ISLANDERS 3, EDMONTON 1; Post-Game Plus/Minus
Quinn Hails JT; Bad DP rumor started on the www
9:27 pm - 
The Worst of the Web: In this era of tweets, here’s a reason for not having open practices.
Today’s morning skate was open to some school groups as part of a community program presented by the Islanders. As the students arrived, Rick DiPietro faced a series of shots from Rob Schremp. DiPietro ended the workout with a Pete Townshend-like flourish - by smashing his goalie stick over the crossbar.
This was immediately spread about the information stupidhighway as DiPietro messing up his hip and/or tweaking his knee. This blog received more than 20 emails about DiPietro’s “setback.”
According to an impeccable source, DiPietro did not re-injury himself. “There was a goalie stick that was not making as many saves as it should have,” said the source, “so it had to be dealt with.”
Point Blank stands by its projection from three months ago of “Thanksgivingish” for an NHL return for DiPietro.
*
Quinn and Tavares: Edmonton coach Pat Quinn saw the best of John Tavares when he coached the Islanders’ young star at last year’s World Junior Championships with gold medal-winning Team Canada. Here’s what the Oilers coach told Point Blank today about his experience with Tavares:
“What I learned in the few weeks I had coaching John is that he is a terrific young man who loves the game. As skilled as he is, he works hard at getting better. Some guys take their talents for granted, but not John.
“For someone who’s still a teenager, he’s incredibly wise about offensive play. He has beautiful hands as a goal scorer and he’s a deceptive skater. He gets everywhere he needs to go with no problem and he’s tough to knock off his feet when he’s determined to make a play.
“I found him to be such a smart player. As a defenseman, what he gives you visually…you think you have him but he gets by you. I saw him make plenty of talented young defensemen stutter. His hockey intelligence is at a level you just don’t see much from veterans, let alone a 19-year old.
“I’d say the Islanders, with John, are going to have a great goal scorer and a very good all-around hockey player for a long time.”
*
Hey kids…it’s time for that Islanders home game tradition - Post-Game Plus/Minus!
Plus: Brendan Witt - you cannot stop him, you can only hope to contain him.
Plus: Brendan Witt - like Ovechkin, what you want to do is make him work hard on defense, make him chase the puck so he doesn’t have the energy in the O zone.
Plus: Brendan Witt…on a serious note, just a good man. A few days ago, another Islanders hanger-on/ninny led him to believe this blogger was disrespectfully carving him up. So Brendan - not exactly a regular visitor to hockey blogs - asked me this morning about it man-to-man, saw the facts, got the truth, continued our friendly professional relationship…and promptly went out and shot the puck like his boy Sergei Gonchar. Now that’s some bad-ass secondary scoring.
Plus: The fans responding to Witt in the final minute of the game.
Plus: With the Islanders down 1-0 and looking like they were struggling to keep up, Sean Bergenheim plasters Patrick O’Sullivan with a big hit in the Oilers’ end. Less than a minute later, a forechecking Matt Moulson catches Edmonton sleeping and feeds Tavares to tie the game.
Minus: Tavares named the Islanders’ (Sponsor) Player of the Month for October. Like he’s not going to win a few dozen of these over the next decade. Like they couldn’t throw Matt Moulson a frickin’ bone. Fix!
(for dramatic effect, I have greatly exaggerated how much I care about the above)
Plus: If Andy Sutton keeps this up, I…I…well, I don’t know what to say. Cripes, the Islanders may have to offer him a contract extension. Nah, keep the big guy hungry. “Sutts is really turning the corner,” said Scott Gordon.
Plus: He didn’t score, but Jeff Tambellini continues to look like a different player. You know, a good NHL one.
Plus: Robert Nilsson, proving in living colour why his draft selection by the Islanders was an epic failure, proving once again why Garth Snow was smart to get his perimeter-loving buttocks off the roster the first time he had the chance. We’ll give Grebeshkov a pass tonight. He’s usually pretty good.
Plus: Dwayne Roloson looked like he loved every second of it, even the first period when he kept it close while under siege. Better still, after the game he acted like it was no big whoop. “It’s another victory. Doesn’t matter who we played,” said the goalie.
Plus: Can’t be a coincidence the Islanders have played their best hockey after Doug Weight returned to the lineup. Two even-strength assists tonight from the captain.
Plus: To the New York chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association, for successfully lobbying the NHL to convince the Islanders that distributing media notes to the, uh, media was a proper thing to do. The Islanders have not lost since.
Plus: Maybe it just felt that way with the home team winning, but sure was nice to hear some good ol’ guitar-driven, loud rock and roll pumped through the Coliseum speakers in warmups and during the game. Maybe Witt also took over as DJ.
