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Good Morning, Islanders Country.
I’ll be at UBS Arena tonight.
I’m excited. I’m amped. It’s going to be wild - and probably terrifying.
There’s something different about attending a game where you know it can end with a handshake. That possibility will be looming throughout the tense moments of tonight’s game vs. the Carolina Hurricanes.
“I would expect even louder,” said forward Zach Parise about the Game 6 atmosphere. “Before opening drop, it’s loud, and even throughout the game, they’re into it. It’s up to us to give something to cheer about. You gotta get them excited. It goes both ways, and we feed off them, and they feed off us.”
The Islanders have to make sure the crowd fuels them in a positive way and doesn’t result in overly aggressive and undisciplined play, as did in Game 4. If they do that, stay out of the box, and keep it an even-strength game, they’ve shown throughout the series that they can own the better of the play when special teams aren’t allowed to be a deciding factor.
Over the last 10 years, the Islanders have been in this position (hosting Game 6 down 3-2 in a series) three times*, with distinct circumstances for each.
*not including 2020 Game 6 vs. TB in the bubble
◾️ 2013: A young, scrappy eighth-seeded Islanders team gave the Pittsburgh Penguins all they could handle. They had a 3-2 lead in the third period before allowing the tying goal with under seven minutes to play. Brooks Orpik won it at 7:49 of overtime. You were sad to see it end but grateful to the team that gave you a season you didn’t expect and hope that things were turning around.
◾️ 2015: A loss and the Nassau Coliseum would be closed forever (or so we thought). A win, and there was a chance that the Old Barn would live to see another game. In a tight, physical game, Nikolay Kulemin broke a 1-1 tie 10:33 into the third, and Cal Clutterbuck scored into the EN to give the Coliseum a proper “Yes! Yes! Yes!” send-off.
◾️ 2021: Down 2-0 late in the third period against the Lightning, Jordan Eberle’s backhand gave the team life, and Scott Mayfield’s pinpoint shot sent the renovated Barn into a frenzy. Anthony Beauvillier provided one of the most memorable moments since the Dynasty years, just 1:08 into overtime. Things got crazy, beer bottles rained down on the ice. It was a quintessential Coli moment.
Coming up, practicing the power play doesn’t make perfect, and a change in net may be coming for Carolina. Plus, strong numbers at even strength, Ryan Pulock’s game reaching a new level, and Eric Cairns pummels Shayne Corson.
Let’s dive in.
📰 NEWS: The Islanders were on the ice at the Northwell Health Ice Center in East Meadow on Thursday, a rare opportunity to practice during the playoffs with consecutive days off in between Games 5 and 6. “Practicing is extremely beneficial and then you have to translate it into game situations when the pressure is on,” said head coach Lane Lambert. “You could always use a bounce, certainly on the power play. We scored a game-winner in Game 3 on the power play. We continue to work on solutions. We know it has to be better.”
The team reportedly didn’t practice the power play - and maybe that’s a good thing, as the more they work on it, the worst it gets.
QUITE THE OPPOSITE: “It’s definitely been frustrating,” said Mathew Barzal. “That’s the time where you get to handle (the puck) a little bit. You get to make some plays and some passes so you kind of get a good feel for the game, and it’s been quite the opposite. It’s the playoffs and you move on and you try to get better the next game; that’s all you can do.”
◾️ Frederik Andersen received the starter's workload at practice for the Hurricanes on Thursday, a usually reliable indicator as to who will be between the pipes for the next game. Andersen has been unavailable for the last three games of the series with something that was first disclosed as an illness but later changed to an injury. When asked if he was feeling one hundred percent after practice, he stated, “I’m on the ice, so yeah.”
“Yep. There’s a chance,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said Thursday when asked if Andersen could get the start. “He’s definitely like we said — earlier, there was no chance, and he’s definitely right there (now).”
The Hurricanes used a goalie rotation all season, making a change at this juncture, despite Antti Raanta's strong play not a deviation from what was anticipated before the start of the series. If Andersen starts and falters in Game 6, Brind'Amour could go back to a rested Raanta for Game 7 at home at PNC Arena, a place he hadn't lost at until Game 5 on Friday night.
◾️ In Newsday, Andrew Gross writes that the key for the Islanders in Game 6 is having belief in themselves. Gross provides stats that offer reasons to believe that the Isles have been the better team this series, at least at even strength.
Playing 5-on-5, the Islanders have outscored the Hurricanes 12-8. Per Natural Stat Trick, the Islanders own the edge in expected goals-for percentage is 55.56 to 44.44. as the Isles have generated 56 high-danger scoring chances to Carolina’s 46 through the first five games of the series.
CHANCE OF SUCCESS: “We go into this understanding that if we play our best hockey and do the things we need to do that we have a really great chance of success, said captain Anders Lee. “It doesn’t matter how you measure up coming into the series. It’s all game by game, and who wins the little things.”
⏭ NEXT UP: The Islanders will once again look to avoid elimination when they host the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 6 at UBS Arena. Face-off is 7:00 PM.
🏆 STANLEY CUP® PLAYOFFS:
◾️ For NewYorkIslanders.com, Rachel Lusher writes about how 28-year-old defenseman Ryan Pulock has elevated his game in the post-season with HIS physical play that has seen him more than double the number of hits he averages during the regular season, having nine in Game 1 and 26 in the series. He also leads the team with 13 blocked shots and has contributed offensively.
"He's been incredible," Adam Pelech said of Pulock. "He's really taken his game to another level. He's a big reason why we won [on Friday] and why we can have success going forward." Pulock skated 23:37 on average through five games, tied for the team-high with Pelech.
UPPED HIS LEVEL: "You can see he's brought his level up a little bit here," Anders Lee said. "His physicality is coming through and his playmaking, so just some really strong games from [Pulock] and our d-core. We rely on those guys heavily. When they're playing that way, it makes a huge difference."
📚 SOUND SMART: Per Eric Hornick in The Skinny, with the Game 5 win on Tuesday night, the Isles improved to 18-8 when scoring first in a game they faced elimination; they also avoided challenging Carolina's perfect record (7-0) when scoring first in a potential clinching game. Rod Brind'Amour was behind the bench for his 53rd game, tying Paul Maurice's club record.
🗓 ISLES REWIND: On April 28, 2002, the Islanders staved off elimination and defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-3 at a raucous Nassau Coliseum. After losing Michael Peca and Kenny Jonsson to injuries, an inspired Isles team jumped out to a 2-0 lead with goals from Mariusz Czerkawski and Alexei Yashin. Defenseman Adrian Aucoin broke a 2-2 tie 1:35 into the second, and then Kip Miller and Czerkawski scored 38 seconds apart to extend the lead to 5-2. However, perhaps the most memorable moment came when Eric Cairns landed blow after blow against Shayne Corson in a heavyweight bout near center ice.
🎧 Islanders Anxiety - Episode 247 - Confused and Proud Mike and Dan recap a literally unbelievable Islanders win in Game 5 against the Hurricanes and look ahead to Game 6 at UBA Arena. Facing elimination, the Islanders managed to stay alive in the series thanks to some timely goals, a vintage performance by Ilya Sorokin, and sheer butt-clenching luck, leading to feelings of relief, excitement, happiness, and befuddlement.
🔗 NY Islanders: Barzal is a reluctant shooter, but took the big shot when it mattered via Eyes on Isles “Barzal was a reluctant shooter, something that he's been throughout his career, even after stretches of games where he scores with regularity as he did in five straight games in the regular season. However, Game 5 was still a positive sign in that while he was thinking of passing first, he didn't force it.”
And we leave you with this…it’s going to be really loud.
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