What can I say about John Tavares that hasn't already been said?
Sometimes it boggles my mind that the guy was born in 1990. On nights like Saturday (1/21), when he provided all the Islanders' offense needed to get a win, one can easily forget that he's just 21 years old.
Tavares, coupled with another outstanding effort in goal (32 saves) from Evgeni Nabokov, led the Islanders to victory over the Carolina Hurricanes. 2-1 was the final score, in overtime. For the Islanders, it was their third straight win, tying their season-high streak.
During the game, Isles' broadcaster Howie Rose went off on what can only be described as a five minute long rant against ESPN writer Neil Greenberg. Greenberg, who had failed to place Tavares in a certain "25 young players under (age) 25" list, was excoriated by Rose.
While I'm not sure a public flogging (Rose did not say the writer's name on air) is the route I would have chosen to make the point, Rose happened to be right in this case. How can anyone of fair mind who watches ice hockey for a living exclude the Islanders' star from that group?
Not only is Tavares one of the 25 best young players, he's one of the best in the league right now.
With his 2 points (both coming as goals) on Saturday night, he now has 169 points in 207 career games (0.816 PPG). He passed Dave Scatchard on the Islanders all-time scoring list and tied Jude Drouin. Next within John's sights are Shawn Bates (170), J-P Parise, and Claude Lapointe (both at 171).
While Tavares has found his form, perhaps the Islanders are coming into theirs as well. They are now just 2 games under .500 for the season and are teasing their fans with thoughts of a playoff run.
It's still premature to think about meaningful April hockey, but the team is just eight points out of a playoff spot. If they clean up against Toronto and Carolina (who they play twice and once more, respectively) to end January, the playoff whispers on Long Island will grow by many decibels.
Either way, the selection of John Tavares in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft looks like General Manager Garth Snow's masterstroke. Even if he isn't on your list quite yet.
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Bailey Beats Bob And The Philly Curse
I can't figure the Islanders out.
They put up an absolute stinker at home against Nashville, digging a hole so deep that the game is effectively over after one period. They then travel to Washington and Philadelphia, dominate both teams, and let up a single goal over six periods.
Confounding, to say the least.
Whatever the reason (and a lot of it has had to do with goaltender Evegni Nabokov's top form lately), the Islanders finally broke their "0-for-Philly" streak on Thurdsay (1/19) night.
With 40 saves and riding a shutout streak of 159:11, the Islanders earned two points in a place that hasn't been very kind to them in almost five calendar years, Philadelphia's Wells Fargo Center.
It had been since April 7, 2007, a miserable streak of 13 games since the Islanders had last won in the City of Brotherly Love. But Matt Moulson, Josh Bailey, Mark Streit, and Michael Grabner powered the Isles to a 4-1 win.
Sergei 'Bob' Bobrovsky, who had been previously unbeaten by New York, took the loss. He's now 7-1-0 against the Blue and Orange.
As the home broadcasters were saying, it's a huge monkey finally off the back of a team trying to claw its way back into playoff contention.
There were some notable events in the game that deserve mention, besides Nabokov's masterpiece. Josh Bailey tallied a breakaway shorthanded goal for his 100th career NHL point.
John Tavares continued his slow takeover of the league with his 45th and 46th points of the season, but more importantly his 11th game in a row recording at least one. It ties the top mark in the league this year, set by Boston's David Krejci.
Lastly, the Islanders became only the second team in the league this season (Chicago) with three 40-point scorers (Tavares, Moulson, Parenteau).
Hopefully the Carolina Hurricanes and a little snow in the forecast won't be able to slow the suddenly surging Isles down on Saturday (1/21) night. They are still ten points out of a playoff spot, but looking to make up ground quickly in their upcoming games.
***
News and Notes:
- Kyle Okposo had an assist on Moulson's goal, upping his season total to 12. He has 23 points in 42 games (11-12-23).
They put up an absolute stinker at home against Nashville, digging a hole so deep that the game is effectively over after one period. They then travel to Washington and Philadelphia, dominate both teams, and let up a single goal over six periods.
