line was on the ice alot, and they will be the workhorse for tonights game as well.
Both goalies go back to back tonight even though both had overtime bouts last night.
The season series is 2-0-0 for the Islanders (1 overtime win)
After tonights game there is one more left on Tuesday March 11th in Tampa Bay.
Oh I almost forgot...Chris Simon is able to come back today? seriously im at a loss for a reason. The only way i can tolerate this lack of offense...is well, from a D-men. Do you really want to put in an enforcer, and take away a potential goal scorer, I am not saying Simon doesn't score, its just that he has 1 goal this season (2 assists, 3 points in 26 games)...even with his suspension thats bad. If I played hockey I wouldn't call my mom at the end of the season
"Mommy! Its Chris, guess what...I scored 1 goal this season"
"...(click)"
"Mommy...hmmm...must be a bad connection"
well apparently not even a mother could love that stat

Tonight's game is on 

TV: FSN NY

Bloomberg 1130 

Isles Cap Size Capitals in Shootout

First of all Wow what an exciting game. Second of all Alex Ovechkin is a beast. Third and most importantly, the Islanders win making it five in a row. The scoring started in the first period when Alexander Semin pushed a backhander past Rick DiPietro on the breakaway making it 1 - 0 Caps' . The Islanders started off looking very slow and were getting outplayed by the Capitals. Islanders defenseman Aaron Johnson took a tripping penalty about half way through the first period. On the ensuing powerplay Brooks Laich tipped in Mike Green's shot to make it 2 - 0 Caps'. Around the 10 minute mark in the second, after a stellar penalty kill by the Isles, Miroslav Satan stole the puck from Alexander Semin and threw a pass down the ice for Bill Guerin who was just out of the penalty box. Guerin had a breakaway and was denied by Olaf Kolzig but he stayed with the puck and hit a streaking Miroslav Satan who buried the puck in the back of the net making it 2 - 1. Then in the third, keeping with tradition of scoring around the 10 minute mark, Trent Hunter entered the Capitals zone and took a slap shot from the top of the right circle which deflected off Josef Vasicek. Vasicek stayed with the puck and from the right corner threw a backhander off Olaf Kolzig's rump shaker into the back of the net tying the game at 2. The rest of the third period was extremely exciting, chances for both teams but it went into overtime tied at 2. Overtime was also both teams trading chances back and forth but there were no goals scored, so they headed to the shootout. Ex-Islander Viktor Kozlov shot first for the Caps' and missed the net. First shooter for the Islanders was Richard Park who made a lot of nice moves but was stopped by Olaf Kolzig. Next shooter for the Caps' was the great Alex Ovechkin, he had DiPietro beat but lost control of the puck and it hit the post. Next Islanders shooter was Miroslav Satan who made a great move and had Kolzig beat but it also rang off the post. Third shooter for the Caps' was Alexander Semin who shot it right into DiPietro's chest. Third and final shooter for the Islanders was Mike Comrie made a few moves and put the puck between Kolzig's legs to secure the win and 2 points for the Islanders. Five in a row for the Isles!

Three Stars of the Game

1. Mike Comrie
2. Freddy Meyer
3. Matt Pettinger (WSH)

Stat of the Night!

Before Josef Vasicek's goal off Kolzig's behind, he had been goal-less since January 19th against the Philadelphia Flyers. He has taken 24 shots in that time span.

....so a couple of things from tonights game that have nothing to do with the outcome. 1) How sweet are those red Capitals' jersey's...I think I'm in love with them 2) Did anyone else notice the crazy kids on the Isles end 1st and 3rd period who were violently shaking the glass...I wish I could do that the Coliseum 3) Richard Park wears contacts...he talks out of the side of his mouth...I heard his wife is gorgeous....he moves so beautifully on the ice...I think officially I have a man crush 4) Alexander Ovechkin's shot off the post on the power play late in the third gave me a heart attack and also caused me to lose hearing cause the "ping" was so loud 5) Trent Hunter plays hockey like a very angry strong man in my opinion most enjoyable Islander to watch game after game...

GAME PREVIEW: Isles visit the Capital

Rick Dipietro 23-21-7 2.69 GAA VS. Olie Kolzig 21-18-5 2.99 GAA

Recent Meetings:

Oct 8th Capitals @ Islanders 2-1

Oct 18th Islanders @ Capitals 5-2

Dec 22nd Capitals @ Islanders 2-3 OT

Today is the last meeting between the two teams. Your New York Islanders are currently winning the season series 2-1. The Islanders won the only other time the Capitals played them at home this season.

