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Good Morning, Islanders Country, and to those who celebrate Happy Hanukkah!
We watched what we’ve come to expect from the Islanders on Friday and Saturday nights. Heading into the weekend, you may have signed up for a split of the back-to-back. And yet, it didn’t come as a surprise that the game the Islanders won was against the rested team near the top of the standings.
Throughout the first quarter of the season, the Isles picked up points without playing their best hockey. Their high-water mark, 15-8-0 in late November, was the byproduct of some hellacious comebacks and, at times, way above-average goaltending. But consistent solid play, from period to period and game to game, has been missing.
"We've got to stop playing a good game, then playing a bad game, then playing a good game," Matt Martin said after the team’s 5-4 loss in Arizona.
That pattern held on Saturday.
After a good point in Boston, the Isles lost for the second time this season to the not-so-lowly but still-bad Arizona Coyotes, and just as you were preparing yourself for the free-fall - and after you find out that both Cal Clutterbuck and Kyle Palmieri will be out of the lineup - they play a near-perfect road game in Vegas and bring you back in.
"We had to really respond from last night's [Saturday’s] performance with a good one and I think we answered the call," said Zach Parise. "Twenty-four hours of a lot of reflection, so it was good to see us respond."
Let’s hope the pattern breaks tonight in Colorado.
Coming up, Schneider is called up as we await news on Varly, and Holmstrom’s first is a game-winner. Plus, it’s the end for Soshnikov, smaller trade targets, Lee’s deflection status, and the BOA throws a party.
Let’s dive in.
📰 NEWS: On Sunday night, goaltender Cory Schneider was emergency recalled from loan (Bridgeport). The transaction comes after Semyon Varlamov left with 6:22 remaining in the third period of Saturday’s 5-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights. Varlamov had made 35 saves before being replaced by Ilya Sorokin.
Immediately after the game, head coach Lane Lambert was unsure how Varly hurt himself, and no new information was disclosed on Sunday. “He’s played very well,” Lambert said. “I don’t know exactly [what happened]. We’ll evaluate him in the next couple days and see where he’s at.”
Varlamov’s value has been on display recently as Ilya Sorokin has uncharacteristically struggled, losing five straight decisions. Lane Lambert, understandably, has been heavily reliant on Sorokin, but it would not have been surprising if he decided to ride the hot hand for a bit and go back to Varlamov in Colorado. Of course, that option may be off the table with his status unknown. If Varly is out any considerable time, Sorokin will need to find his game in a hurry.
In the second period on Saturday night, Simon Holmstrom became the 389th player in club history (including Billy Smith) to score a goal for the Islanders. “It was unbelievable,” the rookie Swede said. “Just trying to get a shot on net, and luckily it went in.”
On the play, Holmstrom moved to the slot, showed some good stick-handling to create space, and unloaded a wrist shot through Logan Thompson at 17:26 of the second period. “It’s a great thing to experience,” Holmstrom added. “Just with this team as well, they’re unbelievable, so it’s great to share this with them.”
In his 11 NHL games, Holmstrom’s decision-making, work along the boards, and responsibility in the defensive end has stood out. That’s all good, but he also boasts an offensive game; it just hadn’t been on display before Saturday. Not only had he not scored, but he has only four shots on goal since his call-up. The team has had positive things to say about Holmstrom, but if the forward group gets healthier, it’ll be interesting to see what role he has at the NHL level.
◾️ The Islanders placed F Nikita Soshnikov on unconditional waivers Sunday afternoon with the intent to terminate his contract. Soshnikov was sent to the AHL Bridgeport Islanders on November 16th after dressing in just three NHL games with the Islanders. In Bridgeport, Soshnikov played in four games and recorded just one assist.
◾️ Over the weekend in Newsday, Andrew Gross took on the challenge of taking a look at potential Islanders trade targets. To his credit, while mentioning Chicago’s Patrick Kane and the Canucks’ Bo Horvat, along with Timo Meier of the Sharks, Gross also makes the case for some cheaper options, including Florida’s Anthony DuClair to pair with Barzal and Shayne Gostisbehere to help the power-play.
⏭ NEXT UP: The Islanders are in Colorado tonight to take on Devon Toews and the defending Stanley Cup champion Avalanche. Face-off is set for 9:00 PM ET.
📊 STANDINGS:
🥅 NET-FRONT PRESENCE: In a study by Meghan Chyka of Stathletes, Anders Lee is one of the best net-front presence forwards regarding deflections per game in the 2022-23 season. The Islanders captain ranks fourth overall with 1.03 D/G, behind brothers Brady and Matthew Tkachuk and the Rangers’ Chris Kreider.
🌊 SPORTIFY WRAPPED: Hockey Reference took a page out of Spotify’s playbook and made their own yearly “wrapped,” tracking the most viewed team pages, player pages, and more per state/province in the United States and Canada. The Islanders didn’t receive much love, but for whatever reason (thanks, Mr. Kevin Connolly?), they’re the most viewed team in California.
📚 SOUND SMART: Per Eric Hornick in The Skinny, Simon Holmstrom is the first Islander since Cole Bardreau (11-5-19 vs. Ottawa) to have his first NHL goal also be a game-winning goal. It's the 27th time it has happened, including by Clark Gillies, Bryan Trottier, and John Tonelli.
🗓 THIS DATE IN ISLANDERS HISTORY: On December 19, 2019, the Islanders snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Boston Bruins with a 3-2 shootout win at TD Garden. Jordan Eberle and Mathew Barzal each scored in the shootout, and Semyon Varlamov turned away Brad Marchand for the win. Barzal also tallied in regulation, and Johnny Boychuk had a goal and an assist as the Islanders won for the fourth time in their last five games.
🔗 Islanders Räty & Dufour Providing Hope For Future, Joshua Linsenberg, NYIHockeyNow: “We've known each other for a couple of months now. We played against each other at World Juniors, and it was nice. So for sure, every day our chemistry is getting better and better.”
🔗 Islanders are models of inconsistency on road trip, by Andrew Gross, Newsday: “They’ve alternated good and bad performances in their past six games and that frustrating inconsistency has certainly been on display in their 1-1-1 start to this trip. They tightened their defense in a 5-2 win over Pacific Division-leading Vegas on Saturday after a porous 5-4 loss to the struggling Coyotes the night before. But they battled the NHL-best Bruins from start to finish in Tuesday’s 4-3 shootout loss.”
And we leave you with this…there was still Holiday Cheer on Friday, despite the Islanders’ 5-4 loss to the Arizona Coyotes. The Blue and Orange Army had their annual holiday party at Oyster Bay Brewing Co and raised money for the Matt Martin Foundation in the process.
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