Monthly Archives: March 2011
Back by popular demand, post-game +/- returns for home games during the final five weeks of the season!
written by Kevin Schultz
Two very different opponents visited Nassau Coliseum this weekend in the cold-as-can-be Blues and the red hot Devils. The former can be added to a list of teams that entered the Coliseum in the past month plus with something less than their ‘A’ games.
The Blues had been sliding out of the Western Conference playoff picture and after leaving Long Island are now 13 points out and probably scheduling tee times. Major kudos to the Islanders for taking care of business from start to finish. They lept out to a 2-0 lead in the first and never looked back. PA Parenteau atoned for a large gaffe very quickly and John Tavares had a flashy, highlight reel goal that we hope to see many, many more of. Another solid outing from Montoya and watch out, Andrew McDonald is now a full-blown Al MacInnis with his slapper from the point! (KIDDING. I’m kidding.)
On Sunday, the hottest team in the NHL came to town in a game that served as a decent barometer for how these Islanders are doing after beating up on some down-and-out teams. The Islanders were certainly up to the challenge, coming back from two one-goal deficits to force overtime. They would lose in the shootout but not after giving the 95% capacity crowd their money’s worth. The Devils moved to 22-2 in their last 24 games(!).
The Islanders ended the weekend with three of a possible four points and are 2-0-1 in the first three of a five game homestand.
Without any further ado, a +/- breakdown with bullet points for each of the weekend’s two games…
Even – Not to take too much away from the Isles’ home success, but you can add the Blues to a list of visiting teams from the last month who looked like they did not want to be here. That’s the minus. The plus is that business is being taken care of, as these games aren’t even close.
Plus – John Tavares not only with a pretty 24th goal of the season Saturday night but tying Marty St. Louis and Brad Richards for goals.
Plus – Andrew McDonald
Minus – PA Parenteau missing that empty net against the Blues. *Cringe*
Plus – PA Parenteau bouncing back with 2 points in the same period, including an awesome set up for Tavares.
Plus – Montoya handled back-to-back work very well and had a nice performance in the shootout against the Devils.
Minus – Speaking of the shootout, six Islanders and none were named Michael Grabner.
Double Minus – The Islanders were gifted a power play at the beginning of the third period against the Devils. In a tie game against a fierce opponent on home ice, these chances cannot be squandered. They could barely hold the puck in throughout the man advantage and moments after the penalty expired, Ilya Kovalchuk did what Ilya Kovalchuk is supposed to do and gave the Devils the lead on a wicked wrister.
Plus – The fans. Nearly a sellout as 15,893 packed the house on Sunday and made themselves heard. Contrary to what outsiders might think, it wasn’t Devils fans that helped post the high number. It was Isles fans taking advantage of a Sunday afternoon and a myriad of ticket offers.
Plus – Picking up my on-the-cheap 3-game ticket pack and realizing that the team threw in seats in the 100s for one of the games.
Plus – When’s the last time we’ve seen the Islanders play this well in back-to-back games?
Kevin Schultz is a blogger formerly of the dearly-departed NHL FanHouse and currently of his NHL humor site, Barry Melrose Rocks. You can chat along with him during most games on Twitter.
Comments about the two weekend performances, including your own pluses and minuses, in this thread.
3:10 pm: In an intriguing subplot, the Islanders prioritized taking their team photo today over sending representatives with Gillies to his hearing in Toronto. Gillies, who just sat out nine games, has now been suspended by the NHL for ten games. Cal Clutterbuck did not have a hearing for his penalty for hitting Justin DiBenedetto from behind. Colin Campbell ruled that Gillies targeted Clutterbuck’s head.
What I learned from travelling with Chris Simon to his two hearings. Please check it out at Puck Daddy. Thanks.
Plus: thoughts on de Haan and next year’s D, Niederreiter, Ness and Trivino, pending RFAs Okposo, Grabner and Bailey, and more. Recorded last week. Thanks for participating.
The Islanders have given us plenty to write about and discuss this season. See my post at The New York Times.
9:35 pm: Let’s begin with a personal request. In the Comments thread, please share your thoughts on the hockey game and the hockey team. Comments about the Comments – “whiners,” “Kool-aid,” etc. - continue to be stale and unwelcomed. This is sports, my friends. A team wins, people are happy. They lose, it can be rough – especially when it’s been four seasons straight. Blake Comeau has a good game, Blake has a bad one…you get the point. This is what following sports is all about. So please, be considerate. You Are All Islanders Fans. This alone is enough for medals of honor.
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The Islanders started off their five-game homestand in fine fashion, whipping the Wild tonight, 4-1, before a crowd of some of the most loyal hockey fans on the planet at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. It wasn’t even close.
Blake Comeau scored two goals, his first off a terrific passing play from Frans Nielsen and Josh Bailey. Nielsen had three assists. John Tavares came about as close to scoring a hat trick without actually scoring a goal, but that’s fine when you’re team wins big. Al Montoya was solid, making a sharp glove save on Brent Burns in the third period. The Islanders out-shot Minnesota, 41-34.
The Islanders are now 20-21-6 under Jack Capuano, whom you can bet the ranch will be back as head coach next season.
For Eric Nystrom, the embarrassing performance by his team for the first two periods led to an unfriendly welcome home. For outstanding Minnesota beat writer Michael Russo, a Long Island native, I’m sure he loved being back in the old barn despite the no-contest. For the Islanders, this homestand provides an opportunity to move up in the league standings. The next three are against St. Louis, the Devils and Toronto.
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In his first game back after a nine-game suspension, Trevor Gillies retaliated a Cal Clutterbuck hit on Justin DiBenedetto with a hit from the side. Gillies, who unfortunately is playing for free these days (unless his teammates are covering his weeks of income lost), will almost definitely be suspended again. It’s one thing to be a repeat offender; you have to know Colin Campbell is ready to pounce on a player for a dangerous hit in his first game back. One more incident, and Trevor will be in danger of being Simon-ized.
Perhaps sensing they had lost their edge over the last week, the Islanders played tougher, stood up for each other and “made it look mean” again. It’s possible they also might have been motivated by the 66% dropoff in turnstile attendance from Saturday’s game. (According to Katie Strang, $20 tickets were available for all games in February, but not tonight). As the previous three games in the wake of Ferocious Friday proved, the gritty and nasty stuff sells.
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Meanwhile, in Portland, Nino Niederreiter is 7-6-13 in his last six games. Rumor has it that Niederreiter will be ranked as the No. 6 prospect in the upcoming Futire Watch issue of The Hockey News. Calvin de Haan is ranked No. 43.
See you tomorrow. I hope you understand my heartfelt Comments request, and thank you for reading Islanders Point Blank.