Since jan 1st the Capitols have been a great team posting a 13-7-1 record.

The New York Islanders have had some luck of their own though, winning 4 straight.

Tonight's game can be seen on FSN NY and heard on Bloomberg 1130 AM

LETS GO ISLES!

Loose Ends: Kip Brennan

Kip Brennan as you all know was recalled from Bridgeport last week. After a short stint with the islanders, he was sent back down to Bridgeport. While back down with the Sound Tigers, he went to go defend his fellow Sound Tiger Pascal Morency. Pascal got into an altercation with Geoff Peters of the Portland Pirates. While Pascal Morency was down Kip Brennan and helped out his friend. By helping out I of coarse mean that Kip Brennan lit up Geoff Peters and fought off two other Pirates that came to Peters' side. I believe this suspension was reasonable, I think we may have another Chris Simon our hands.

You be the judge.

Who is Drew Fata?

Since he'll probably be up with the Islanders for a couple weeks, I believe it is only right to get to know Drew Fata. He is 24 years old. He was drafted by Pittsburgh in the 3rd round, 86th overall, in the 2001 draft. Drew only has 8 points this season for Bridgeport in 48 games (3 goals 5 assists). He is second on the team in penalty minutes with 156. Oh, and he likes to fight. Check out some of the videos of Drew dropping the gloves:

....I thought this one was funny because its Tim Jackman and Drew Fata.....they are team mates now....well I thought it was funny

Fata vs. Jackman

He can hit too:

Fata crushes Hossa

Injury Update: Andy Sutton

It appears Andy Sutton's hamstring is worse than we all thought. Initially it appeared to just be a cramp in his hamstring and nothing too serious. This assumption was incorrect. Sutton tore his hamstring and will likely miss 4 - 6 weeks. Drew Fata was called up from Bridgeport to replace Sutton.

...this is terrible news for the Islanders. This now makes four Islander d-men injured (Campoli, Witt, Gervais, Sutton). Hopefully the Isles can ditch the injury bug soon because they are playing fantastic right now. I know Fata is a nasty fighter, but hopefully he can play some solid defense for a week or two.

Islanders Hook Sharks

The New York Islanders have defeated the San Jose Sharks by the score of 3 - 2 today in front of a sold out crowd at the Nassau Coliseum. Freddy Meyer "sizzled" (according to Billy Jaffe) the game winner past Evgeni Nabakov's blocker from just inside the blue line with 8:41 left in the third period. The Isles were down 1 - 0 going into the third period after Marcel Goc danced out from behind the net and blew a wrist shot past a screened DP. The Sharks took a 2 - 0 lead early in the third when Mighty Joe Thornton pushed a rebound past Ricky. The Isles started to claw back into the game when Bill Guerin threw a backhand floater towards the net from the net, it bounced off Joe Vasicek and Andy Hilbert knocked it in. About a minute later Mike Comrie (Hillary Duff's BF for all the lady readers) made San Jose defenseman Kyle Mclaren look silly when he put the puck between Mclaren's legs, skated around him, then keeping tradition of putting the puck through other peoples legs, Comrie buried a wrister between the legs of Nabokov to tie the game at 2. This set the stage for the 40 goal scorer himself, Frederick Meyer IV (I hope you all catch onto my sarcasm), to "sizzle" a wrister between the legs of the San Jose defender and past Nabokov to give the Islanders a lead they would not lose.

Three Stars of The Game

1. Freddy Meyer
2. Mike Comrie
3. Rick DiPietro

Stat of the Night!

Today's game was the first game since January 16th that Rick DiPietro has faced 20+ shots and allowed fewer than three goals.

....hopefully Ricky can start playing like the All - Star he is now that the offense is finally starting to click.

Injury Update:

Blake Comeau is not seriously injured......Andy Sutton will be re-evaluated Tuesday after his apparent hamstring injury

Up and Running

Hey, My name is Anthony, and i as well as all of you are huge islanders fans. This is a blog devoted to the team. All people are welcome to come in and comment. I hope to have alot of people comming in and out, so tell all your friends.