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Good Morning, Islanders Country.
Dry January - after weeks of holiday indulgence, many choose this month to abstain from alcohol in an effort to get back on track. For the Islanders, it’s been a month where they’ve abstained from scoring, not by choice, and it has sent their season off the rails.
It’s been one woeful week and game after another.
As NYI Hockey Now's Stefen Rosner noted on Twitter, in the final three games of December, the Islanders scored 12 goals and won all three. Through 13 January games, the team has scored 24 goals and has won just two games. In fact, the Isles have scored more than two goals just twice in their last 14 games and haven't done it since their 4-3 OT loss to the Washington Capitals on Jan. 16.
Do we have to mention the power play? Should we go there? Must we? Despite efforts to shake things up, the power play is now 3-for-59 over the last 22 games. Over the last 11 games, in which the Islanders have gone 1-7-3 and averaged 1.64 goals per game, the power play is 1 for their last 27 (3.7%).
As we know, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing and expecting a different result. The Islanders coaches aren’t insane. They’re trying new things with the options available to them. It’s the outcome that doesn’t change.
Then there’s the third period. The final 20 minutes, where games are won and lost. The safest lead in hockey is any lead against the Islanders headed into the third. The team has not scored a third-period goal in a franchise-record eleven straight games (since scoring three in Vancouver) and has been outscored 12-0 in that stretch. Their third-period differential is now just +1; it was +16.
Oh, and Mathew Barzal has one point in nine games, and Noah Dobson hasn’t scored since Dec. 16, and …I need a drink.
Coming up, the Red Wings comes to town with momentum and games in hand, and another Legends Night bobblehead will get handed out. Plus, a lack of speed is killing the Islanders, two pundits say their playoff chances are on life-support, and Grabo (remember him?) scores a goal against the Blueshirts.
Let’s dive in.
📰 NEWS: The Islanders were off on Thursday as they headed home in advance of hosting the Detroit Red Wings (21-18-8) at UBS Arena later tonight. Detroit is 3-1-1 in their last five games and, with 50 points, are just one point behind the Islanders for 11th in the Eastern Conference with three games in hand.
The Red Wings are coming off back-to-back OT wins. They beat the San Jose Sharks 3-2 in OT on Tuesday, and last night, they defeated the Montreal Canadiens 4-3 on Robby Fabbri’s OT game-winner.
It’ll be another Legends Night at UBS Arena as the team honors John Tonelli during their 50th Anniversary season. Tonelli was selected in the second round (33rd overall) by the Islanders in the 1977 NHL Entry Draft. The following season, he made his NHL debut with the club and went on to play in 594 career regular season games, scoring 544 points (206 goals and 338 assists).
His number was retired by the team in February 2020. Oh, he also had the primary assist on a pretty important goal. All that was enough to earn him a Legends Night bobblehead handed out to the first 10k fans in attendance.
For Newsday, Neil Best caught up with recently retired defenseman and current NHL defenseman PK Subban on what has been ailing the Islanders. “I like their team, but the way the league is going now, it's a young league,” said Subban "It’s all about speed. And if you can't play the game fast, or check fast, you're going to have trouble. You're not going to be playing with the puck a whole lot.”
RIDE SHOTGUN “I think that for the Islanders, I’d still like to see them get a guy in their top six that can play with Barzal that can kind of ride shotgun with him. I think they've been missing that for a few years. I'd like to see that.”
On Daily Faceoff Live, Frank Seravelli and Tyler Yaremchuk talked about the sudden “mathematical improbability” of the Islanders being able to catch the Washington Capitals or Pittsburgh Penguins for a Wild Card spot.
WORST NIGHTMARE: “This is every Islander fan’s worst nightmare as they’ve gotten to this point because they’re in a spot where they might not make the playoffs, and they already essentially doubled down on this roster from the summer, so a tough spot to be in,” said Servalli.
The pair also debate whether Lou Lamoriello would entertain becoming a seller despite the recent stretch and inept scoring that has their season on life support.
You can watch the full episode HERE.
⏭ NEXT UP: The Islanders play their final two games before the All-Star break with a back-to-back against the Detroit Red Wings and Vegas Golden Knights.
Face-off versus Detroit is scheduled for 7:00 PM ET.
📊 STANDINGS: The Washington Capitals bested the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 in a shootout, meaning the Isles are now six points out of the playoff spot as the team’s ahead of them continue to increase.
📚 SOUND SMART: Per Eric Hornick in The Skinny, Anders Lee remains at 399 career points; he is looking to be the 16th player in club history with 400 points. Matt Martin had five hits, increasing his team-leading total to 187; he is closing in on his eleventh 200-hit season. Casey Cizikas played his 713th game for the Isles, breaking a tie with Patrick Flatley for 10th place on the club's all-time list.
🗓 ISLES REWIND: On Jan. 27, 2015, Mikhail Grabovski — pressed into action on the Islanders’ top line in place of the injured Kyle Okposo — scored the opening goal, and Jaroslav Halak made 40 saves for his 26th win of the season as the Islanders dominated the Rangers, 4-1, at a boisterous Nassau Coliseum. “Winning games like this is what good teams do,” Jack Capuano said. “They played hard, and we managed the game well. That’s the system we have to play.”
🔗 Aatu Räty & Samuel Bolduc providing silver lining amidst latest struggles via Eyes on Isles “Whether it's been by need or Isles GM Lou Lamoriello is showcasing players as the trade deadline draws closer, prospects Aatu Räty and Samuel Bolduc have begun to prove they have legitimate NHL futures.”
🔗 Rosner: All the Heat Should Be on Lou Lamoriello, by Stefen Rosner, NYIHockeyNow “With his words, Lamoriello took the heat off first-year head coach Lane Lambert and the rest of the coaching staff. But how much heat was on them, to begin with? Despite their mistakes and the lack of strong play from his players, this all comes back to the man at the helm.”
And we leave you with this…and we don’t think this one will be on sale, but this T-shirt design from Dynasty Hockey sums up how we all feel these days …
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