Confounding, to say the least.
Whatever the reason (and a lot of it has had to do with goaltender Evegni Nabokov's top form lately), the Islanders finally broke their "0-for-Philly" streak on Thurdsay (1/19) night.
With 40 saves and riding a shutout streak of 159:11, the Islanders earned two points in a place that hasn't been very kind to them in almost five calendar years, Philadelphia's Wells Fargo Center.
It had been since April 7, 2007, a miserable streak of 13 games since the Islanders had last won in the City of Brotherly Love. But Matt Moulson, Josh Bailey, Mark Streit, and Michael Grabner powered the Isles to a 4-1 win.
Sergei 'Bob' Bobrovsky, who had been previously unbeaten by New York, took the loss. He's now 7-1-0 against the Blue and Orange.
As the home broadcasters were saying, it's a huge monkey finally off the back of a team trying to claw its way back into playoff contention.
There were some notable events in the game that deserve mention, besides Nabokov's masterpiece. Josh Bailey tallied a breakaway shorthanded goal for his 100th career NHL point.
John Tavares continued his slow takeover of the league with his 45th and 46th points of the season, but more importantly his 11th game in a row recording at least one. It ties the top mark in the league this year, set by Boston's David Krejci.
Lastly, the Islanders became only the second team in the league this season (Chicago) with three 40-point scorers (Tavares, Moulson, Parenteau).
Hopefully the Carolina Hurricanes and a little snow in the forecast won't be able to slow the suddenly surging Isles down on Saturday (1/21) night. They are still ten points out of a playoff spot, but looking to make up ground quickly in their upcoming games.
***
News and Notes:
- Kyle Okposo had an assist on Moulson's goal, upping his season total to 12. He has 23 points in 42 games (11-12-23).
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
First Line Just Fine
What's working this year for the Islanders?
The first line, at least since Head Coach Jack Capuano moved Kyle Okposo back into it.
Over the last six games that John Tavares, Matt Moulson, and Kyle have played as a unit, the trio has notched a collective 26 points, or 4.333 per game.
The breakdown is as follows: Moulson had scored 4 goals and 4 assists. Tavares has a whopping 12 points at 3 goals and 9 assists. Kyle has chipped in with a mere 3 goals and 3 assists. He contributed a goal and an assist in the win over Detroit on Tuesday (1/10) night.
In that game, a 5-1 win (aren't they all so easy against the Red Wings?), Evgeni Nabokov was the winning goaltender. He now sits one win away from 300 in his NHL career.
Looking ahead to future Islanders scorers, top prospect Ryan Strome stayed hot in the Ontario Hockey League.
Fresh off his 3G-6A-9P World Juniors stint, Strome didn't miss a beat as he scored a goal and assisted twice on Saturday night for Niagara. He is having a very nice season for the IceDogs, as you can clearly see here.
Let's hope he can come to Long Island next year (or at the end of this season) and add some secondary scoring that the team desperately needs.
The first line, at least since Head Coach Jack Capuano moved Kyle Okposo back into it.
Over the last six games that John Tavares, Matt Moulson, and Kyle have played as a unit, the trio has notched a collective 26 points, or 4.333 per game.
The breakdown is as follows: Moulson had scored 4 goals and 4 assists. Tavares has a whopping 12 points at 3 goals and 9 assists. Kyle has chipped in with a mere 3 goals and 3 assists. He contributed a goal and an assist in the win over Detroit on Tuesday (1/10) night.
In that game, a 5-1 win (aren't they all so easy against the Red Wings?), Evgeni Nabokov was the winning goaltender. He now sits one win away from 300 in his NHL career.
Looking ahead to future Islanders scorers, top prospect Ryan Strome stayed hot in the Ontario Hockey League.
Fresh off his 3G-6A-9P World Juniors stint, Strome didn't miss a beat as he scored a goal and assisted twice on Saturday night for Niagara. He is having a very nice season for the IceDogs, as you can clearly see here.
