Good Morning, Islanders Country.
The only thing worth cheering last night was Jordan Eberle’s return to Long Island
On the backend of back-to-back games, Barry Trotz’s team didn’t resemble the group that played the prior night. There was a lack of focus, a lack of determination, a lack of the will to win that left the coach in his own words “pissed off.”
Isles Fix Post-Game with the Nassaumen Hockey Podcast:
Click HERE for the audio version:
Coming up, Eberle is welcomed back with open arms as Varly continues to lack goal support. Plus, the Isles celebrate Women in Sports, Jiggs reminisces about his time in the booth, and Uncle Leo is wheels up for the Olympics.
But first, a recap of what Barry Trotz called the most disappointing game he’s seen as coach of the Islanders
Let’s dive in.
🏒 IN SHORT: The Islanders were shut out by the Seattle Kraken 3-0 on Wednesday night at UBS Arena. Philipp Grubauer made 19 saves for the first shutout in the expansion franchise’s history. In a scoreless game in the third period, Jared McCann and Vince Dunn scored 2:31 apart in the third period as Jordan Eberle recorded an assist against his former team. Semyon Varlamov stopped 28 of 31 shots faced as the Isles fell back under the .500 mark. Brock Nelson led the Islanders with three shots. Forward Josh Bailey was minus-3 and did not have a shot on goal in 16:14 of ice time.
🔑 KEY MOMENT(s):
🔻 Still a scoreless game early in the third, J.G. Pageau had a chance to give the Isles the lead but was stopped by Grubauer on the team’s best opportunity all game.
🔻Scott Mayfield lost a puck battle to Jordan Eberle behind the net, who then chipped a feed to Jared McCann at the side of the net and banked one in off Semyon Varlamov to for the would be game-winning goal.
🔻Just two and a half minutes after McCann’s goal, Brock Nelson turned the puck over, which led to Vince Dunn taking a loose puck and backhanding a shot past Varlamov for a 2-0 Seattle lead.
3 REACTIONS
❶ MOMENTUM-LESS: "We weren't able to generate any sustained pressure in time," Brock Nelson said of the third period. "We weren't able to get any possession, get the puck in. They broke it up pretty well. They'd come at us, they got some chances, they got a little time and opportunity and that was the difference. We just weren't able to find the one early and get some momentum."
❷ LACKING GUNPOWDER: "The pucks to the net this evening were definitely not enough," Anders Lee said. "We've got to test their goaltender and make them retrieve pucks. We didn't get to that interior, and we didn't challenge them in any way in that regard. A team that's up and in your face and you trade rushes, you don't get that offensive zone time. So, you've got to create a little bit of havoc and get to the net. I don't think we did that well tonight."
❸ NOT VERY GOOD: "Too many turnovers, we got outcompeted and their will was a lot stronger than our will," Trotz said. "That's where it ended up, they wanted it more. Words don't mean anything, it's actions…I just didn't think that our level of desire there today was very good."
⏭ NEXT UP: The All-Star break is upon us. Everyone but Adam Pelech will get a break as he’s set to make his All-Star debut on Saturday in Las Vegas. The Islanders return on Wednesday against the Vancouver Canucks, starting a four-game road trip.
📊 STANDINGS:
📰 NEWS: During pre-game warmups at last night’s game against the Kraken, Islanders fans showed Jordan Eberle some love upon his return to Long Island repping both his new and old threads.
Andrew Gross of Newsday captures Eberle’s feelings on returning to Long Island last night in his latest article:
"It’s been the one that you circle right when you see the schedule," Eberle said last week. "My time on the Island was obviously pretty fun. Any time you go through eight or nine playoff series with pretty much the same group, you’re going to gain some friendships. That’s the hardest part. We’ve been through a lot as a group when I was there."
Eberle played four seasons with the Islanders scoring 76 goals, 169 points in the orange and blue. Through 45 games with the Kraken, Eberle has accrued 12 goals and 26 points. The always streaky Eberle has struggled to find the back of the net recently having gone without a goal in his last 22 games. The Islander he is often compared against, Kyle Palmieri, hasn’t scored in his last 17 games played.
👩 WOMEN IN SPORTS: The Islanders celebrated National Girls & Women in Sports Day yesterday, as well as paid tribute to the late Robin Herman. Herman is a former Islanders beat writer for the New York Times who broke the locker room barrier for women in the NHL at the 1975 All-Star game. Herman passed away on Tuesday.
📚 SOUND SMART: Since Dec. 1, in Seymon Varlamov’s nine starts, the netminder has a 2.11 goals-against average and .933 save percentage, but in those games, the Islanders have scored just 16 goals resulting in a record of 3-5-1. Meanwhile, in 13 games since Dec 1, Ilya Sorokin actually has a lower save percentage .920, but the team is averaging 3.14 goals a game aiding Sorokin to an 8-2-3 record.
🗓 ISLE REMEMBER: Jiggs McDonald was on the call for last night’s Islanders/Kraken matchup and last year joined Greg Picker and Cory Wright on Talkin’ Isles. to reminisce on how he got his nickname, becoming the Islanders’broadcaster, his favorite dynasty moments, and much more.
Take a listen HERE:
🔗 Barry Trotz and the Islanders Have a Plan for Oliver Wahlstrom, by Matt O’Leary, Eyes on Isles: “Oliver Wahlstrom scored another goal last night in the New York Islanders 4-1 win over the Ottawa Senators. If you remember from Sunday, Barry Trotz seemed to "discredit" Oliver Wahlstrom for his goal in the mind of some.”
🔗 Jordan Eberle brings fond Islanders memories to return with Kraken, by Ethan Sears, NYPost: “The best memories are also the worst memories,” Eberle said. “Making it to the conference final both times and losing, especially last year in Game 7, just the run that you have and the energy, the will and the commitment that it takes to get to that point and to come up short two years in a row.”
And we leave you with this …. Uncle Leo is making his way to Beijing for the 2022 Winter Olympics! Komarov will represent Team Finland along with fellow former Islander Valtteri Filppula (not pictured).
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