Isles Shut Out Again, 3-0

The Isles take yet another loss this season as they get shut out by the Panthers.


Photo Of The Game:




Scoring:

1ST PERIOD

No Scoring

2ND PERIOD

1. Stephen Weiss (PPG) (8:30)

3RD PERIOD

2. Nathan Horton (PPG) (3:31)

3. Olli Jokinen (EN) (19:48)








Notes From The Game:

-We can't score.

-Ugly, ugly game.

-DP coming up big, but it didn't do much.

-Penalties!

-We need to boost up that PK a bit. Too many SHGA.

-Here were the lines-

ISLANDERS
Goaltenders
39 Rick DiPietro
34 Wade Dubielewicz

Defensemen
32 Brendan Witt - 24 Radek Martinek
25 Andy Sutton – 4 Bryan Berard
14 Chris Campoli – 8 Bruno Gervais

Forwards
26 Ruslan Fedotenko – 89 Mike Comrie – 13 Bill Guerin
15 Jeff Tambellini – 63 Josef Vasicek – 81 Miroslav Satan
11 Andy Hilbert – 18 Mike Sillinger – 7 Trent Hunter
12 Chris Simon – 10 Richard Park – 20 Sean Bergenheim


FLORIDA
Goaltenders
29 Tomas Vokoun
31 Craig Anderson

Defensemen
2 Branislav Mezei - 24 Ruslan Salei
5 Bryan Allen - 4 Jay Bouwmeester
22 Jassen Cullimore - 7 Steve Montador

Forwards
16 Nathan Horton - 12 Olli Jokinen - 18 Ville Peltonen
10 David Booth - 9 Stephen Weiss - 20 Richard Zednik
85 Rostislav Olesz - 15 Jozef Stumpel - 14 Radek Dvorak
54 Kamil Kreps - 11 Gregory Campbell - 37 Tanner Glass

Short Preview, Isles @ Panthers 12/7/07 7:00 PM

Well, this is not a normal thing for me, but I will not be able to watch the game tonight, because I will be out of my house doing some other things. I have to get going now, so I really don't have any time to put together a Pre-Game Post. I might not be home until really late, so this will be my post for now.

So as I leave, I will leave you with a link from an HFBoards preview made by the user, "Law".

He really deserves some credit for his work more openly than just the forums.

http://hfboards.com/showthread.php?t=451349

Official Preview:

The Islanders play game two of their three-game Sun Belt road trip, tonight against the Florida Panthers at Bank Atlantic Center.

In game one, the Islanders fought back from a 3-1 deficit against the Atlanta Thrashers, ultimately falling 4-3 in a shootout. Mike Comrie potted his ninth goal of the season in the first period to tie Josef Vasicek for the team lead in goals. Mike Sillinger and Trent Hunter each scored their fifth of the season with Hunter's coming on the man-advantage.

The Islanders found themselves down 3-1 in the second period after surrendering their fourth and fifth shorthanded goals of the season. Hunter tied the game at three at the 7:32 mark of the third period. In the shootout session, Slava Kozlov and Ilya Kovalchuk scored to clinch the win for Atlanta.

Despite going 0-3-1 in their past four games, the Islanders are only four points behind Philadelphia, New Jersey and the Rangers, who each sit atop the Atlantic Division standings with 32 points. A win tonight by the Islanders would put them in a fourth place tie in the division with idle Pittsburgh.

The Islanders travel to Sunrise, Florida to meet the Panthers, whom they've had some recent success against at Bank Atlantic Center. Over their past 12 meetings in Florida, the Panthers have come away with only three wins, and those have all taken place on March 17 – St. Patrick's Day – in 2004, 2006 and 2007. So history is on the Islanders' side.

Florida sits in fourth place in the Southeast Division, and tied for 13th in the Eastern Conference with 25 points.

The Panthers are led by captain Olli Jokinen, who paces Florida in most major offensive categories including goals (14), assists (15), points (19) and power play points (14).

In goal for Florida is former Nashville Predator Tomas Vokoun, who is playing in his first season with the Panthers. He sports a record one game above .500, a 2.79 GAA and .914 SV%.

Florida is amidst a three-game losing streak having dropped consecutive contests to Boston, Washington and most recently Ottawa. Prior to their three-game skid they had won four straight games.

Isles Take Loss In Shootout, 4-3

The Isles lose their 4th in a row in their second shootout of the season.


Photo Of The Game:







Scoring:

1ST PERIOD

1. Mike Comrie (10:02)

2ND PERIOD

2. Marian Hossa (SHG) (7:06)

3. Ilya Kovalchuk (11:34)

4. Pasal Dupuis (SHG) (15:36)

5. Mike Sillinger (19:41)

3RD PERIOD

6. Trent Hunter (PPG) (7:32)

OVERTIME

No Scoring

SHOOTOUT

2-0 Thrashers (Kozlov, Kovalchuk)









Notes From The Game:

-Offense finally broke through.

