|
|
ISLES INFO |
 |
|
|
ISLES INFO |
|
|
Menu NYI Database Transactions
//// //// //// //// |
IslesInfo Comments: The Isles came into this game looking to play conservative despite losing 1-0 to the NY Rangers the night before with that same style. At 12:27 of the first period Eric Cairns was whistled off for roughing. They almost killed the penalty off but towards the end Adrian Aucoin failed to clear the zone. Toronto's Aki Berg intercepted the puck at the blueline and passed it down to Alexander Mogilny down in the right circle. Mogilny took the shot and beat Islanders goaltender Rick DiPietro to put Toronto up 1-0 at 14:41, 4 second after Cairns' penalty had ended. The Islanders were so conservative in the first period that they did not record a shot on goal until after the 18 minute mark. That span included a power play in which the Isles could not muster anything on Leafs goaltender Ed Belfour. In fact, it was pretty much a gift shot credited to Oleg Kvasha as he chased a loose puck down on Belfour. The Islanders tried everything to get some offense going including reuniting the line of Dave Scatchard, Jason Wiemer and Jason Blake. But when the period was over the Isles found themselves out shot 8-1. The one shot was a season low in a period for the Isles this season. Nik Antropov was assessed a cross checking penalty at the 20 minute mark after he hit Blake in the side of the head. Blake though was also penalized for diving by going down after the hit. How do they know he wasn't hurt? Anyway, on to the second. - The Islanders continued their conservative play in the second period but did manage to pick up their shots on goal. But at no point did the Leafs give you the thought that they were not in control. At 7:57 Shawn Bates was called for diving after he received a tug from behind and went down too easily. Newly acquired Leaf Owen Nolan gained the puck behind the Islanders net and tried to lob the puck back to the point for a shot. Michael Peca waved his stick at the puck as it sailed by and got a piece on it but not enough. Glen Wesley, another recently acquired Leaf, quickly sent it back in on net where Mats Sundin tried to deflect it in. The puck rebounded out to Nolan who had an open net to score his 26th goal of the season at 9:24 of the second period to put Toronto up 2-0. Soon after the goal there was a long pause due to the fact that a small piece of glass on a camera window had broken off and they decided finally to just put tape over it until they could replace the window between periods. The pause didn't really do anything to swing any of the momentum to the Isles favor. Toronto out shot the Isles in the period 13-10 and overall led 21-11. - 2:39 into the third period Kenny Jonsson was assessed an obstruction hooking penalty and things were not looking good for the Isles. They killed the penalty off and the Islanders began to show signs that they were changing from their conservative style of play. At 6:57 Peca won a faceoff high in the Toronto zone and got the puck back to Aucoin. Adrian faked a shot towards the net and then skated into the high middle slot. He backhanded a hard shot in on an unscreened Belfour. The Toronto goaltender went down to make the save but the puck hit his pad and ricocheted between his legs and into the net for the Isles first goal in 115:45 stretching back to Roman Hamrlik's third period power play goal in Saturday night's 5-2 win. With the Islanders now down 2-1 they picked up their play as they could smell at least gaining a point. At 8:55 Arron Asham would come out of a faceoff in the neutral with a clean lane down the right wing side. As he broke in on Belfour, Asham wound up and faked taking the shot. He took another stride and pinpointed a hard snapshot that he threaded between Blefour's glove and the top right hand corner. The puck ricocheted around in the net and Asham's unassisted goal tied the game up at 2-2. Now the Isles had the Leafs back on their heels and actually looked like they might take over the game. But at the 10 minute mark the Islanders took a horrible too many men on the ice bench penalty. At 1:24 into the penalty Robert Reichel of the Leafs pushed the puck up to Nolan moving down the right wing side in deep once again and he was able to chip a wrist shot over the glove of DiPietro for his second power play goal of the game and 27th of the season to make it 3-2 Leafs at 11:24. Now with the Islanders pressing to get that tie back, Asham sent the puck into the Leafs zone with less then 3 minutes remaining in the game. Kvasha skated in and gained possession of the puck, whipping it around the boards and finding Janne Niinimaa along the boards. Niinimaa held the puck, looking for an open man. Finally he just sent it in on net. That was when Scatchard turned around and reached his stick out. The puck redirected off his blade and traveled clean threw Belfour's 5-hole for a 3-3 tie at 17:25 of the third period. But the action was not over yet. Michael Peca in the last minute of regulation made a spectacular defensive play that saved the point for the Islanders as he reached back to stop Mats Sundin on the backcheck from sweeping the puck into a wide open net after DiPietro had left a rebound in front. The Isles out shot the Leafs in the third 8-5 and overall the Leafs led 26-19. - The OT session was one of the most exciting the Isles have played in all season. And something these two teams haven't seen in a long time against each other. In 7 playoff games last April not one went to OT. Rick DiPietro had to be spectacular in OT after Nolan received a pass down the left wing side and was looking for the game winning hat trick goal. But DiPietro made the big time pad save. Then, with 20 seconds remaining Sundin had a good chance in front of DiPietro where he got two point blank shots off. DiPietro was huge on both saves. Then he had to make a final glove rising save when Sundin tried to wrap around the net with the third shot. Play was back and forth for the entire extra session, but the Islanders best chance did not come until there was 4 seconds remaining on the clock. The puck was thrown in on the net but it didn't reach and deflected into the slot off a skate. Suddenly the puck was just sitting there in the slot with Scatchard bearing down on it. Scatch blasted the shot in on net, but Belfour came up huge for the Leafs and made the stop. The Islanders were most pleased to come out of this one with a point and their record is now 32-29-10-2, 76 points. Good for 8th in the East.