Let's hope he can come to Long Island next year (or at the end of this season) and add some secondary scoring that the team desperately needs.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Milestone Goal, Isles Cold, and Strome
It is with a small sense of pride that I can announce the following: Kyle Okposo scored his 50th National Hockey League goal on Friday (12/23) night.
His wrist shot beat Toronto goaltender James Reimer's glove with 4:15 remaining in the first period of the game. Unfortunately, Kyle's Islanders found themselves trailing 3-0 at the time. While they did attempt a spirited comeback, twice narrowing Toronto's lead to one goal, they lost yet again.
As someone who has covered him since his college days, I can tell you it has been a long and sometimes uneven road for Kyle so far as an NHL player.
Fans will surely remember his very public departure from the University of Minnesota as a sophomore in 2008. However, he immediately took the American Hockey League by storm as a professional, scoring 28 points with Bridgeport in an abbreviated season.
He went on to have a solid 9 game "tryout" of sorts with the Islanders in that same whirlwind season.
"Okie," as his teammates call him, opened eyes in the following seasons, putting up solid 39 and 52 point efforts in his first two full campaigns. Fans viewed him as a star in the making; management as a core piece of the rebuild.
His career hasn't been without pitfalls, though. He missed more than half of last season due to a preseason shoulder injury. Before that there was a concussion suffered at the hands of Dion Phaneuf, also in a preseason game.
People also became concerned when he went through terrible goalless droughts, such as when he began this season without scoring for 15 games.
That said, Kyle still appears to have his best years ahead of him. He has rebounded with 6 goals in his last 15 games. He's signed long term on Long Island and seems to enjoy playing and living in Nassau County. What has been missing has been a playoff berth.
All that said, he has put up some solid numbers so far in his career, 50 goals and 79 assists in 222 games. It works out to 0.58 points per game.
Congratulations to him for reaching what is hopefully the first of many goal scoring thresholds in his career.
***
News and Notes:
- The Islanders' 5-3 loss to Toronto, coupled with Thursday night's 4-2 loss at Madison Square Garden to the New York Rangers leaves them at 11-16-6 on the season. With a mere 28 points earned in 33 games, they have basically fallen out of the Eastern Conference playoff race before Christmas.
- On a brighter note, beginning on Monday (12/26) you'll be able to watch top Isles prospect Ryan Strome on the NHL Network. He'll be playing on Team Canada in the IIHF 2012 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship.
He, along with Islanders draft pick Andrey Pedan (Team Russia) will participate in the annual event that features many of the NHL's stars of the future. Prospective top 2012 draft picks Nail Yakupov (Russia) and Mikhail Grigorenko (Russia) are also expected to participate.
I'm hoping for a big tournament from Strome; hopefully a dominant one. Islanders fans could use the knowledge that a bona fide scorer is on the way to their team in the near future.
His wrist shot beat Toronto goaltender James Reimer's glove with 4:15 remaining in the first period of the game. Unfortunately, Kyle's Islanders found themselves trailing 3-0 at the time. While they did attempt a spirited comeback, twice narrowing Toronto's lead to one goal, they lost yet again.
As someone who has covered him since his college days, I can tell you it has been a long and sometimes uneven road for Kyle so far as an NHL player.
Fans will surely remember his very public departure from the University of Minnesota as a sophomore in 2008. However, he immediately took the American Hockey League by storm as a professional, scoring 28 points with Bridgeport in an abbreviated season.
He went on to have a solid 9 game "tryout" of sorts with the Islanders in that same whirlwind season.
"Okie," as his teammates call him, opened eyes in the following seasons, putting up solid 39 and 52 point efforts in his first two full campaigns. Fans viewed him as a star in the making; management as a core piece of the rebuild.
His career hasn't been without pitfalls, though. He missed more than half of last season due to a preseason shoulder injury. Before that there was a concussion suffered at the hands of Dion Phaneuf, also in a preseason game.