-3 goals!!

-Chris "Extremely Good Game" Campoli.

-DP!!!

-Shootout was one of the only problems.

-Took the 1 point gladly.

-Two shorties against? Not so good.

-Scoring? Check. Defense? Check. Goaltending? Check. Win? Ch-er nope.

-Here were the lines-

ISLANDERS
Goaltenders
39 Rick DiPietro
34 Wade Dubielewicz

Defensemen
32 Brendan Witt - 24 Radek Martinek
25 Andy Sutton – 47 Marc-Andre Bergeron
14 Chris Campoli – 8 Bruno Gervais

Forwards
26 Ruslan Fedotenko – 89 Mike Comrie – 13 Bill Guerin
15 Jeff Tambellini – 63 Josef Vasicek – 81 Miroslav Satan
11 Andy Hilbert – 18 Mike Sillinger – 7 Trent Hunter
12 Chris Simon – 10 Richard Park – 20 Sean Bergenheim


ATLANTA
Goaltenders
32 Kari Lehtonen
1 Johan Hedberg

Defensemen
28 Niclas Havelid – 39 Tobias Enstrom
2 Garnet Exelby – 22 Ken Klee
7 Mark Popovic – 77 Alexei Zhitnik

Forwards
17 Ilya Kovalchuk – 12 Todd White – 18 Marian Hossa
13 Slava Kozlov – 16 Bobby Holik –27 Chris Thorburn
10 Bryan Little – 11 Eric Perrin – 38 Darren Haydar
36 Eric Boulton – 23 Jim Slater – 9 Pascal Dupuis

PGP Game 26, Isles @ Thrashers 12/5/07 7:00 PM

The Isles will be in Atlanta tonight to take on the Thrashers in game 2 of the season series.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Big Matchup:

Kovalchuck vs. DiPietro

DiPietro was not in net the last time these two teams faced off, but tonight he will be between the pipes. Ilya Kovalchuck, the NHL's leading goal scorer, has some serious skill, as we have seen in the past game. 34 seconds in to the game, he got one by Wade Dubielewicz for a Thrashers 1-0 lead. That was all the Thrashers really needed to come away with a 4-0 victory. Things can go different this time for the 22 goal scorer. Ricky will definitely be better in net than Dubie, and the offense will have to end up hitting a spark now. When you think Kovalchuck, red lights start flashing in your head. Tonight, I think Rick DiPietro will get the better of the matchup.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------





The Islanders, coming off of 3 straight losses, are in need of turning things around.
The major factor in those 3 games, is, of course, the offense.

The 3 losses to the Rangers, Thrashers, and Bruins were absolutely terrible when you look at the stats. They scored 3 goals, and the opposing team scored 11 goals. Oof. That's not so good.

It is really unfair to blame an Islander independently on the scoring drought. No one seems to be able to put it in. Maybe bad luck is the blame, or rough ice, goalies, blocked shots, etc. But scoring chances will go in some of the time. The Isles are generating those, so they just need to have the right aim to finish it.

To continue the ugly statistics, the Isles haven't scored more than 2 regulation goals in the past 13 games. If you don't think that is a problem, then you must be a soccer fan.

Going back to the "old" line combinations tonight, things may go back to the "old" success from the beginning of the season. Maybe that, and a nice road trip with their fathers will give them the boost to put it in again.

My Projected Lines:

Goaltenders
39 Rick DiPietro
34 Wade Dubielewicz

Defensemen
32 Brendan Witt – 24 Radek Martinek
25 Andy Sutton – 4 Bryan Berard
14 Chris Campoli – 8 Bruno Gervais

Forwards
26 Ruslan Fedotenko – 89 Mike Comrie – 13 Bill Guerin
11 Andy Hilbert – 18 Mike Sillinger – 7 Trent Hunter
15 Jeff Tambellini – 63 Josef Vasicek – 81 Miroslav Satan
20 Sean Bergenheim – 10 Richard Park – 12 Chris Simon

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------




The Thrashers aren't doing the best overall, either. They come in with a record of 12-13-1, and losing 4 out of 5.

At least, for them, they have all-star (or going to be all-star yet again) Ilya Kovalchuck. He is really their only offense, other than Marian Hossa and Tobias Enstrom. Getting a couple points against the Isles last game was nothing to him. We can all see more than that, if he can beat the DP wall.

Will Kari Lehtonen back in net, it will give Atlanta some muh needed goaltending talent. Not that Johan Hedberg is bad, but I'm sure anyone would take Kari over him anyday.