Plus: For the second time in three nights, a visiting team came into the Coliseum with a Harlem Globetrotters routine - behind-the-pack passing, toe drags, fancy crap - only to fall victim to work ethic, execution and KISS hockey. If the Islanders can bottle it, there’s no reason why Go-Go Ball shouldn’t play well on the road.
Join in the Plus/Minus fun, comment on this post and talk about the game. This is an Election-free zone.
123 Responses to “ISLANDERS 3, EDMONTON 1; Post-Game Plus/Minus
Quinn Hails JT; Bad DP rumor started on the www”
Please Wait
Plus: closing out a 2 goal lead.
Plus - last Sunday i discovered that my schools radio station has a 1 hour islander talk radio show . I proceeded to be their first caller in show history and told them the islanders would finish dead last in the league .. We haven’t lost since .. i take full credit
big upps to the Witter , congrats on your first 2 goal game !
Plus: Is that our Islanders over .500? Well, golly, I think it is!
Who’s Taylor Hall?
plus: the isles fourth straight win can make me almost forget a.j. burnett’s terrible pitching tonight.
plus: we look like a good professional hockey team. howie said that tom renney said that we’re a playoff team this year. he might be right. the team is playing confident, smart, entertaining hockey.
faceoff wins! and how good/responsible is Frans in the defensive zone? Goalies playing as advertised.
Plus - Witt thinkin he was Bossy!..Lol
Plus- Witt Tellin everybody he could care less about the goals.
Plus- Suttons Play as of late and realizing he is bigger than most players.
Plus- The music I heard being played during the game. Old school rock and metal! Now just bring back R and R to celebrate all these great goals.
Plus- 4 in a row
Plus- Tambs
Plus- The guys stickin up for each other.
Minus- Loooong road trip!
Minus- Yanks gettin there butt kicked!
Another great effort, this might be the best the Isles played in any of the games in the 4 game winning streak. They completely outplayed Edmonton for most of the night
Congrats to Witter for the 2 goals, and I love his post game interview. When asked about getting the hattrick he said he could care less; he isn’t the jokester but the guy means business when he goes out there. He is another great veteran leader for this team.
Keep it up, going for one for the thumb on Wednesday in Buffalo.
yea another plus is how good has Neilsen been? Solid in both zones
Plus - Tambs making it the onto the score sheet yet again. And Tambs leading the Islanders in shots yet again.
Plus - Witt playing like Denis Potvin..
Plus - Sutton playing like a defensive animal…
Plus - Tavares.. 11pts..one off the rookie lead..
Plus- DOminating the 3rd period with a lead.
Plus-3 goals, top 3 lines having a hand in each goal.
Plus- Rollie was awesome
Minus- None…4 in a row. They look so confident in all aspects!
What a difference a week makes
Plus - If the playoffs started tomorrow - we’d be playing there!
(sorry for the extra post)
Great game by the top line again. I could be wrong but I don’t think they have lost in regulation since being reunited. Dominated the play in the offensive zone all night and eventually all of their chances will be burried in the back of the net.
plus- we might have a playoff team
Great few games by the islanders. great to see them winning and playing with confidence. nice few plus’s on Witt CB, “you cannot stop him, you can only hope to contain him.” thats what happend.
Break these guys up!
Isle be damned… Isles win again great time to be an islanders fan
Great Win…Keep Em Coming…..Any way we can get Witt into the Yankees Pitching Staff tonite?
minus - going to opening night and the caps game and seeing two OT losses
minus - thinking i’m a jinx and must remain at home watching games
plus - watching quality hockey and getting my mind off the WS
plus - seeing KO have an edge to his game and not be afraid to get involved in the scrums
even - not wanting to get ahead of myself and say this team is a playoff team, the schedule thru the month will help get a better understanding on what this team really is
plus - IPB still in existence and being able to pose this stuff
LETS GO ISLANDERS!!
Plus - Another win in the books.
Minus - How many own-goals do we have now?
Plus - Great team effort from top to bottom.
So when Hunter is ready, who sits? My guess is Sim or Thompson.
Plus, Witt oozing enthusiasm
Plus. Witt possibly skating on the same line with JT and KO
Plus. JT ringing up another one
Plus. Andy Sutton throwing his weight (not Doug) around
+ Braveheart may catch a break here for a week or two along with Sim and Tambellini. thank god… it hurt to read some of that crap. (even though I was starting to lose faith myself)
+ Tambellini…I’ll admit I lost hope for Tambellini, but he’s starting to convince me. He’s always showed effort, but now he’s showing the kind of effort that utilizes what he can bring to this team.
+ Simgenhiem… they seem to be snake bitten… but it’s snake biting snake because they are playing kick ass hockey.
+ Sutton. When Sutton was with ATL he was one huge pylon… he’s played some good hockey in NY. People forget that he played a solid game under both coaches, but he just couldn’t stay healthy. 250 lb defensemen that can play “go-go” hockey don’t grow on trees(or swing from them) and we may have to wait a while for Hamonic. An extension wouldn’t be such a bad thing… Hopefully we don’t go through Jason Blake (and everybody else) II in July.
