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ISLES INFO |
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ISLES INFO |
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IslesInfo Comments: The Islanders got a boost into the lineup tonight as Shawn Bates made his return after missing the last 8 games with a sore groin strain. At the same time, Brad Isbister was unable to go as his ankle is still hampering him. The Islanders decided to re-insert Bates slowly, placing him on the fourth line with Oleg Kvasha and rookie Trent Hunter. This line was excellent all night long and sparked the Islanders early on, giving them 4 solid lines that can score. Right from his first shift, you can tell much maligned Kvasha was set to have a good night. It took until 15:22 for the Islanders to get on the board with a 1-0 lead. Hunter cycled the puck along the corner boards before Kvasha stepped in to retrieve the loose puck. Oleg, already with a couple good shots on goal in the game, wielded around and sent the puck to the net right on the doorstep to Bates. Shawn excepted the pass and directed the puck to the other side of the goalmouth around Jean-Sebastien Aubin, making the start for the injured Johan Hedberg. Bates swung around quickly and banged his own pass into the net for his 7th of the season, immediately contributing upon his return from the sidelines. It was his first goal since December 14th in Tampa Bay. For Kvasha, the assist was only his 4th point of the season, and first point since November 16th in Pittsburgh. Hunter recorded his first career NHL regular season point. Jason Blake had a couple of excellent chances to put the Islanders up 2-0 late in the first period. On one occasion he broke in on a two on one only to be stopped by Aubin. On the second opportunity, Blake would skate through just above the crease causing a rebound. With Aubin down, Blake had an open net to backhand the puck into. But it was bouncing and Blake could not get off a strong shot before Aubin dived onto the weak shot. The Islanders out shot Pittsburgh 13-7 in the first and killed off their 26th straight penalty early on when Alexei Yashin was called off for hooking. - The second period would turn out to be a wild one, with the Isles accumulating 17 shots, while the Penguins would tally 16. Chris Osgood would collect a delay of game penalty just 1:25 in when he shot the puck over the glass attempting to clear the puck out of the zone off the glass. Pittsburgh would end the Isles PK streak and tie the game up at 1-1 when none other than Mario Lemieux would score his 20th of the season on the extra man at 2:14. The Penguins, playing 5 forwards all night on the powerplay, would have a shot by Martin Straka up high miss the net and hit the backboards only to bounce back out very hard to Lemieux to the left of the net. He shot it in at a sharp angle to notch his 50th goal all-time against the Islanders. Luckily for the Islanders, just 17 seconds later, at 2:31, they were right back up by one as they took a 2-1 lead. Kudos to the coaching staff for realizing the good play of the fourth line and especially Kvasha. After more good forecheck by linemate Hunter, Kvasha would grab the puck down low in the left corner and wheel a hard shot on net that Aubin had trouble handling. The puck powered it's way through the goaltender and eventually trickled over the goal line before Aubin could reach it with a second effort. The goal was just Kvasha's 2nd of the season. His first game back in that game in Pittsburgh on November 16th. So far he had recorded a goal and an assist in this game, while Hunter recorded 2 assists. The Islanders broke the game open at 5:45 when Dave Scatchard would score his 11th of the season to make it 3-1. Roman Hamrlik would keep the puck in the Pittsburgh end and send in a shot on Aubin. Blake would grab the rebound to the left of the net and skate it around the back before finding Scatchard skating out in front. Scatchard's stick was already cocked for the blast and he took a shot as if he wanted to put it through the net. Aubin had absolutely no chance. Less than 2 minutes later, at 7:25, the Islanders would jump ahead 4-1 on a goal by the Islanders resident sniper Mark Parrish. Michael Peca sent in a soft shot on Aubin from outside the blueline. Aubin put the puck right back out in the slot where Arron Asham jumped on it. Asham stepped in and made a pretty pass across the slot to Parrish, who finished it by backhanding his 18th of the season into the open side of the net. Following the goal Lemieux left the game for Pittsburgh with what would be classified later as a strained groin. The Islanders just kept rolling along, taking a 5-1 lead at 14:37. Once again Hamrlik would receive a drop pass along the right side boards from Blake before releasing a blast on net. Aubin made the initial save but