The Thrashers aren't so hot, and neither are the Isles. Both teams are about even in records, with the Isles having a slight advantage in that category.

My Projected Lines:

Goaltenders
32 Kari Lehtonen
1 Johan Hedberg

Defensemen
39 Tobias Enstrom - 28 Niclas Havelid
2 Garnet Exelby – 22 Ken Klee
77 Alexei Zhitnik - 7 Mark Popovic

Forwards
17 Ilya Kovalchuk – 12 Todd White – 18 Marian Hossa
13 Slava Kozlov – 16 Bobby Holik – 27 Chris Thorburn
10 Bryan Little – 11 Eric Perrin – 38 Darren Haydar
36 Eric Boulton – 23 Jim Slater – 9 Pascal Dupuis

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Official Preview:

"The Islanders take to the road this week on a three-game swing against Southeast Division opponents. Tonight at 7 pm, the Islanders rematch against the Atlanta Thrashers at Philips Arena, having lost to them at the Nassau Coliseum on Saturday.

A road trip might be exactly what the Islanders need, having dropped their past three games by combined scores of 9-2.

The lack of offense has caused head coach Ted Nolan to juggle the lines to create some more chemistry. The latest line combinations mirror those that were used earlier in the season during the Islanders' strong run to begin the year.

The trio of Bill Guerin, Mike Comrie and Ruslan Fedotenko, which began the season as one of the best lines in the NHL has been reunited. Mike Sillinger, Andy Hilbert and Trent Hunter, who have played side-by-side a majority of the past two years, but were split up recently, will once again skate together. The Czechoslovakian-born tandem of Miroslav Satan and Josef Vasicek are paired together with recent call-up Jeff Tambellini. Richard Park, Chris Simon and Sean Bergenheim will also see time on the same line.

On defense, Bruno Gervais sat out his first game of the season on Monday against Boston, due to minor bumps and bruises, according to Nolan.

The last time the Islanders went on the road for three games, they came away with a 2-1-0 record. This occurred from November 12-16, when the Islanders were in the middle of their seven-game Atlantic Division run. The Islanders lost to Philadelphia on the 12th, but then won back-to-back games against Pittsburgh and New Jersey on the 15th and 16th.

The Islanders face a Thrashers team, which they lost to 4-0 on Saturday, thanks to goals by Ilya Kovalchuk, Marian Hossa, Slava Kozlov and Eric Boulton.

Since their victory over the Islanders, Atlanta dropped a 3-2 shootout decision against New Jersey. Kovalchuk scored his NHL-leading 22nd goal of the season mid-way through the third period to send the game into overtime. Following a scoreless overtime, the teams met in the shootout.

Brian Gionta scored the lone shootout goal as Martin Brodeur stopped Hossa, Kozlov and Kovalchuk to secure the victory.

Atlanta remained one game under .500 and third in the Atlantic Division standings."

A Peek Into The Future

As we have one of only so many off days today, I will keep you up to date on my new thoughts for my blog, Islander Zone.

You may have noticed that in my game review for the Thrashers game, there was a new 3 Star selection box. This will be included in every game review for the rest of the year.

I have a few other ideas to go along with my Photo Of The Game tournament at the end of the year. I am also thinking of a goal of the week, or save of the week tournament. This may be harder to get done, as I will have to fetch up all of the video's I need to find. But I think this may be cool to get done.

I do plan on making things neater in the game reviews, so they an look nice and sharp. These reviews are what seems to appear most on the blog, so I think they deserve to be good lookin'.

By the end of the season, who knows what I will have in mind for my blog. I'd expect at least double the amount of visitors I get now by then, so that will make me try harder to make this site have all resources for everything Isles.


Let's Go Isles!!!

Isles Lose A Tough One, 3-1.

Scoring remains the Isles #1 problem, as they lose their 3rd straight, Bruins 3 Isles 1.


Photo Of The Game:




Scoring:

1ST PERIOD

1. Glen Murray (PPG) (13:03)

2ND PERIOD

2. Petteri Nokelainen (18:04)

3RD PERIOD

3. Chuck Kobasew (PPG) (16:35)

4. Chris Campoli (PPG) (18:09)







Notes From The Game:

-Another ugly one.

-We did score a goal, but it really didn't matter with the fact that it came in the final 2.

-3 losses in a row. Please don't make this bigger.

-Rick DiPietro was once again our best player.

-Berard played great.

-Campoli played pretty good.

