The Skinny: Kings 5, Isles 1

"The Skinny"
 
By Eric Hornick
 
Game 17
Los Angeles 5, Islanders 1
 
Anze Kopitar scored twice in the first 5:02 of the game, and the Islanders
trailed the whole evening as Los Angeles defeated the Isles 5-1 before a sellout
crowd of 18,118 at Staples Center in Los Angeles.  The Islanders have now lost
10 straight games (0-9-1), while Western Conference leading LA now has 24
points, one behind Washington for the NHL lead; the Kings have two games in hand
on Washington. 

Schremp Gets One Back
Islander Coach Scott Gordon called time-out after Kopitar's second goal, and the
Islanders responded with a goal just 37 seconds later.  Rob Schremp scored his
first goal since last March 5th, with James Wisniewski credited for a
team-leading 11th assist.

Williams Extends Streaks
Hard work by Justin Williams provided Los Angeles with the only goal of the
second period as he batted a rebound past Dwayne Roloson.  Jarrett Stoll and
Scott Parse earned assists on the play, which extended Williams' point streak to
nine games (matching a career high) and Stoll's and Parse's point streaks to six
and three games, respectively.
Brown Connects on Penalty Shot
Dustin Brown was pulled them midway through the third and was awarded a penalty
shot.  He beat Roloson for the 4-1 lead.  It was the 2nd penalty shot against
Roloson this season; he stopped Benoit Pouliot of Montreal earlier.  It's the
first time that there has been a penalty shot in a game between these teams
since Billy Smith stopped Charlie Simmer in 1979.   (The Isles have had only one
penalty shot against LA, and it came in the second game in franchise history. 
Billy Smith was stopped by Rogatien Vachon on October 1, 1972.)
Fisticuffs
Matt Martin and Kevin Westgarth fought 9 minutes into the third, which might
have brought a smile to Cornell's Matt Moulson.  Westgarth played hockey for
Princeton.  Drew Doughty's power play goal cemented the score.  Westgarth also
fought with Zenon Konopka (Konopka's NHL-leading 8th fight) with just over one
minute to play. 5-1 Final.
Home and Road
Los Angeles improves to 12-3-0, 8-0-0 at home.  It's the best 15-game start in
Kings history and the first time that they have opened the season with eight
straight home wins. The Isles are 4-10-3, 2-8-2 on the road. 

Unbalanced Schedule
This is the earliest in Islander history that they played their 12th road game
by both number of games and the calendar.  The previous earliest date was
November 17th, which they did both in 2001 and 2005; in both 1992-93 and 2001-02
they opened with 12 out of 19 on the road.
In the Nets
Dwayne Roloson, playing for the fifth straight game, finished with 30 saves. 
His record falls to 2-7-1.
Jonathan Quick made 18 saves for the Kings, including four off the stick of his
brother-in-law (Moulson).  Quick is now 10-1-0 on the season.  He has beaten the
Islanders in each of the last four games (once in a shootout) between the teams,
allowing just five goals. 

 Power Plays
The Isles failed on five power plays while the Kings went 1-4.  The Kings have
not allowed a power play goal at home this season (31-31).  The Isles' power
play went 0-California (0-12), while the penalty killers stopped 9 of 11 on the
trip.
Can't Win if You Can't Score
The Isles have scored only eight goals in the last eight games.  It's the fewest
goals that the Isles have scored in an eight-game stretch since the inaugural
1972-73 season.  They've been held to one goal or fewer in five straight games,
matching the club record set in 1972-73 and equaled in 2003-04.
Not Schwarzenegger's Fault
The Isles went 0-2-1 on this California trip, scoring just twice.  They are
0-4-2 in their last six games in the Golden State, dating back to a shootout win
in Anaheim in October, 2006.
In the Circle
There were 67 draws, and the Isles won 44 of them (67%).  Rob Schremp (7-1) and
Frans Nielsen (10-2) were the Isles' best face-off men.
It's Over, Finally
This was the final game in a 15 game stretch in which the Islanders played 12
times on the road and only three times at home.  After going 3-1-1 in the first
five, they went 0-9-1 in the final 10. It's the first time that they've gone ten
without a win (single season) since December 4- 23, 2008. The schedule will now
finally change, with the Islanders playing ten of the next 14 at home.
Missing Men
Mark Streit, Kyle Okposo and Andrew MacDonald remain out for extended periods
while Milan Jurcina is out with a hamstring injury.  With Jack Hillen under the
weather, Rob Schremp returned to the lineup.  Trevor Gillies remains a healthy
scratch.

Missing Mac
The Isles are 0-9-1 in the ten games Andrew MacDonald has missed.
3 or Less
The Isles have been held to three goals or fewer in 12 straight games (2-9-1)
since tallying five against Colorado on October 16.  It's the longest that the
team has gone without scoring four goals since a 14-game stretch last December
5th-31st.
Season Series Stats          
The Kings lead the season series, 1-0.  A rematch is scheduled for Long Island
on February 19th.   The Isles are winless in their last seven games against Los
Angeles (5 losses, a shootout loss and a tie).
Happy Anniversary
31 years ago today (November 13, 1979): The Islanders defeated the Rangers 10-5
in the first meeting of the teams since the previous spring's playoff.  This is
the famed "Double Chili" game.  In those days, the Isles needed six goals for
Chili.  They reached that mark early in the 2nd period. With a Wendy's executive
in the House, "Double Chili" was announced after the eighth goal if the Isles
reached ten goals.  Denis Potvin (who Ranger fans never seemed to like) scored
the Double Chili goal with 7:53 to play.  It's one of only nine times that the
Isles have scored ten goals in a game; all nine occurred in 1984 or earlier. 
Three of the 9 were against the Rangers.
The Isles had won three straight November 13th games, including last year's
overtime win in Carolina.
Up Next
Wednesday, November 17th- Tampa Bay @ Islanders 7:00pm
[MSG+ (Subway Islanders Game Night at 6:30), WRHU 88.7FM]
The Islanders have played only five of their first 17 games at home.  They will
match that total in the next six games as they will play five at home, including
Wednesday night's game with Tampa Bay. It's the second meeting of the teams this
season; Matt Moulson's overtime goal gave the Islanders their most recent win,
on October 21st in Tampa Bay.  The Islanders have won five of the last six
against Tampa Bay at the Coliseum.
And Finally…
Heartfelt sympathies to Ottawa Senators Assistant Coach Luke Richardson on the
tragic loss of his 14 year old daughter. 

 
Eric Hornick has been the statistician on Islander home game telecasts since
1982. Information contained in "The Skinny" has been gathered from various
sources.
 Forever1940 is the nom de plume of Eric Hornick, statistician on Islander home
telecasts since 1982. Visit my blog: forever1940.blogspot.com and follow me on
Twitter @ehornick