Scatchard was right there in the slot to smack it into the open net for his second of the game and 12th of the season. Hamrlik and Blake assisted on both of Scatchard's two goals in the period. Jason Wiemer would get called for hooking at 17:55. The Penguins would get one at 19:55, with the powerplay over, to make it 5-2 with 5 seconds remaining in the second. Big Steve McKenna would distract Osgood in front after stopping a shot by Straka from the point. Ozzie dropped the puck and before he could get his glove on it, McKenna deposited his 5th goal of the season. But it was a little too late even then for Pittsburgh. - In the third period, the Islanders extended their lead to 6-2 just 1:17 in. Scatchard relayed the puck up the right side boards to the speedy Blake. As Blake got by the defenseman, he checked back into the slot twice swiveling his head all the way. It's amazing that he can play at such a high speed. Upon reaching the corner, he shoveled a backhand pass diagonally into the slot that must have went through the feet of about 3 Penguin players right onto Scatchard's waiting stick. Scatch snapped the hard shot past Aubin's right side for his 13th goal of the season and first career NHL hat trick. He has had 7 two goal games in the NHL up to this point but never a hat trick. This was also the second straight home game with an Islander hat trick. Parrish had one against Boston on hat night last Friday night. Radek Martinek also assisted on Scatchard's third goal. 10 different players registered a point for the Islanders. The Penguins would get one last goal and make it a 6-3 game when Ville Niemenen would get his 6th of the season off a goal post rebound by Randy Robitaille at 14:57. The Islanders improved to 11-10-2 at home, over .500. Overall they are now 18-16-5-1 and take over 8th place in the Eastern Conference, finally holding a playoff position.
More stats: The Islanders are 7-1-1-1 in their last 10 games. Chris Osgood won his 15th game of the season and is now 5 games over .500. The season series against Pittsburgh stands at 3-0-0-1 for the Isles. The Islanders won the first two games in Pittsburgh 3-2 on November 16th and 6-3 back on December 7th. They lost in OT in the first of a home and home in Pittsburgh January 4th, 3-2. As a team, the Islanders have a 7 game point scoring streak....Jason Blake posted a career high 3 assists in the game....Trent Hunter, with his first NHL regular season points also got his first multiple point game with 2 assists playing on the fourth line....The Islanders have 14 goals in their last two home games....Osgood has a 6 game winning streak and is unbeaten in the last 8, not counting the game in Pittsburgh on the 4th where he was yanked in favor of Garth Snow, who ended up with the decision....Dick Tarnstrom missed the game for Pittsburgh after hurting his hamstring in the previous game in Pittsburgh....Lemieux apparently strained his groin while making a check along the boards on Mark Parrish. He tried to go back out but quickly went to the bench following a faceoff before Parrish scored. He then went to the Pittsburgh locker room. Next Up: The Isles play the second of a three game homestand against the Philadelphia Flyers. Firmly etched in the Islander players minds is a 6-2 drubbing at home against the Flyers on October 26th in which Osgood allowed 2 goals within the first 31 seconds of the game. Possibly the lowest point of the season for the Isles. The Islanders are 9 points behind the Flyers in the division and conference and need to close ground on them. Avenging that loss would be a perfect place to start. The Standings: The Islanders moved into 8th in the Eastern Conference with 42 points, tied in points with Pittsburgh but ahead on the virtue of one more win. Washington(43) is only one point ahead of the Isles for 7th place. The Isles are 5 points behind Toronto(47) and Boston(47) for 6th and 5th place respectively. Toronto came back to win last night 5-2 against the B's. New Jersey(49) defeated Montreal(41) 3-2 last night and remain 7 points ahead of the Isles. Carolina(41) skated to a 3-3 tie in Atlanta. The Islanders are now 2 points ahead of Florida(40) and 5 points ahead of the Rangers(37) with 4 games at hand. The Rangers host Carolina tonight while Florida hosts Detroit, who failed to defeat Tampa Bay last night and fell 1-0. Tampa Bay(44) is only 2 points ahead of the Islanders but are in third place in the conference because they lead the Southeast division. Funny Moments: Oleg Kvasha, perhaps
because of his english, said some funny things during a second
intermission interview. When he was commended for playing well and getting
some powerplay time because of it, he remarked "yeah, but it was only
about 10 seconds." Deb Kaufmann, the interviewer, said something like
yeah but who's counting. And Kvasha replied "that's me I guess."