More stats: The Islanders are 21-13-5-2 in their last 41 games....The Isles are 3-5-2-0 in the month of March....The Isles are still .500 at 14-14-6-2 on the road....The Isles season series against Toronto is now 1-1-1-0. Previous result: Islanders won 4-2 at NVMC on December 6th, Leafs won 5-2 February 25th at the Air Canada Centre. The final game of the season series will take place March 28th at the NVMC....Toronto is now 39-26-6-2, 86 points. They seem pretty much locked into the 5th seed in the East as they are 5 points behind the Flyers and 5 points ahead of the Caps....The Isles are 8-7-5-0 in their last 20 games....The Isles are 13-11-5-0 in their last 29 games....The Islanders are an outstanding 20-5-4-2 in games when Michael Peca records a point....The Isles are 6-6-5-0 in their last 17 games....The Isles are 3-6-4 in their last 13 games....The Isles have won only 2 of their last 9 games....The Isles are 1-1-2-0 in games following games against the Rangers this season....The Isles are 6-0-1-0 in games following games where they've been shutout this season. Next Up: The Islanders finally finish up this 6 game road trip with an all important battle at the Molson Centre with the Montreal Canadiens. The Isles are currently 2-2-1-0 on the trip so this game will also decide if it will be a winning trip or not. With the Islanders 5 points up on the Canadiens and holding a game at hand, a win could all but eliminate Montreal from any hopes of catching the Islanders. Montreal is 27-31-8-8, 70 points. Good for 10th in the East. The season series for the Isles against the Habs this season is 2-1-0-0. This is the last meeting. Previous results: The Isles lost at the Molson Centre 3-0 November 7th, and defeated Montreal at NVMC twice by 3-1 scores December 23rd and January 30th. Montreal is on a current 5 game home stand. They've lost the first two games so far. The Standings: the playoff race....
In House Problems?: VERRRY interesting events took place in the warmup to last night's game. Apparently, Blake had taken a high shot on net and may have hit defenseman Roman Hamrlik up high. Hamrlik was not wearing a helmet during the warmups. As Blake skated back next to captain Michael Peca in line he seemed to be smiling about something. Suddenly that smile changed to a serious face as he pointed to his stick and said something out loud to Hamrlik. That was when Roman skated over to Blake and punched him hard in the shoulder. Hamrlik skated off and left Blake alone after that. Both he and Peca didn't really make anything of it from there. It seemed to be forgotten. I only mention this incident because it was noteworthy of course of more because there have been rumors this season that Blake is possibly not liked by some of his teammates. Possibly because he has become a bit of a puck hog. But I really doubt this is true. I really believe his teammates appreciate him and while he may be a bit of a puck hog at times, he does get the job done and works 110% every shift. As long as he helps the team win, whatever problems there may be are something that can be dealt with and is not detrimental to the team. Commentary: We saw two different Islander teams tonight. During the first two periods the Islanders played too conservative, as they did against the Rangers which resulted in a loss. But the Isles pretty much ditched that game plan in the third period and things got exciting. You have to be extremely pleased as an Islander fan to see the team come back and gain this point, tying the game twice in the third period when for the first two periods it seemed headed to possibly another shutout. But the point puts the Isles up 6 points on the Rangers and Montreal instead of five is just a huge huge point. To see some of these guys come up big for the team, like Arron Asham, was just a great thing to see. The finish was very exciting. BUT, if the Islanders did not take that bench minor in the third, they probably would have won this game. That bothers me. They had climbed back into the tie, had all the momentum and for the first time in the game had the Leafs on their heels. They need to stop taking these bench minors and learn how to change players without any problems. Now the Isles need to win in Montreal and come back home off this road trip with a winning record. For the past two seasons the Isles have done well in their long road trips that included trips out West. When they went out for their 3 game road trip in California last month they were 1-1-1-0 going into the last game in San Jose and won that game 3-0 to gain the winning road trip. They also returned over .500 on both their long road trips last season. And with so much at stake, they hold their fate in their own hands. Defeating Montreal could go a long way in solidifying the Isles playoff hopes and we can just about end the hopes of Both Montreal and the Rangers.