+ Weilsen… there is no doubt that the two best (polished) centers (well… one center and one showcaser) being back and healthy have made a HUGE difference.
- Comrie wasn’t around to see what this team could be like when EVERYBODY plays for 60 minutes. Maybe he’ll get off his Duff now.
-/+ the coli ice still sucks. The puck continues to bounce around like they were playing street hockey on cobblestones. It seems to be working out for the Isles because guys like Hemsky don’t end the night with four goals… but somebody is going to get hurt.
Plus, tonights Plus/Minus
Sumo I would honestly say Sim sits; while I like his effort, Hunter is almost the exact same player and is 3 years younger lol
Plus: No Passengers. Everyone is working their butt off.Backchecking and d zone coverage by the forwards in front of Rolo. Plus: Neilson and Weight come back,team has 2 guys who can create,smoother transition from line to line Plus: no bad penalties,no offsides,and relentless pressure in all three zones. C’mon out to the Coli,its starting to happen!! I DO want our DP back,though
way to go gordo
plus: the Islanders are in a playoff spot
minus: there are 70 games to go.
but seriously, bravo Islanders. 4 straight.
Plus- Witt getting the hard hat tonight, he’s still a warrior
Plus- Decent crowd tonight, could have been worse considering
Plus- Team toughness and grit, they’re playing with an edge not seen since Peca showed up on the Island
Plus- Exciting hockey
Plus- Snow and Gordon looking like they really have a vision
Excellent +/- CB, I couldnt agree with you more about the ROCK MUSIC. I loved JPinVA’s +/- too. One to add:
Plus: The attendance tonight was NOT pathetic!!! I went to the game thinking that practically NOBODY would be there and I was wrong- it was actually, dare I say, OK! Definitely over 10K strong- and for a monday night against a western conference team while NY is in the world series, that is NOT bad at all! They keep playing like this, once baseball is over this team is going tob e getting some good attendance numbers (for them, anyway!)
One more plus, Sutton abusing Hemsky in the final 5 mins. like he was a JV sub
CB, all fans,…did anybody see Sim drop the mitts with Smid in the 2nd period, then Smid dropped his but nothing happened? Im not ripping on Sim because I thought he played a fine game, but I thought that was an interesting note that some may not of seen.
Boy would I have loved to see witt get that hat trick! His expressions after both goals tonight were priceless. After the first one, his face was all “whatever, no big deal”. After the second one, “Hey, I can’t believe it either!”
Love everything about this team right now.
Plus Earning points in 9 out of 14 games
Plus Witt having an awesome two way game
Minus The Yankees
Some fun hockey to watch. Boys have confidence, scary when the forecheck works. Keep it up!!!
plus- gordon and his style of play.
plus - witt wow. i for one had given up on him.
plus - Sutton throwing the body around for 5 games.
plus - bergy makes his teamates better with his energy alone.
plus- the first line
plus - jaffe
Hunter for Sim, who has been playing pretty good.
Plus: Let me be the first to say “Brendan Witt” and “Norris Trophy” in the same sentence. (LOL)
Plus: The overall play of the defense. Sutton was great; Streit is starting to look like himself again.
Plus: Jeff Tambellini all of a sudden looks like a very confident hockey player. Amazing what one shootout goal can do for a guy.
Plus: Doug Weight almost coughed on that annoying Rob Carlin during the postgame interview.
Minus: Khabibulin is on my fantasy team.
Have to admit guys, it feels pretty good to have the “who do you sit” argument when Hunter comes back, it means we have good enough players and enough depth for that to even be a question lol
It has been fun to watch the boys again the last week or two. However, the Isles are still a handful of players away from being a legit and consistent contender for the cup. As much as it would suck to watch this season (as the first three weeks showed us), I think it would be better for the future of the franchise to be in the running for the #1 pick in next year’s draft… (bracing for the backlash)
When DP is ready and is 100% healthy, you package Biron with Sim and get the best top 6 defenseman you can.
Moulson-Tavares-Okposo
Bergenheim-Nielsen-Hunter
Tambellini-Bailey-Weight
Jackman-Park-Thompson
Comeau-Schremp
Streit-Sutton
Martinek-(Dman acquired)
Witt-Gervais
Meyer
DiPietro
Roloson (keep the rotation going)
you sit thompson….I think he is the only one you can sit for trent to come back.
Thank you Brooks Laich. Ever since Laich was quoted after the Caps game a week ago last Saturday that the Isles looked like they were spent in the third period, the coaching staff seems to have made some tweaks to the go-go system. We still have the aggressive forecheck, but it seems mnore controlled and the third forward seems to be higher.