I doubt he meant anything selfish by it. It's not a bad thing for him to
want more ice time. He just has to earn it....Dave Scatchard was named the
first star of the game. As he was coming out to celebrate it to the fans
following the game someone, for the second straight game, threw a sombrero
on the ice. This time right in front of the players. Friday night someone
threw one out when Mark Parrish scored his hat trick. Of course you may
remember this being a trend when Mike Bossy played for the Islanders. It
has almost become like the Islanders version of the Octopus in Detroit.
Though at different times of the game with a different effect. But anyway,
Scatchard picked up the sombrero and tried to put it on over his helmet,
showing his sense of humor. Of course it didn't fit. In fact, he even
tried to put it on during a post game interview with Deb Kauffman, but it
didn't fit over his New York Islander baseball cap either. He said I guess
I have a big head. Deb tried it on and remarked jokingly that she was the
one who through it out on the ice. Kvasha was named the game's second star
and Blake the third star....Eric Cairns was put out on the powerplay with
less than 2 minutes remaining in the game as a reward for his steady play.
The Islanders could not clear their own end though so Cairns ended up
staying out there WAY longer then he was suppose to. He was dog tired by
the final buzzer. It seemed as though the coaching staff was having some
fun with him because they made him stay out there a couple of times when
he tried to come to the bench. It wouldn't have been funny if Pittsburgh
had scored but they never came close. Cairns looked like he was laughing
on the ice and started congratulating Ozzie before the final buzzer. The
Islanders had possession behind their own net so everything was ok by that
point as they just chewed the remaining seconds off the clock. Fight Card: Nothing tonight, not even a rematch between Eric Cairns and Steve McKenna. Commentary: The Islanders are unbeatable right now at home! If only they had played this way right from the start of the season they would be undefeated at home. With the current atmosphere at home right now, Fort Neverlose is back in FULL FORCE! As long as we just keep getting points in every game now we will be fine. Hopefully we will start separating ourselves from the pack just trying to battle for the playoffs and give us a cushion late in the season when we start going on the road and out West. The Islanders lines last night were gelling from the top man down, although the #1 line with Yashin could be a bit better. But all 4 lines can score. The Islanders are good defensively right now, but they are always looking to score, even when they are killing penalties. I personally look back at that 3-0 shutout against Carolina as our turning point of the season. They lose that game and the Isles are in big trouble. Now you gotta love this team. And their play has caused a lot of the trade rumors to die down. Now we got to kick Philly's asses Thursday night.
Report Card: Brad Isbister: Sat out last night with that sore ankle. I'm sure he is day to day right now and will be re-evaluated for Thursday night's game. But the way he has been skating as of late I doubt he will be in there Thursday night. He needs to rest it more. But he should be worried with his position on the team, especially after last night. He does bring something to the team. Problem is he just doesn't do it consistently. He has not registered a point in 9 games. Alexei Yashin: Everyone is going offensively right now except the most talented offensive player on the team. He played well at times last night but had a few really good chances to burry the puck into the net or set something up. But unfortunately nothing. The Isles are waiting for him to get on a hot streak. Last night he had only 2 shots on goal, but was luckily even in plus/minus. A good sign since he is a -16 overall, far worse than any other player on the team. But a bad sign because he is hardly ever a plus. Shawn Bates: After missing 8 games with a sore groin strain, Bates jumps back in at limited duty and catapults the Islanders to a win by scoring the first goal of the game on a hot looking fourth line. Bates was flanked by rookie Trent Hunter and Oleg Kvasha. Mark Parrish: Has 10 goals in his last 11 games after notching his 18th of the season, the eventual game winning goal. He has 5 goals in his last 3 games. Dave Scatchard: A great guy and it was nice to see him record his first career hat trick. He notched his 11th, 12th and 13th of the season, second most on the team now. All three goals were power shots, especially the first one where it seemed like he was trying to blast it through the netting. Jason Wiemer: Scatch gets 3 goals, Blake gets 3 assists and Wiemer gets nothing. But that doesn't mean he wasn't a force on the third line. Wiemer does so much more than score. His presence on that line opens up the ice for Scatchard and Blake to get the offense going. His strength is evident on every shift. Jason Blake: Career high 3 assist game. The speed at which he plays the game is absolutely amazing. And it is amazing watching how he has developed into an offensive threat for the Islanders playing on