Report Card: Alexei Yashin: Was a +1 and recorded 2 shots on goal. Both coming early in the third period. He's averaging only about 13 minutes a game. Is Yashin just having a poor season? Or is their a problem between him and coach Laviolette? There have been some rumors lately. There are some who would say why would you bench your best player when you should play him out of a slump? Others believe Yashin should perform no matter how much ice time he gets. Randy Robitaille: Had 1 shot on goal and after registering a point in each of his first two games as an Islander he has gone scoreless in his last three. Shawn Bates: Did not register a shot on goal. Almost did in the dying seconds of the game when he and Scatchard broke in on a two on one. But Sctach's pass was to far ahead of the diving Bates. Shawn was penalized in the second period for diving when he was tugged from behind and deemed to have gone down to easily. Not something that will endear itself to the coaching staff. But Bates is not normally a diver. He seemed embarrassed about it later on the bench. Mark Parrish: Was a +1 with 1 shot on goal. He's been playing a little bit better, but Laviolette said recently that he's waiting for Parrish to go on one of his hot streaks. Mark has only scored twice in his last 21 games. Dave Scatchard: Led the Islanders in shots on goal with 5. He was a +1 and was clearly the Islanders best player last night. Scatchard's goal was huge with 2:35 remaining in the game as he managed to redirect a Janne Niinimaa play on net that tied the game for the Isles 3-3 and earned them the point. It was Scatchard's 2nd career game tying goal as an Islander. As an Islander he now has 69 goals which ties him with Mark Parrish among active Islanders. Claude Lapointe held the mark with 76 before he was traded to Philadelphia. Jason Wiemer: Had one shot on goal. For about 3 quarters of the game the Islanders coaching staff reunited Wiemer with the line of Scatchard and Blake to get some offense going. Jason Blake: Had 4 shots on goal and was a +1. Steve Webb: Did get a good hit on Darcy Tucker. Was called for roughing late in the second period when he hit a player into the boards. This was a bad call because he threw a clean hit along the boards and his back was to the referee who called the penalty. To me, the official Bill Mccreary assumed there was a violation made, when there was not. Arron Asham: Was a +1 with 2 shots on goal. What can you say about the goal he scored. Awesome! He skated in, faked the shot, stepped one more stride and rooked the puck into a small targeted area over the glove of Ed Belfour. What a goal scorers goal. With goals like that it's surprising that Asham only has 11. With some more experience he could become a 20 goal scorer in the future. Remember, this is his first full season in the NHL. What a deal Mike Milbury made last summer when he acquired Asham for Mariusz Czerkawski. Oleg Kvasha: Recorded 2 shots on goal, including the phantom shot in the first period that saw the Islanders out shot 8-1. Kvasha led the Islanders at a +2, he was on the ice for the Islanders 2nd and 3rd goals, both tying goals. He assisted on the game tying goal by getting the puck around the boards to Janne Niinimaa after skating in and retrieving an Asham dump in. Michael Peca: Was a +1 and had 2 shots on goal. Peca assisted on Adrian Aucoin's goal that made it 2-1 and cut Toronto's lead in half by winning the faceoff back to the point. Peca also made a huge game saving defensive play when he stopped Mats Sundin from slam dunking the puck into a wide open net in the last minute of the game. Mattias Weinhandl: Was the only Islander forward who was a minus last night at -1. After his big game against the Senators Weinhandl has been quiet the last few games. And of course Laviolette monitors his ice time depending on the opponent and situation. Ahhh, the life of a rookie. Justin Mapletoft: Was sent back to
Bridgeport Sunday when Jason Wiemer was able to return to the lineup. But
apparently he may have been recalled Monday because Wiemer was
questionable with a twisted knee suffered Saturday night in the Isles 5-2
win in Ottawa. Wiemer was able to go against the Rangers Monday night, so
I assume if Mapletoft was recalled he was returned Tuesday. Defense: Roman Hamrlik: Played just over 27 minutes and was a +1. Adrian Aucoin: Played over 27 minutes and was a +1. He recorded 2 shots on goal, both in the third period. One of them went in off a backhand shot that was unscreened. This made up for another horrible clearing attempt in the first period by Aucoin that led to the Leafs taking a 1-0 lead. Aucoin was guilty of the same mistake in the Ranger game that led to a 1-0 loss. But last night his goal sparked the Isles comeback. Janne Niinimaa: Played 24 minutes and was a +1 in the game. He made a great play on the final game tying goal. He showed poise and patience, waited before sending the puck on the net and Scatchard redirected it in. Niinimaa has recorded 3 assists in his 4 games as an Islander. Eric Cairns: Played over 13 minutes. Was the only Islander defenseman with a minus at -1. Had no physical confrontations with any of the Leaf players that like to mix it up. It seems like the rivalry has died down just a little as both teams were just worried about gaining the two points. The emotions were not as high as in past games. Kenny Jonsson: Played over 25 minutes and was a +1. Radek Martinek: Was a healthy scratch for the 4th straight game. Mattias Timander:
Played just under 13 minutes. Laviolette changed up the defense pairing
last night. Timander skated with Hamrlik while Cairns was with Niinimaa
for the night. Jonsson and Aucoin remained together. Goal: Rick DiPietro: The last time Garth Snow started on back to back nights he got shelled. So Laviolette this time went with DiPietro. Rick had a pretty strong game, with the usual moments of holding your breath. He still could be better, but when the Isles really needed him to perform DiPietro did just that and made some spectacular saves in the final minutes and in the OT session. From this point on DiPietro will probably play at the most every third game. Of other note, DiPietro is obviously a threat with the puck as far as being a third d-man and clearing the zone. It can also cause mistakes. We all know he has worked on this. But his play when he remains in the net, particularly when the puck is around the net has really improved dramatically. Credit this to goaltending coach Billy Smith, who has both DiPietro and Snow utilizing the poke check more than any other goaltenders in the NHL.