I love what the team has been doing recently. I think they have been playing good all season, a few bad games, but mostly positive. I like what Gordon has done getting the defense in the mix and Sutton looks like a new player! I still think that we are at least another season or two from the playoffs, but i think we are starting to get a glimpse of the future..hopefully
Plus: Fun to watch
Plus: Witt, Sutton
Plus: Team effort
Plus: Great game for a let down. Not tonight
Minus: Nothing
Plus: Andy Sutton. Maybe he read my posts and got mad.
Plus: Attendence was more than Saturday night. Not that it was good, but if the Islanders keep winning, the coliseum could get tough to play at.
Plus: Kramer Mike in section 313
Plus: Fans of other teams texting me during the game saying the Isles were “impressive” and “dominating”
Minus: the two idiots cursing at each other with their kids at their side in section 313
Plus being able to wear my islanders jeresey in public
Minus: Rick DiPietro is rumored to be coming back.
Sit Sim, leave the 4th line like it is.
I heard Dio during the warmups, I thought it was 1983.
Plus-Sutton was a monster
Plus-Fans chanting for Witt to be on the ice with an open net.
Plus- KO looking to K.O. someone.
Minus- The horrid goal song, anticlimactic
Plus: Shocked at the winning streak and hope the team continues to prove me wrong all year
Minus: CB, the Islanders could stem the flow of misinformation floating around about DP if they provided constant, accurate, consistent updates about his health.
Oh anothr plus I forgot to emphasize- giving the Oilers NO PP time!
Matt: I dont know- do you think that Shremp is a hitter and agitator? I dont think what Sim brings to a game and what Shremp brings to a game (or can theoretically bring to a game) have a thing to do with each other. Apples and oranges IMO.
Minus…all of US !!!!! A week ago we would be worried that with 19.7 seconds left & a defensive zone face-off would surely result in a 2 pt. shot somehow and OT loss!! How times have changed!!! They WERE playing like crap, but boy have things changed. I think they stole the Giants Mo-Jo!!! Let us all be supportive of our organization and the work of OUR team!!! Every gameday I fly my Isles car flag proudly showing the world where my support lies!!! Kinda meaningless though, I live in Atlanta and I get all sorts of beeps and thumbs up from other drivers until they realize it isn’t a Florida Gators football flag…but I don’t care…I smile and wave proudly, for I am an Islanders Fan!!! Go Isles!!!! 1940…..1994!!!
you mean if he come’s back.Has anyone sen him saw any pix or TV footage of him on the ice, no but he’s moving along. I say show us.
Sim is great at what he does: grinding, agitating, battling in front of the net, he is an important piece on this team. People need to stop thinking of him as a 20 goal scorer and start appreciating what he does bring to the team.
Also, I think the biggest reason for Witt’s recent play is that he is no longer though of as a first pair defensman. In fact, he is usually playing 3rd pairing minutes. He was getting schooled playing against the other team’s top players. Now he is playing great against 3 and 4th liners. He is playing in his correct spot and it’s working out for everyone.
Wow… Isles play the next 8 of 9 on the road. I think we’ll have a better feel for this team’s potential for success/playoffs after that stretch.
Plus: everything
Minus: the goal song…its gotta go
Announced attendance was a shade under 11,000. Can any one at the game attest to that? Either way, great performance after a slow start. The first wasn’t pretty, feet weren’t moving and a lot of Oilers were just skating around everybody, but a sign of a good team, even when they don’t play their best they stick around.
They busted their butts after that own goal, and honestly I can’t look at one player and say they didn’t play a solid hockey game tonight. Bergenheim is due, and the transformation of Tamby and Bailey the last week has been one of the most enjoyable things I have ever seen on a hockey rink.
Also, I think Jaffe reads this blog because he was great tonight. No Bill Raftery impersonations!! Howie did a good job too. Overall just a great night for the Isles and their fans.
Plus - Isles tied for 6th with Philadelphia.
Plus - Who are these guys and what have they done with the Islanders
Hottest team in NY area right now, in NHL for that matter. Remains to be seen whether it lasts or not and I don’t mean to be pessimistic. Trust me I am as happy as the rest of us. That said, I am so glad we aren’t hearing anymore garbage about needing a scrapper. Just play hard, the guys we have will do fine when the gloves come off.
do people think this team can actually keep this up? would be pretty fun to seem some playoff hockey.
32- I was at the game tonight sitting right behind the bench and saw the Sim and Smid thing. Reason why Sim didn’t act on him dropping his gloves because he got hit in the face with the puck or something because his lip was bloody and sat down and immediately pulled a couple of teeth out and threw on the floor. Also Him and Thompson were taunting Smid before the beginning of the second and continued to heckle him before the incident ahahah
Was at the game tonight bigger crowd than Saturday.Great tunes!!!! Smid and Sim were yapping all night Jon tried goading Smid into a fight dropping the gloves Smid wouldn’t bite. Great effort tonight. Tough road games ahead. we will be able to measure this growth after the 14 out of 17 on the road.