the third line instead of the fourth. Claude Lapointe: Played well defensively. Commented after the game that hopefully he and Yashin can connect a few times and gel with him getting time on the top line. Steve Webb: Sat out his fifth game with chronic back spasms. Arron Asham: Had an excellent game. His pass to set up Parrish for the goal was such a smart play. Again, I have to say...how does that trade look now? You really have to give Mike Milbury credit on this one. As well as coach Peter Laviolette. He has turned fourth line players like Shawn Bates and Arron Asham into top line scoring threats. Oleg Kvasha: His best game of the season by far! A goal and an assist. And the goal was a big one too, because it was only 17 seconds after Pittsburgh tied it and it killed any momentum the Penguins might have been looking for by keeping the Isles on top. Oleg was skating, handling the puck extremely well. As much as we get on him and beg at times for the Isles to get rid of him, we all know the type of skill he has. Sometimes it seems like he is loafing on the ice, but that may just be his style. But when you don't get points it is magnified and nobody wants a player like that. But when Kvasha is on, the fans notice it like last night, as there was a buzz everytime he had the puck. Islander fans WANT to see him work his magic. He can be an exciting player. He just has to gain the confidence to do so. Something that with Kvasha is a very fragile thing. Michael Peca: Notched an assist last night on the Parrish goal. Is always solid physically. Mattias Weinhandl: The chemistry between he and Yashin has cooled down a bit, but they both could strike at any moment. A good threat for the Islanders to have. Is scoreless in his last two. Eric Godard: Scratched in favor of Trent Hunter. Trent Hunter: The best game of his NHL career, discounting last seasons playoffs when he came up and scored a goal in game 6 against Toronto. Hunter notched assists on the Islanders first 2 goals playing with Kvasha and Bates. It was his first 2 NHL regular season points and first career multiple point game. Would love to see more of this play and this line. Defense: Roman Hamrlik: Two assists last night. Playing great right now. Looked to be bothered a little bit by that sore shoulder he has but it's not that bad where he'll miss any time thankfully. Adrian Aucoin: Played well last night but for a couple of shifted seemed to struggle. He may have had a bad edge on his skate blade because he was falling all over the place. Eric Cairns: Had a very good defensive performance. The Islanders rewarded him by putting him out on the powerplay with less than 2 minutes to play. Kenny Jonsson: Was solid defensively last night. With the addition of Timander having made the Islanders defensive depth that much stronger, Jonsson doesn't always have to stand out anymore. But he always plays a smart game. Radek Martinek: Recorded an assist on Scatchard's hat trick goal. As remarked over the last couple of months, Martinek has regained his form and is an asset now on the blueline once again for the Isles. Mattias Timander: Always strong defensively and like I said, has given the Islanders much needed depth and strength on the blueline. Goal: Chris Osgood: Ozzie has been awesome during this stretch. He is on a 6 game winning streak and 8 game unbeaten streak, 5 games over .500 now as well. He may not get the start Thursday night against Philly as Garth Snow usually gets the nod most nights against his former team. Though Ozzie may want revenge from that October game where he gave up 2 goals in the first 31 seconds. But tonight he kept the Penguins away from taking the early lead by making some nice saves and had been the backbone the Isles have needed to get back into the playoff race.
Coaches Like I said, give Laviolette some credit for the work he has done over the last two years by getting great production out of Shawn Bates and Arron Asham. The decision to keep Cairns out on practically the entire 2 minute powerplay at the end of the game was a bit funny but gladly did not backfire. Nothing to be too picky about. And big time kudos goes out to Greg Cronin, who runs the Isles PK behind the scenes. Cronin is in his 5th season with the Islanders and has developed into a valuable asset for the club. He studies the penalty kill, habits as well as the opposing teams. Not a lot of fans know this but he is a huge voice in the locker room when needed. He bleeds Islander blue and that is a good thing. Obviously he is the longest tenured coach on the staff. You don't see him behind the bench. He usually sits up high in his own box at the Coliseum, observing from a different level. But he always has a voice with the team and takes pride in the job he does. Special Teams The Islanders powerplay ranks 23rd in the NHL. They only had 2 chances against Pittsburgh going 0-2. The PK went 2-3. They killed off their 26th straight, but allowed one to Mario Lemieux on a play that probably very few players could make. The Isles can take solace in the fact that the PK does not give up any goals unless it's an odd bounce or a fluke play. Pittsburgh does hold the #1 powerplay unit thanks in large part of course to Lemieux. The Isles PK is still ranked #11.
