Last night on Hockey Night in New York, it's the holiday season and the Isles keep collecting & giving out points, going 2-1-1 this past week, and continue to keep it interesting with more blown multi-goal leads and nailbiter endings.
Sean and Stefen highlighted the offensive production from players like Barzal, Horvat, and Dobson playing at a point per game clip and the increased goal output through December. Sammi Silber also joined in to preview the Caps and get an update on their potential move to Virginia.
Good Morning, Islanders Country.
It’s been a weird season.
In nearly every game this season, the Islanders give you reasons to be excited and reasons to be frustrated. There are exhilarating moments and infuriating moments. There are reasons to believe and reasons to doubt.
We saw a little bit of everything during the 4-0-2 homestand, from blown leads to blowouts to shootouts losses and O.T. winners. Then, on Saturday night, we saw a little bit of everything else when tired legs and defensive lapses led to a 4-0 deficit, followed by an unexpected third-period comeback that fell a goal short.
“We were really good in the third period, obviously, and if we played that way in the first 40 minutes, we'd be singing a different tune right now,” - Lane Lambert
We liked watching the character and resolve on display in the third period, but it amplifies how the game was lost in the final minutes of the second period, where they looked disengaged entirely. They were due for a “not your night” type of game, but that was disappointing to see, even given the circumstances.
The Islanders have points in 15 of 17 games. Before the loss to Montreal, they had trailed for a total of 20:24 seconds in their non-wins. Yet, the points they’ve let slip away are not emblematic of a team that goes on that type of run. It’s the reason we want to see more of the good and less of the bad before being confident enough in Lane Lambert and this roster, especially when battling injuries on the blueline, moving forward.
In the super-tight Metro Division, a bad week can undo many of the good feelings that the home stand brought. With back-to-back games against Edmonton and Washington, we’ll find out quickly how sustainable those good feelings are.
Let’s dive in.
📰 NEWS: The Islanders were off on Sunday as they flew back from Montreal after their back-to-back games vs. Boston and the Canadiens. They didn’t make any roster moves over the weekend, but our friends at Cap Friendly pointed out that almost all of their recent transactions have revolved around Grant Hutton.
WHOA, NELLIE
As Brock Nelson nears 500 career points (he has 489), Ethan Sears of the New York Post wrote about how Nelson keeps elevating his game and is on pace to once again hit the 30-goal mark, which has become a recurring milestone for the lifelong Islander, who has 15 goals in 30 games this season.
“I think I would’ve liked to have done it sooner,” said Nelson. “I think I was headed for that the shutdown year. Was hoping that was gonna be the first time, obviously got pushed back a little bit.”
Nelson scored two goals in the third period on Saturday night against the Canadiens, including one short-handed, and now has 17 career goals in 17 games in Montreal.
“I did hit 30, it felt nice. You get a little taste of that and a good opportunity for me to succeed here, just continue to stay aggressive and attack, always think about wanting more. You want to go out there and produce and replicate that over and over again and continue to strive for more.”
HORVAT HURT?
Bo Horvat collided with Habs' center Christian Dvorak at the Isles' blueline in the final minute of Saturday’s 5-3 loss. The Islanders were trying to find the game-tying goal and complete a remarkable comeback after trailing 4-0 heading into the third period. In the play, Horvat landed awkwardly on his left hand or wrist and was seen in pain on the bench as time ran out and the game ended.
Horvat scored his 12th of the season off a deflected Noah Dobson shot at the point at 14:06 to pull the Isles to within one after entering the third period down 4-0. The former Vancouver Canucks captain is second on the team in goals (Nelson, 15), and his 18 assists are third behind Mathew Barzal and Dobson, who each have 32.
Update: Horvat was on the ice at practice showing no signs of injury.
⏭ NEXT UP: The Islanders are home on Tuesday night when they host Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers. Face-off is set for 7:30 PM EST.
📊 STANDINGS:
Who will be the Islanders All-Star?
There is more than one Islander having an All-Star-quality season, but only one is guaranteed to represent the team in Toronto in early February. In The Hockey News, beat reporter Stefen Rosner makes the case for Noah Dobson, Mathew Barzal, and Bo Horvat.
Of course, last season, the Islanders had three representatives (sort of), if you include Horvat, who wore an Isles fisherman jersey at the skills competition but represented the Pacific Division in the game.
He was joined by Brock Nelson and Ilya Sorokin, neither of whom is expected to return this year, although Nelson does lead the team in goals with 15. Outside of last season, the team sent multiple All-Stars to the game back in 2018 (John Tavares, Josh Bailey) and 2015 (John Tavares, Jaroslav Halak).
📚 SOUND SMART: Per Eric Hornick in The Skinny, Noah Dobson is the first Islander defenseman with three assists in a road period since Chris Campoli (October 18, 2007). Dobson matched the club record for assists in a period by a defenseman, which has been done numerous times- most recently by Ryan Pulock on 11/26/2022 vs Philadelphia. Dobson played at least 25 minutes for the twelfth straight game. It is the longest streak of its kind since Adrian Aucoin did so in fifteen straight games from February 10- March 9, 2004.
🎥 ISLES REWIND: On Dec. 18, 1982, the New York Islanders tied the Philadelphia Flyers 4-4 at the Nassau Coliseum. Mike Bossy and John Tonelli scored power-play goals in the third period to tie the game at three before Brent Sutter gave the Isles their first lead of the game at the 12:28 mark. However, Bobby Clarke would respond with a power-play goal for the Flyers at 14:22 to tie the game as the Isles record went to 18-13-6. Roland Melanson made 27 saves.
🎧 Islanders Anxiety - Episode 268 - So Many More Dimensions “Mike and Dan recap an eventful week of four games with highs, lows, history and heroics that kept the Islanders in the fight in the Metro. Each game could have been its own podcast, but we take an overview of where the team is after 30 games and how they got here - both good and bad.”
🔗 Oliver Wahlstrom finding himself scratched more often than not: ‘Gotta play his game’ by Ethan Sears, NY Post “Wahlstrom had last played two weeks earlier in a win over the Panthers and had been scratched 11 times. More worrying for the 23-year-old is that the Islanders had seemingly found their ideal forward combinations — which did not include him.”
🔗 Noah Dobson for Norris Trophy finalist? It’s time to start talking about the Islanders’ D-man by Joe Pantorno, AMNY “Perhaps it’s time to start having a legitimate conversation about Islanders defenseman Noah Dobson’s candidacy for the Norris Trophy, which is awarded annually to the defenseman deemed best in the NHL.”
And we leave you with this…old hockey tickets and construction paper created this work of art by Sam Kaplan; you can see more of her work on Instagram.
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