No matter what happens from here on in they have shown that they have some legitimate NHL talent on this team. Now they have to stay the course, continue the rebuild and in a couple years we will be the best hockey team in the tri-state.
Dmen77 in your trade scenario you left off any mention of Jack Hillen. To me the little guy is showing he belongs.
Plus - Team came out on all cylinders AND playing well.
Plus - The great Brendan Witt support that emerged in 313. At first it was incredulous mock support, but quickly became sincere and energetic. Much like the Tambellini support on Saturday. I did not hear the cantankerous cursing folk.
Plus - Jack Hillen playing with an edge. I really thought he was going to get in a fight.
Minus - The Sim fight that did not happen. I’m still a little confused to what I actually witnessed.
Plus - Andy Sutton playing like the Top 4 defensemen that he has been in the past…and dominantly fighting like a heavy weight.
Minus - The rediculous and obnoxious “We Want Nyles” chant when Sparky visited 312. I mean I pick on Sparky, but Nyles is not coming back just like Bossy is not playing Wednesday. Move on folks.
Plus - I was down with the tunes tonight. There was one really bad tune in the first period when even my girlfriend said to me “This is not hockey music”. There was no Exile on Main Street though.
Plus - Significantly higher attendance on Monday than this past Saturday (even if sat was Halloween and tomorrow is Election Day when a lot of people have off).
Plus- Brendan Witt never gives up!
Minus-Brendan Witt lighten up!
Who is the Scott Arb… Gordon guy???
DOC
its been a fun four games, but its a 80+ game season. but its nice to be a fan of the isles right now. dont get too high, dont get too low. looking foward to wednesday.
I’m back from the game and I must say I was surprised at the turnout. Not a sellout…but much larger crowd then I expected for a World Series night. By the way I was going to give management a gold star because the showed a replay on the big screen the Yankees scoring their first run tonite…but then they get a big demerit because that was the last time the showed anything but a quick couple of flashes of the bad news score. But back to hockey…I thought the goaltending was tremendous. Rollie the goalie covered up for quite a few mistakes early on. Solid.
I was very disappointed with the lack of ice time for Tambellini. Each time he hit the ice he created offense. He’s skating with such confidence now it’s a pleasure to see. BUT the coach doesn’t give him a full shot. Very little power play ice too.
I don;t know what the stats say…but these eyes want to see more of this kid.
By the way, pretty good pizza…but at $13 for the pizza with a coke…geez…and $5.50 for a pre-cooked Nathan’s hotdog? I almost wouldn’t mind IF it helped the Isles…but Charles the way I understand things gets nothing. SMG makes the killing. So from now on…no more food for me…I’ll load up before I get there.
plus - a game like every other day,
you gotta love hockey!!
By far the best sport to watch, especially on DVR.
Giggety giggety
its kinda weird seeing the whole atlantic division in the playoff picture
+ Team was really “leaning” on the Oilers, the pressure was heavy and the ice looked tilted at times
+ Sim/Tambellini (not my 2 favs lol) are playing hard as well as the 4th line - good effort and energy by the grinders!
+/- Sutton throwing the body and answering the bell, but whats with Howie Rose “whining/complaining” about a hockey fight? cmon Howie, please dont turn into the rsgs broadcaster
- Attendance - Cmon Isle fans (myself included!) we need to start filling the barn and supporting the team a lil better at home !!
Mostly all plusses tonight. On attendance, tonight’s game was one of the season ticket holders’ “Bring a Friend” nights, so 11,000 may have been distributed and I’d say the crowd was about 9,000–much more than Saturday.
Plus: Goal Posts (again).
Plus: We worked harder a lot than Edmonton all over the ice; it seemed like we won every opportunity where there was an even battle for the puck.
Plus: Comrie took the pre-game skate and someone had a sigh saying, “Comrie, the Toe-Drag doesn’t work.” Comrie laughed at it, gave a thumbs up, and even tossed a puck over the glass toards the folks with the sign.
Minus: They’re still doing “Light it Up” with no one responding—and that’s my only minus tonight.
One more minus. I love my God and country, but having a middle school sing God Bless America during the intermission is minor league-Bridgeport fare, especially when half the people in the arena continue to do their thing while the kids are singing.
Plus-Witt…nice to see him getting his game back!
Plus-Sutton
plus - not much to complain about.
minus - having to disagree about DP’s timetable. If it were me(but who am I)I would send DP to the Bridge for a 10-12 game rehab stint, but only if he’s ready for real games. At that rate I doubt we’d see him before the middle of DEC. IMO if a trade must be made some time after that, don’t do it for draft picks, do it for NHL level starters, top six top five forward at least. But that’s just me.