People also became concerned when he went through terrible goalless droughts, such as when he began this season without scoring for 15 games.
That said, Kyle still appears to have his best years ahead of him. He has rebounded with 6 goals in his last 15 games. He's signed long term on Long Island and seems to enjoy playing and living in Nassau County. What has been missing has been a playoff berth.
All that said, he has put up some solid numbers so far in his career, 50 goals and 79 assists in 222 games. It works out to 0.58 points per game.
Congratulations to him for reaching what is hopefully the first of many goal scoring thresholds in his career.
***
News and Notes:
- The Islanders' 5-3 loss to Toronto, coupled with Thursday night's 4-2 loss at Madison Square Garden to the New York Rangers leaves them at 11-16-6 on the season. With a mere 28 points earned in 33 games, they have basically fallen out of the Eastern Conference playoff race before Christmas.
- On a brighter note, beginning on Monday (12/26) you'll be able to watch top Isles prospect Ryan Strome on the NHL Network. He'll be playing on Team Canada in the IIHF 2012 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship.
He, along with Islanders draft pick Andrey Pedan (Team Russia) will participate in the annual event that features many of the NHL's stars of the future. Prospective top 2012 draft picks Nail Yakupov (Russia) and Mikhail Grigorenko (Russia) are also expected to participate.
I'm hoping for a big tournament from Strome; hopefully a dominant one. Islanders fans could use the knowledge that a bona fide scorer is on the way to their team in the near future.
Friday, December 16, 2011
Okposo Shines But Isles Falter
Kyle Okposo had a good game and earned himself a star on Thursday (12/15) night, but his team was unable to beat the Stars that hail from Dallas. Kyle had an assist on Michael Grabner's game tying goal and scored the goal that gave his team the lead, but it didn't hold up as his New York Islanders lost 3-2.
Kevin Poulin, making his first NHL start in goal this season, played well enough to win, saving 26 Dallas shots, but was the victim of a weak defense and an insufficient offense.
Head Coach Jack Capuano, visibly upset after the game, noted that the Islanders should have and could have won the game. "A few mistakes in the third cost us the game," he explained, as the Isles allowed third period goals to Brendan Morrow and Jamie Benn and lost for the first time in regulation this season when leading after two periods.
Back to Okposo for a moment, though. He has scored five goals in his last 11 games and has 6 points in December (7 games). He fed Grabner nicely with a pass that clunked in off of the Austrian's skate at 16:38 of the first frame. The play was reviewed but was ruled a valid goal.
Kyle's goal, the "dirty" type which he tapped in after a scramble in front of Dallas netminder Richard Bachman, is the type of goal that Kyle (and the team in general) needs to score more often.
Okposo's statistical line for the seasons now reads 5 goals and 7 assists for 12 points. The Islanders, somewhat less impressively, sit at 9-14-6, last in the Eastern Conference.
***
News and Notes:
- Brian Rolston suffered a concussion during the course of the game, this coming on the heels of the news that defenseman Steve Staios had done the same during the last game. Capuano hadn't received an update on Rolston's condition after the game.
- Mike Mottau played 18:29 in what was his 300th career NHL game.
- On the flip side, Calvin DeHaan made his NHL debut, playing 13:01, recording two hits and a +1.
- Late in the game, Michael Grabner appeared to leave the ice clutching his face. There was no word on an injury.
- The Islanders were 0-3 on the power play.
- The franchise once again falls to .500, now 1322-1322-347-80 all-time.
Kevin Poulin, making his first NHL start in goal this season, played well enough to win, saving 26 Dallas shots, but was the victim of a weak defense and an insufficient offense.
Head Coach Jack Capuano, visibly upset after the game, noted that the Islanders should have and could have won the game. "A few mistakes in the third cost us the game," he explained, as the Isles allowed third period goals to Brendan Morrow and Jamie Benn and lost for the first time in regulation this season when leading after two periods.
Back to Okposo for a moment, though. He has scored five goals in his last 11 games and has 6 points in December (7 games). He fed Grabner nicely with a pass that clunked in off of the Austrian's skate at 16:38 of the first frame. The play was reviewed but was ruled a valid goal.