Coaches Well, the bench minor in the third may have killed our chances for the win and another point. Almost cost us any points. The Islanders have to do something to stop taking these bad penalties, particularly the too many men on the ice penalties. You could blame the coaching staff for this lack of discipline. Pretty good decision to start DiPietro. Lavvy has been shaking the lines up a lot. Last night he changed up the defense pairings. Eventually though he winds up back with the lines that have pretty much gotten it done over this season and last. Special Teams The Islanders PP, ranked 20th in the NHL, went 0-3 on the night. After a promising period where the power play improved and went 4 for 12 starting in Vancouver over a 3 game stretch, the power play has now fizzled in the last two games going 0 for 9. The PK, ranked 12th, went a 4-6, giving up 2 power play goals to Owen Nolan.
Lineups: ISLANDERS DEFENSEMEN GOALTENDERS MAPLE LEAFS DEFENSEMEN GOALTENDERS
Power-play Conversions:
NYI - 0 of 3, TOR - 2 of 6.
IslesInfo Pregame Preview Preview Isles vs. Leafs Mar 18: The Islanders get no time to rest following their disappointing 1-0 loss to the crosstown rival NY Rangers. Tonight they are in Toronto to face their Canadian rivals, the Leafs. Isles vs. Leafs Preview: The Islanders continue to cling onto the eighth and final playoff spot in the East, despite Monday's 1-0 loss to the New York Rangers. The Islanders are three points behind the seventh-place Boston Bruins and five ahead of the Rangers and Montreal Canadiens. Garth Snow made 28 saves for the Islanders, who have lost five of seven (2-5-0). "They threw everything they had at us,'' Islanders captain Michael Peca said. "Garth Snow was the only one who matched the desperation of the New York Rangers.'' What's at Stake?: the playoff race...
From One Rivalry to Another The Leafs have just three wins in their past nine games following a 1-0 victory against the Canucks Saturday night, but things are turning around. After a four-game winless streak earlier in the month, the Leafs have earned five points in their past three. Notes: Ed Belfour continues to prove his worth to the Toronto Maple Leafs - and the rest of the NHL. Belfour and the Maple Leafs look to strengthen their hold on the fifth spot in the Eastern Conference when they take on the New York Islanders at the Air Canada Center. Belfour made 23 saves for his seventh shutout of the season in Saturday's 1-0 win over the Northwest Division-leading Vancouver Canucks. "I was seeing the puck well and feeling strong and I had a few breaks too so it was a nice win,'' Belfour said. After spending five seasons with the Dallas Stars, during which he won a Stanley Cup in 1999 and reached the finals in 2000, Belfour became a free agent last season as the Stars turned to youth in goalie Marty Turco. Toronto felt Belfour could help deliver its first Cup since 1967 and signed the 37-year-old to a two-year, $13.5-million contract. He has responded by turning in one of the best seasons of his career. His 32 victories and .922 save percentage are third in the league, his seven shutouts tie him for third, and his 2.27 goals-against average ranks eighth. "Eddie was stellar again like he has been all year,'' Toronto defenseman Bryan McCabe said after Saturday's victory. "He's been our MVP and (Saturday) was no different.'' Belfour has helped Toronto jump into fifth in the East, six points behind the fourth-place Philadelphia Flyers and four ahead of the sixth-place Washington Capitals.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Lets Go Isles! |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1998-2003 Tom Mascioli