Plus: Everyone BUT Streit. Can people stop saying he is “coming back to form”. He clearly has trouble clearing the puck from his own zone and does not move his feet and skate. What is going on with him? He can’t hit the net with a shot and forgot how to pass. How is he coming back to form? He is the weak link right now….our best player last year, our worst so far this year.
Minus: Nilson reminds me of Zach Parise.
Pluses: Andy Sutton! Tambellini continuing to look likes he’s where he needs to be. Moulson still playing well, even without a goal tonight. Tavares looks like he is always in the right position and has a natural shooting touch. Andy Sutton again! I had fun cheering for Witt again, I really do love him on this team. I hope he returns to form - or keeps up this new scorer’s way. And last….Frans Nielsen. His play is kind of subtle but he is really good. Love what he brings to the team.
Nilsson is to Parise as Scott Scissons is to Wayne Gretzky.
I’m a happy Islander fan. Some wins will always do it. I wonder if Gordo tweaked his system a bit because the Isles haven’t changed their roster since before the 4 games. Whatever he did… keep it up. I would not sit Sim either when Hunter returns. Sorry Trent, you don’t change the lines during a series of wins. You want to anger the hockey gods, go ahead and take that gamble.
Witt’s goals were hilarious. A hat trick would have been even funnier. I like when Deb asked about it and Witt responded: I really don’t care about that stuff.
Keep it up!
Sim will likely be sat down when Trent comes back. Sim may not be scoring goals or fancy passing but he is a pest and works the puck pretty hard. I thnk he is a good fit to the team. I think Trent coming back might disrupt things a bit for that line. I say leave it alone.
It’s 2:30 and I’m just getting back from the game thanks to unfriendly train schedules! But I’ll go for the plus/minus:
Plus: Witt…obviously!
Plus: The crowd…not as light as what I thought it’d be, to be perfectly honest.
Plus: Tambellini and Moulson. I was really hoping they’d both get goals, because they were flat out good tonight.
Plus: Hillen continues to impress me.
Plus: Streit’s the other guy who should have gotten a goal.
Plus: Tavares almost looks aloof…not really into it…then, BAM! Goal. He’s just a very deceptive player.
Plus: KO sticking up for his teammates.
Plus: Sutton was an animal.
Plus: OK…Sim’s deal against Smid was a bit cowardly…BUT…he had lost his stick and managed to take a threat from the point out of the play to make it essentially a four on four. He didn’t do it with a dirty takedown, or a sneaky illegal move…he just talked. He maybe should have obliged Smid when he dropped the gloves, but it is how a “pest” should play…not dirty, just annoying.
Plus: Doug Weight. He seems to be just a steady presence that calms the team down, and he takes care of what he needs to take care of on the ice.
Minus: I got nothin’ this game…even Gervais was relatively competent!
That was an exciting game to watch. Sutts is looking great this year, and Tavares is continues to be a beast. Overall stellar performance by everyone! Keep up the good skating boys!
They say a team is never as good as they look when they’re winning, nor never as bad as they look when they’re losing. Having said that, the Islanders look GOOD these past couple of weeks. Obviously, most here agree with that assessment. After all, I just read more than 80 posts and not ONE of them condemns either Scott Gordon, Garth Snow or Charles Wang. Cool.
Myself and two other fans in my area spent the first 15 minutes talking on how one particular Islanders player was the worst in the league and should be cut immediately. Which one? Let’s say that at 930PM we were shocked Witt-less.
Definitely more people in Fort Neverlose than last Saturday.
Minus: Is it possible in New York to find one person who can sing “O Canada” without having to look at the lyrics?
Plus At least she knows how to read.
But is there anyone in the area who can SING?? See a Blackhawks game for someone who can sing a national anthem. Or dig up a You Tube video of Roger Doucet at the Montreal Forum.
Plus Witt threw his puck for being first star to a Marine Corps serageant. R Lee Ermey gives you a big HOO-RAH!!
Plus No third period breakdown.
Minus Witt needs to practice his rink-lentgh shots at the empty net.
Someone before said they didn’t understand the Sim non-fight. The fact was that Sim lost his stick so the isles were basically playing a man down in their own zone. So Sim started chatting up Smid at the blueline, got in his face, they both left the zone, and when smid threw his gloves on the floor, sim turned around to get a change and even up the sides. It was pure genius.
The Sim-Smid deal: It was a smart move by Sim, he lost his stick and got Smid away from the play, why would Sim look to fight Smid. Sim 5′10″ 195 Smid 6′3″ 226
“There was a goalie stick that was not making as many saves as it should have,” said the source, “so it had to be dealt with.”
It is to laugh. BAD! BAD Goalie Stick!!
Nice to be able to laugh on this site again. Remember the feeling, ladies, if things get tough in November.