Kyle's goal, the "dirty" type which he tapped in after a scramble in front of Dallas netminder Richard Bachman, is the type of goal that Kyle (and the team in general) needs to score more often.
Okposo's statistical line for the seasons now reads 5 goals and 7 assists for 12 points. The Islanders, somewhat less impressively, sit at 9-14-6, last in the Eastern Conference.
***
News and Notes:
- Brian Rolston suffered a concussion during the course of the game, this coming on the heels of the news that defenseman Steve Staios had done the same during the last game. Capuano hadn't received an update on Rolston's condition after the game.
- Mike Mottau played 18:29 in what was his 300th career NHL game.
- On the flip side, Calvin DeHaan made his NHL debut, playing 13:01, recording two hits and a +1.
- Late in the game, Michael Grabner appeared to leave the ice clutching his face. There was no word on an injury.
- The Islanders were 0-3 on the power play.
- The franchise once again falls to .500, now 1322-1322-347-80 all-time.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Holy Mouley! Isles' Offense Comes Alive!
If you're a person who likes to look ahead at a team's schedule (like I am), you couldn't have felt too optimistic about the road trip the New York Islanders began at the end of November. Looking at their opponents; New Jersey, Buffalo, Chicago, and Dallas, was likely enough to give even the most stout fan a case of heartburn.
Islanders fans, however, have learned to expect the unexpected. After some tough fought battles and seesaw games, the Islanders managed to take seven of the eight possible points from those teams listed above.
Matt Moulson, who scored seven goals during the stretch, nearly single-handedly won the contest in Dallas (12/3). His four goals staved off a potentially devastating mid-game collapse. Moulson, who struck early for two goals, watched as his defense and goaltender, Rick DiPietro, let the Stars knot the game at 3 in the second period.
Moulson sprung into action, though, restoring the lead for the Isles, capping a five goal flurry by both sides in the span of 3:09. He added a goal in the third period to give him his first four goal game in the NHL.
John Tavares, who hasn't hit the net in 13 games, has stayed productive. He has had more than his share of close calls, but in the meantime has notched 9 assists during his goal scoring drought.
P.A. Parenteau has contributed as well, putting up 7 points on the road trip.
Though he has looked better of late and scored in Chicago, Kyle Okposo hasn't yet hit a steady scoring stride with more than 20 games played. His curious tweet last week makes you wonder if his past injuries were bothering him this season more than he led most of us to believe.
I'd also be remiss if I didn't mention Al Montoya. Montoya is absolutely carrying the team in net right now. I'm not going to pile on the Rick DiPietro hate-wagon, but Al has made one big save after another of late at crucial moments. His season numbers between the pipes are an outstanding 2.17 GAA and a 93.1 save percentage.
The defense needs tightening up; there are only a few D-men playing really well. It's not my style to single players out who are underperforming, but Mike Mottau has been poor, Milan Jurcina has had some serious defensive lapses, and before he was injured I felt that Andy MacDonald was capable of better play (he left with an injury with a -9, worst among the team's defensemen).
However, the Isles won 3-2 in New Jersey, slipped by Buffalo with another single goal margin (2-1), and escaped Chicago and Dallas with two 5-4 games (a shootout loss and a win, respectively).
Looking at the bigger picture, as I tend to, here are some franchise notes I jotted down after the most recent win:
- John Tavares has now cracked the top 50 in franchise scoring. His 142 points equal former captain Mike Peca's Islanders total.
- With his four goal game on Saturday night, Moulson passed both Lorne Henning and J-P Parise in the Islanders franchise goals leader column (74).
- Also in Saturday night's affair, DiPietro and Michael Grabner left with groin injuries. More seriously, Nino Niederreiter, fresh off his first goal of the season, left with concussion like symptoms. The hit by Mark Fistric that sent him off has to result in a suspension. Replays showed the Stars player's skates leaving the ice during the hit.