Scatchard Tallies Hat Trick as Hot Islanders Move Up in East
Lineups: ISLANDERS DEFENSEMEN GOALTENDERS PITTSBURGH PENGUINS DEFENSEMEN GOALTENDERS
Power-play Conversions:
PIT - 1 of 3, NYI - 0 of 2.
IslesInfo Pregame Preview Preview Isles Look to Take Series Jan 7: The Isles had to settle for one point Saturday night in Pittsburgh after having their 5 game winning streak snapped. But they took solace in coming from behind and gaining yet another point in the standing. Tonight they look to take the series. Isles vs. Penguins Preview: The New York Islanders have slowly put themselves back in position to make a run at an Eastern Conference playoff berth. The Islanders will try to earn at least one point for the seventh straight game when they play the back end of a home-and-home series with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Despite Mark Parrish's team-leading 17th goal, the Islanders had their five-game winning streak snapped with Saturday's 3-2 overtime loss at Pittsburgh. However, by rallying from a two-goal deficit and forcing the extra session, the Islanders have now earned at least one point in six straight games and eight of nine overall. On the strength of a 12-5-4-1 run, the Islanders have climbed within two points of a playoff spot with a little more than half the season remaining. The run has all but wiped out their 3-9-1 start. Two of the main reasons for the Islanders' current stretch of solid play has been their penalty killing and goaltending. New York has killed 25 straight penalties and 61 of the last 62 to move up to 11th in the league overall. Chris Osgood had stopped 190 of 201 shots for a .945 save percentage during a personal seven-game unbeaten streak (5-0-2) before being pulled at the end of the first period Saturday after allowing two goals on 10 shots. What's at Stake?: With a win by the Islanders tonight, they can win the home and home series with 3 points. By defeating Pittsburgh(42-points), current holders of 8th place, coupled with a loss by Tampa Bay(42-points) at home against Detroit and Montreal(41-points) in New Jersey, the Islanders could jump over three teams into 7th place in the Eastern Conference. The Isles would ties Pittsburgh and Tampa Bay in points, by move ahead of them by virtue of wins. Carolina, tied with the Islanders in points with 40, will be in Atlanta tonight. Toronto, 5 points ahead of the Isles for 6th, will host the slumping Boston Bruins tonight. Tidbits: The Islanders will look to go over .500 at home tonight. They are 10-10-2 so far this season....Factual analogy by coach Laviolette yesterday. After tonight, one of these two teams will be in a playoff position and the other will not....Chris Osgood will probably get the start tonight. He is undefeated in his last five, 4-0-1, at home. He's 5-8-1 all-time against Pittsburgh.
Can Isles Shut Down Mario? The Penguins come to Nassau Coliseum tonight for the first time this season after three visits by the Islanders to the Mellon Arena. Fans will get a chance to see perhaps the best player in the game, Mario Lemieux. But they'd prefer to see him stay quiet.
Notes: The Penguins, who sit two points ahead of the Islanders in the Atlantic Division, are 6-1-0-1 following a 10-game winless streak (0-9-0-1). However, Pittsburgh is winning without much production from its normally potent power play. The top-ranked unit in the league has gone just 2-for-22 with the man-advantage in five games since going 2-for-4 in a 6-1 win over the New York Rangers on Dec. 26. Pittsburgh failed on its lone power-play chance on Saturday, but Martin Straka provided the Penguins with the extra point by scoring 42 seconds into overtime on a 2-on-1 break. "We really needed these points against the Islanders,'' Pittsburgh center Kent Manderville said. "You hate to give up a 2-0 lead, but it's nice the way we responded. We realize these two points are just as important as two points we get in March or April.''
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Lets Go Isles! |
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1998-2003 Tom Mascioli