I have always loved Witt going back to his days in Washington. Wow 4-0-2! Jeez! 5-4-5 Jeez! I am going to just sit back and listen (cuz I didn’t get Center Ice)…
1) We’re hoping you weren’t serious about the Isles policy of not having their practices open to the public as a good thing?
2) Almost every other team does so, and you’d think a team in need of exposure like the Isles would welcome fan interest. Who cares what kinds of rumours are spread via twitter, FB, etc. No publicity is bad publicity no?
Plus: Islanders are holding their third period leads
Minus: I think the Islanders have scored more on themselves then any one player has scored for our team
About the Sim deal:
Smid checked Sim into the Oilers bench (almost fully into the bench) Sim didn’t like it and tried to get him back a couple of times (during several shifts). He then lost his stick and tried to even it up (good move) provoked Smid to drop the gloves and then skated away (VERY cowardly, IMO) He did his job but that was hard to watch. After that play, Smid went after every young Isle. He punched Franz in the face, shouldered Tavares down after the whistle and put a hit on Bailey. All because of Sim. I’m happy Smid didn’t get a penalty for that, it would’ve been very bushleague had that happened.
Plus: A win Streak
Plus: the confidence of the team
Plus: Gordon consistantly being able to roll 4 lines
Plus: the tons of rock music played that people know….not bands that you never heard of
(someone I know that works for the team said they had someone different doing the music last night…he did a good job)
Minus: the energetic crowd not knowing what to do during a goal song….they really need to just go back to Glitter..example the row behind me was chanting goal hey, goal hey and seemed confused.
Minus: the price of a Pretzel being raised to 5.75…I was kind of shocked
Plus: the pluses outnumber the Minuses
Plus: Isles are playing great
Minus: this team will have its share of growing pains.
Minus: fans seem to immediatly trash the Isles when they show growing pains.
Plus: isles not showing any growing pains.
Plus: no more negitivety on PB
Minus: The goalie stick not making as many saves as it should have??!!??
Plus: Sim and Thompson catching two bullets with their teeth and jumping back on the ice.
Plus: Andy Sutton smashing Hemsky 3 times in one shift.
Plus: Nielsen is the smartest player on the team - allways knows what to do with the puck when he has it.
Plus: Weight is flying in his 38!
The only Minus: If they count goals scored to own net: Martinek, probably, would lead the League. Poor guy. Gives everything every night, but his luck is killing him.
Plus - Finally we’re not the ones who look completely lost on the ice
Plus - CB has lightened up
And oh yeah - I think hands down Doug Weight is the biggest reason why we’ve done what we’ve done the past 4 games.
Not only is he still an awesome playmaker, his leadership cannot be doubted.
Love the way the forecheck and backcheck is working. The opposing team is completely SMOTHERED!
Think about when DP comes back with his aggressive style playing the puck, the opposing team will have to rethink their entire game plan to have a chance against our pesky Isles!
+ Islanders really starting to get the system and play to their potential.
- Fans blaming Garth and Gordon when the team loses and completely ignoring them when they win. Way to be objective.
Plus: Witt. So happy that my favorite player had a good night.
Minus: MSG+ running the FINAL score across the bottom of the screen during the midnight replay (for those of us who work evenings). And they couldn’t show Witt winning the first star? (Yes, it’s important to me. Deal with it.) DESPISE MSG.
Great point regarding DP # 99. I really think our goaltending has been sharp and the move to have two # 1 goalies, especially with their schedule looks great. I think DP takes a lot of wear & tear off of our D-men and eliminates the dump and chase tactic that teams like to use to get the puck deep.
Plus: Andy Sutton’s physical presence.
Minus: Martinek saved a goal against Buffalo and then gives it back to Edmonton. Bad break, but good to see the team bounce back quickly.
@julie #101 next time that happens, you can usually hit zoom1 or zoom2 if you have an hdtv, and therefore the bottom line off screen, and you dont lose too much of the ice; otherwise you need to dvr it to watch the original broadcast
go isles! lets get 5 in a row!
+ the isles got buffalo again tomorrow
+ the isles beat them 5-0 last time they met.
+ isles above .500
+ more fans showing up to games
+ isles playing with passion.
+ isles ranked 7th in conference last time i checked.
- i didnt go to n e games yet.
Isles have not lost since “Isles316″ lost…IT. Since Dan slammed his hat against the coliseum wall in 313, the ghosts of islanders past have awoken and the isles have gone unbeaten!!! Long Live Section 313!!!!
Plus- They are playing exciting hockey
Plus- Andy Sutton throwing his huge body around. I agree if he could play like that consistently he could be a great d-man to have around
Plus- Moulson and Tavares hooking up again
Plus- Gotta love Witt’s 2 goal night
Plus- Guys like Bailey, Tambellini and Neilsen continuing to look better every game
Minus- There were a couple of times that our d-men were caught watching the puck down low and got beat
Minus- Why can’t they go back to the old goal song? I don’t think many fans will care about Gary Glitter’s prison record.