- Congratulations to David Ullstrom for his first NHL point, scored in Buffalo on 11/29.
- Lastly, the Islanders franchise regained their position above .500 after spending a day below the mark. They now sit at 1321-1319-347-79 (W-L-T-OTL) all-time.
Islanders fans, however, have learned to expect the unexpected. After some tough fought battles and seesaw games, the Islanders managed to take seven of the eight possible points from those teams listed above.
Matt Moulson, who scored seven goals during the stretch, nearly single-handedly won the contest in Dallas (12/3). His four goals staved off a potentially devastating mid-game collapse. Moulson, who struck early for two goals, watched as his defense and goaltender, Rick DiPietro, let the Stars knot the game at 3 in the second period.
Moulson sprung into action, though, restoring the lead for the Isles, capping a five goal flurry by both sides in the span of 3:09. He added a goal in the third period to give him his first four goal game in the NHL.
John Tavares, who hasn't hit the net in 13 games, has stayed productive. He has had more than his share of close calls, but in the meantime has notched 9 assists during his goal scoring drought.
P.A. Parenteau has contributed as well, putting up 7 points on the road trip.
Though he has looked better of late and scored in Chicago, Kyle Okposo hasn't yet hit a steady scoring stride with more than 20 games played. His curious tweet last week makes you wonder if his past injuries were bothering him this season more than he led most of us to believe.
I'd also be remiss if I didn't mention Al Montoya. Montoya is absolutely carrying the team in net right now. I'm not going to pile on the Rick DiPietro hate-wagon, but Al has made one big save after another of late at crucial moments. His season numbers between the pipes are an outstanding 2.17 GAA and a 93.1 save percentage.
The defense needs tightening up; there are only a few D-men playing really well. It's not my style to single players out who are underperforming, but Mike Mottau has been poor, Milan Jurcina has had some serious defensive lapses, and before he was injured I felt that Andy MacDonald was capable of better play (he left with an injury with a -9, worst among the team's defensemen).
However, the Isles won 3-2 in New Jersey, slipped by Buffalo with another single goal margin (2-1), and escaped Chicago and Dallas with two 5-4 games (a shootout loss and a win, respectively).
Looking at the bigger picture, as I tend to, here are some franchise notes I jotted down after the most recent win:
- John Tavares has now cracked the top 50 in franchise scoring. His 142 points equal former captain Mike Peca's Islanders total.
- With his four goal game on Saturday night, Moulson passed both Lorne Henning and J-P Parise in the Islanders franchise goals leader column (74).
- Also in Saturday night's affair, DiPietro and Michael Grabner left with groin injuries. More seriously, Nino Niederreiter, fresh off his first goal of the season, left with concussion like symptoms. The hit by Mark Fistric that sent him off has to result in a suspension. Replays showed the Stars player's skates leaving the ice during the hit.
- Congratulations to David Ullstrom for his first NHL point, scored in Buffalo on 11/29.
- Lastly, the Islanders franchise regained their position above .500 after spending a day below the mark. They now sit at 1321-1319-347-79 (W-L-T-OTL) all-time.
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Kyle Breaks Out!
Kyle Okposo finally had the night that everyone has been waiting for. Over the course of a single period, he broke his goal scoring drought, doubled his season's points total, and silenced his critics.
The only thing missing was an Islanders win.
On Wednesday (11/23) night, the Islanders hosted the Philadelphia Flyers, a team that has traditionally given them fits. Coming into the game the Isles had dropped 24 of their last 26 to their southerly neighbors.
It looked to be more of the same in store for New York, as just 18 seconds into the game a puck found its way past starter Rick DiPietro. Andrej Meszaros scored on the first shot of the game.
The script would change, however, just 19 seconds later, as Kyle took a brilliant pass from Michael Grabner and lit Ilya Bryzgalov's lamp.
Before most of the crowd of 11,086 had settled into their seats, two goals had been scored.