-Here were the lines-


ISLANDERS
Goaltenders
39 Rick DiPietro
34 Wade Dubielewicz

Defensemen
32 Brendan Witt - 24 Radek Martinek
25 Andy Sutton - 4 Bryan Berard/
14 Chris Campoli - 47 Marc-Andre Bergeron

Forwards
26 Ruslan Fedotenko – 63 Josef Vasicek – 13 Bill Guerin
20 Sean Bergenheim – 18 Mike Sillinger – 7 Trent Hunter
15 Jeff Tambellini – 89 Mike Comrie – 81 Miroslav Satan
12 Chris Simon – 10 Richard Park -11 Andy Hilbert


BOSTON
Goaltenders
30 Tim Thomas
40 Tuukka Rask

Defensemen
45 Mark Stuart - 33 Zdeno Chara
41 Andrew Alberts - 6 Dennis Wideman
48 Matt Humwick - 38 Bobby Allen

Forwards
11 P.J. Axelsson – 91 Marc Savard - 27 Glen Murray
16 Marco Sturm – 13 Glen Metropolit - 12 Chuck Kobasew
72 Peter Schaefer - 81 Phil Kessel – 56 Petteri Nokelainen
17 Milan Lucic - 60 Vladimir Sobotka - 53 Jeremy Reich

Tambellini Re-Called

Hallelujah! Is it Christmas already? Well, how would you all like an early holiday gift?

Jeff Tambellini was recalled from Bridgeport this morning.

http://islanders.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=345231

"Jeff Tambellini was recalled from Bridgeport (AHL) this morning and joined the Islanders in time for their practice this afternoon at Islanders Iceworks. Last night the wing had a goal, an assist and the decisive goal in the shootout in the Sound Tigers' 4-3 win over Lowell.

"We need to shake things up to get our offense going," said Islanders head coach Ted Nolan. "Jeff's speed and skill should be a big help to us."

The 23-year old Tambellini practiced today on a line with center Mike Comrie and right wing Miroslav Satan.

"Miro and Mike are two-world class players," Tambellini said after practice. "This is an opportunity I need to take advantage of to prove I belong in the NHL on a regular basis."

In 20 games with Bridgeport this season, the 5-11, 190-pound Tambellini has seven goals and 14 assists for 21 points.

The Islanders host the Boston Bruins on Monday night at 7:05 pm at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Kids 16 and under can receive free tickets to the game starting at 5:00 pm at the Coliseum box office. This special event - which also includes a Toys for Tots collection by the United States Marines - is made possible by Rexcorp Islanders Inspire, an initiative of the New York Islanders Children's Foundation.

We'll see Monday night if Nolan goes back to utilizing four forward lines. Here were the combinations at today's practice:

Fedotenko - Vasicek - Guerin
Bergenheim - Sillinger - Hunter
Tambellini - Comrie - Satan
Simon - Park - Hilbert"


Yes!


Let's Go Isles!!!

Isles Get Shut Down, Thrashers 4 Isles 0

The Isles get shutout for the first time this season in a absolutely terrible game.


Photo Of The Game:




Scoring:

1ST PERIOD

1. Ilya Kovalchuck (0:34)

2. Eric Boulton (6:12)

3. Marian Hossa (7:02)

4. Slava Kozlov (19:47)

2ND PERIOD

No Scoring

3RD PERIOD

No Scoring








Notes From The Game:

-Absolutely sickening game for everyone.

-Dubie wasn't too good.

-First time this year we got shutout by another team.

-Stop the penalties! Please!

-19 shots in the 3rd. Nice.

-We lost the game 34 seconds in.

-The. New. York. Islanders. Can't. Score.

-Here were the lines-

ISLANDERS
Goaltenders
34 Wade Dubielewicz
39 Rick DiPietro

Defensemen
32 Brendan Witt - 24 Radek Martinek
25 Andy Sutton – 4 Bryan Berard
14 Chris Campoli - 8 Bruno Gervais
47 Marc-Andre Bergeron

Forwards
10 Richard Park - 89 Mike Comrie - 13 Bill Guerin
11 Andy Hilbert - 18 Mike Sillinger - 7 Trent Hunter
26 Ruslan Fedotenko - 63 Josef Vasicek - 81 Miroslav Satan
12 Chris Simon – 20 Sean Bergenheim


ATLANTA
Goaltenders
32 Kari Lehtonen
1 Johan Hedberg

Defensemen
39 Tobias Enstrom - 28 Niclas Havelid
2 Garnet Exelby – 22 Ken Klee
77 Alexei Zhitnik - 7 Mark Popovic

Forwards
17 Ilya Kovalchuk – 12 Todd White – 18 Marian Hossa
13 Slava Kozlov – 16 Bobby Holik – 27 Chris Thorburn
10 Bryan Little – 11 Eric Perrin – 38 Darren Haydar
36 Eric Boulton – 23 Jim Slater – 9 Pascal Dupuis