Great game all in all
Sorry for the extra post but I forgot something
Plus- While people are noticing Tavares’ scoring more, I noticed he did very well in face-offs tonight. Neilsen also did very well in that department too.
Great game last night , still very poor turnout, heard a few chants here and there but should be much louder. Marketing department should all be fired and bring in a fun staff that can inject some life into the arena. Free chili is the best you can come up with ? Really ?
And even funnier is if you actually try to get that free chili at a Wendy’s. It comes with a side of Blank Stare.
actually everytime I’ve gone for the free chili I have been greeted with a loud cheer…guess its just lucky that the employees are fans
I forgot to mention a big plus from last nights game. I know I’ve been pretty hard on him but I do like him a lot. Here’s to Brendan Witt. Playing much better of late and scoring a couple as well.
I would put Sim on the 4th line with Park as the center and put Hunter in Sim’s spot. IF the team happens to go through some extended bumps I still wanna see Comeau and Schremp get another crack at some point. But right now I understand not changing up anything.
Plus: Isles weren’t as bad as many thought a week ago.
Minus: This team isn’t as great as they’ve been playing over the past week either.
Plus: this team is progressing and looks like its supposed to. Its fun to watch
Plus: Coat drive night! I donated an old coat and received a free ticket to the Florida game in December. What a deal!
Plus: Witt’s two goals and the team’s continued attempts to get him a hat trick
Plus: Winning four in a row!
Plus: Free chili!
Minus: Rangers fans in attendance. Really? Not necessary. We are playing Edmonton.
Sim will be one to sit out. While he is pest, Hunter finishes his hits and he does something that Sim doesnt. and that is score.
Even if Hunter ready to go, if isles continue streak, he will be one sitting out a few more games.
If it aint broke, dont try to fix it.
I got a question. 2 weeks ago this team looked set for dead last n fans said that snow n gordan r doing great job even if they finish dead last. Now the isles look like they can compete for playoff spot.
If it’s possible for a team with these players to play well… How can any fan justify supporting a gm or coach when they finish dead last multiple years? Maybe it’s time to raise expectations of the fans around here.
No matter how good these winning games have been (and they HAVE BEEN!), I still find myself holding my breath before and during the next game, every time. I just can’t relax, go figure.
Not to say that I’m not enjoying this though!
And it’s nice to see the boys be able to work on the finer points of what does seem to be a good “system”. (As opposed to the deer in the headlights play of the first few games).
(+) 4 in a row
(-) Kate Murray will be reelected today.
Something else about the Sim-Smid no-contest: at the time, Sim lost his stick in the defensive zone and the Oilers were moving the puck effectively. Stickless Sim basically drew Smid out of the play up to center ice while the Oil still had possession, effectively changing the 5-5 with a stickless forward to a 4-4, and nothing came out of it for Edmonton. If that was Sim’s intent, hell of a cagey play by the veteran.
not all fans said that, i can remember several fans becoming quite upset with the coach and gm:
this system fatigues us too much,
we only got goalies in the FA market
the coach is an AHL guy-will never be NHL
snow wasted all the extra picks moving up and taking two goalies
bottom line, fans just ARE, we complain, we cheer, we gloat and mope, we don’t really justify any of it, so why try justifying stuff about management ?
lets get #5 in a row tomorrow boys!
go isles! — and easton, nothing raises expectations more than the W’s piling up
#73…Howie wasn’t “whining/complaining” about a hockey fight. He was commenting on the fact that in the game today a guy can’t put a clean hard hit on another guy without somebody else jumping in to fight him which happened when Sutton nailed his guy cleanly then had to drop his gloves as another Edmonton player raced after him to fight him. In old school hockey, a legit hard hit was a legit hard hit. You took it like a man. You didn’t need a teammate to jump in and drop the gloves because you got rocked with a clean hit. That’s what Howie was complaining about.
#116, because winning can not be the only way this season is measured. If the Isles are serious about a solid rebuild that lasts for years, making the playoffs would be great in the short haul, but in the long haul you want development so that each year your core increases and improves, information that leads you to make decisions about players so you now what you still need, and an evolution to become a contender and not a prerenial 8th place finisher. Everyone always accuses the Isles of trying to be smarter than everyone else, so how about noticing when they are trying to do it just like successful franchises have.
108 JTorBUST- you think the marketing staff should do more “fun stuff” and thats cool but personally Id prefer less bells and whistles and bring back things like player posters, calandars, hats, etc. Nothing wrong with the chili thing IMO, its a legit call back to the old days and people like that. I just think you should have to score at least 4 for it and not three lol.
And whoever that was at the Oilers game programing the music, PLEASE keep them! Hard Rock, metal, and organ music is what should be heard at hockey games!!!