Okposo, playing with a sense of determination as yet unseen this season, gave the Islanders the lead with a pretty "tic-tac-toe" type goal at 10:26. Grabner had a hand in this one too, thrusting the puck to Josh Bailey who got it to Kyle's stick blade.
The Isles led 2-1, and suddenly thoughts of the team's (and Kyle's) scoring woes were a thing of the past.
Not sated by two quick goals after such a long and miserable drought, Kyle turned around and assisted Grabner on a goal with about 1:30 to go in the period. The outburst of scoring, coming after 142-plus minutes of nothing, coupled with the fact that they were outplaying Philadelphia, was astounding.
The problem was that the Islanders had forty more minutes to get through.
During the first break, Peter Laviolette showed why he is a good coach. He yanked his starting goaltender and ushered Sergei Bobrovsky into the game.
Though Kyle played well (going end to end with the puck during one rush after making a nice defensive play, as an example), he and his mates were unable to solve Bobrovsky. "Bob" made 23 saves and was the benefactor of some quirky goals allowed by DiPietro.
Though they forced the game to overtime, and even had a man advantage during the extra session, the Islanders lost their 13th of their last 15 games.
Taking away the positives, though, Kyle appears to have put whatever was troubling him aside, at least for now. He looks like the young star that everyone saw for the last three seasons. He has regained a very nice chemistry with linemates Michael Grabner and Frans Neilsen, and even with Josh Bailey.
The Islanders haven't been able to have a game where they get scoring out of both of their top two lines on the same night. When they do, they're going to win the game easily.
Unfortunately for now, coach Jack Capuano is left to still tinker with his roster in order to get it tuned properly, and Islanders fans are left with a slightly less festive Thanksgiving mood.
The only thing missing was an Islanders win.
On Wednesday (11/23) night, the Islanders hosted the Philadelphia Flyers, a team that has traditionally given them fits. Coming into the game the Isles had dropped 24 of their last 26 to their southerly neighbors.
It looked to be more of the same in store for New York, as just 18 seconds into the game a puck found its way past starter Rick DiPietro. Andrej Meszaros scored on the first shot of the game.
The script would change, however, just 19 seconds later, as Kyle took a brilliant pass from Michael Grabner and lit Ilya Bryzgalov's lamp.
Before most of the crowd of 11,086 had settled into their seats, two goals had been scored.
Okposo, playing with a sense of determination as yet unseen this season, gave the Islanders the lead with a pretty "tic-tac-toe" type goal at 10:26. Grabner had a hand in this one too, thrusting the puck to Josh Bailey who got it to Kyle's stick blade.
The Isles led 2-1, and suddenly thoughts of the team's (and Kyle's) scoring woes were a thing of the past.
Not sated by two quick goals after such a long and miserable drought, Kyle turned around and assisted Grabner on a goal with about 1:30 to go in the period. The outburst of scoring, coming after 142-plus minutes of nothing, coupled with the fact that they were outplaying Philadelphia, was astounding.
The problem was that the Islanders had forty more minutes to get through.
During the first break, Peter Laviolette showed why he is a good coach. He yanked his starting goaltender and ushered Sergei Bobrovsky into the game.
Though Kyle played well (going end to end with the puck during one rush after making a nice defensive play, as an example), he and his mates were unable to solve Bobrovsky. "Bob" made 23 saves and was the benefactor of some quirky goals allowed by DiPietro.
Though they forced the game to overtime, and even had a man advantage during the extra session, the Islanders lost their 13th of their last 15 games.
Taking away the positives, though, Kyle appears to have put whatever was troubling him aside, at least for now. He looks like the young star that everyone saw for the last three seasons. He has regained a very nice chemistry with linemates Michael Grabner and Frans Neilsen, and even with Josh Bailey.
The Islanders haven't been able to have a game where they get scoring out of both of their top two lines on the same night. When they do, they're going to win the game easily.
Unfortunately for now, coach Jack Capuano is left to still tinker with his roster in order to get it tuned properly, and Islanders fans are left with a slightly less festive Thanksgiving mood.
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