"The Skinny"
By Eric Hornick
Game 35
Pittsburgh 2, Isles 0
The Pittsburgh Penguins lost Sidney Crosby to a broken jaw just 87 seconds into play and then lost Chris Kunitz to a game misconduct in the second period, yet they still had enough to extend their winning streak to 15 straight games with a 2-0 win over the Isles before a sellout crowd of 18,673 at the Consol Energy Center. The loss, coupled with the Rangers' 3-0 loss in Montreal, leave the Islanders in a tie for 8th place in the Eastern Conference.
The Scoring:
1st Period
NONE
2nd Period
NONE
3rd Period
08:10 PIT M. Cooke (6) Wrist - ASST: D. Engelland (5) AND T. Kennedy (4) 1 - 0 PIT
13:04 PIT J. Neal (18) Snap - ASST: E. Malkin (20) AND D. Murray (4) 2 - 0 PIT
The Skinny:
The Isles had their own three-game winning streak (and four-game road winning streak) stopped. It was the Isles' first three-game winning streak in almost exactly a year (March 25-29, 2012)… Kyle Okposo played his 100th consecutive game…Tomas Vokoun recorded his third shutout of the season as the Penguins recorded their third straight shutout win; it was Vokoun's 51st shutout of the season. The Penguins have not allowed a goal in a franchise-record 208:24 while Vokoun's scoreless streak is now a Penguin-record 162:42.
Longest Winning Streaks, NHL History
· 17- Penguins (1992-93)
· 15- Islanders (1981-82; all in regulation time)
· 15- Penguins (CURRENT)
· 14- Bruins (1929-30)
· 14- Capitals (2009-10)
The Standings (including Saturday night's games):
· 7 New Jersey 35 games 15-11-9 39 points Next games: Monday vs. Isles, Thursday at Boston
· 8 NY Rangers 34 games 16-15-3 35 points Next games: Monday vs. Winnipeg, Wednesday vs. Pittsburgh
· 9 NY Islanders 35 games 16-16-3 35 points Next games: Monday at Devils, Tuesday vs. Winnipeg
(Each of the three teams has 13 regulation/overtime wins; the Rangers are still ahead of the Isles because they have one more game to play.)
Road Warriors
The Isles have 21 points in their first 16 road games, which is their highest total in the Post-Cup era.
Most points in first 16 road games (all time):
· 25 in 1976-77 (12-3-1)
· 22 in 1980-81 (10-4-2)
· 22 in 1983-84 (10-4-2)
· 21 in 2012-13 (10-5-1)
· 21 in 1978-79 (9-4-3)
· 20 in 2001-02 (9-5-2)
The Shots:
Isles 12-12-11=35
Penguins 5-13-9=27
Home and Road
The Islanders are 16-16-3 overall, 6-11-2 at home and 10-5-1 on the road. Their 35 points in 35 games is their highest total since they had 38 points in 35 games in 2007-08.
The Penguins are 28-8-0 overall, 15-4-0 at home and 13-4-0 on the road. The Penguins have now won a franchise-best 12 consecutive home games.
In the Nets
Evgeni Nabokov made 25 saves but falls to 16-11-3 this season. No other Islander goalie owns a win this season.
Tomas Vokoun made 35 saves for his 3rd career shutout; he is 10-3-0 on the season. Vokoun has recorded at least three shutouts in 10 consecutive seasons.
Vokoun continues his great play against the Isles, particularly at home. He is now 12-1 in 14 home appearances against the Islanders, including 5 shutouts.
Power Plays
The Islanders went 0-4 while the Penguins were 0-2
The Isles have 14 PP goals in their last 20 games (with all 14 goals coming in seven games).
The Isles are 11-3-1 when they score at least one power play goal and 5-13-2 when they do not.
In (Almost) Every Game
The Isles have been tied or ahead at some point in the third period in 29 of 35games this season (16-10-3). By comparison, Pittsburgh has been ahead or tied in the third period of all but five games this season (28-3-0). The difference: the Isles have been outscored 50-35 in the third period, while Pittsburgh has outscored their opponents 46-23 in the third period.
They Said It
Tomas Vokoun: "It's nice to come up with a shutout, but to preserve a winning streak is even better. We had a lot of fun with it."
They Tweeted It
@MolinariPG: Penguins' 15-0 record in March makes them the first NHL team to be perfect in a month with 10 or more games.
The Coach
"I don't look at it as their top two scorers are out. I mean, that team's pretty dynamic right there. You just saw what they can do."
As Tavares Goes…
The Isles are 1-0-0 when Tavares has four points, 1-0-1 when he has three points, 5-2-0 when he has two points, 8-4-0 when he has one point, and 1-10-2 when Tavares is pointless.
What a Pair!
John Tavares and Matt Moulson have combined for 32 goals this season. Moulson has assisted on 16 Tavares goals this season after assisting on 12 of his 31 goals last season. Tavares has earned an assist on 7 Moulson goals this season. Since November 2011, Tavares has been on-ice for 39 of Moulson's last 40 goals, earning 25 assists; since November 2010, he has earned 47 assists on Moulson's last 71 goals, while being on ice for 69 of them.
Head of the Class
John Tavares has 238 career points; he is 55 points ahead of Matt Duchene for most among 2009 draft picks. No other player in that draft is anywhere close. Tavares also has more goals and more assists than any other player in that draft.
114 NHL Goals
Moulson has 114 career goals (108 as an Islander). While 262 players were selected before the Penguins chose Moulson in the 2003 entry draft, only 17 have more goals. Moulson is one goal behind Nikolai Zherdev for 16th place.
Leading Ice Men
Lubomir Visnovsky played 27:43 to lead the Isles. Brooks Orpik led the Penguins with 22:19.
Bad Day for Orpik
It was a milestone day for the Penguins' Brooks Orpik, who played in his 621st career games, tying him with Ron Stackhouse for the most ever by a Penguin defenseman. However the day did not start or end well for Orpik. It was Orpik's shot that hit Sidney Crosby in the jaw early in the game, and late in the evening his alma mater (Boston College) was eliminated by Union College in the NCAA Playoffs.
In the Circle
The Islanders won only 22 of 61 draws. Kyle Okposo won 4 of 7 for the Isles; Craig Adams won 8 of 9 and Brandon Sutter won 16 of 21 for Penguins.
Heavy Hitters
The Islanders were out-hit 30-12. Matt Martin and John Tavares each had three hits. Martin leads the NHL with 169 hits. There were no fights, leaving the Isles' season total at 13.
Giving Up the Body
The Isles were credited with 13 blocked shots. Travis Hamonic and had three to lead the team.
All–time Winners
The Islanders move three games over all-time NHL .500 (1363-1361-435 in 3,159 games). The Isles have been one game below .500 twice last season and four times this season. Prior to that, they had not been below NHL .500 since they were 177-178-83 prior to their victory on January 16, 1978.
March to Victory
The Isles were 4-2-1 in January and 4-9-1 in February. The Isles finish March with an 8-5-1 record.
Ironmen
Matt Moulson, the Isles' reigning ironman, has played in all 281 games since joining the team. Moulson's streak is the longest for an Islander in the Post-Cup era. Billy Harris played in the first 576 games in Islander history; that figure still stands as the club record.
Three other Islanders, Frans Nielsen, John Tavares and Mark Streit, also played in every game last season. Tavares extended his streak to 194 consecutive games, while Nielsen and Streit have each played in 117.
Kyle Okposo played his 100th consecutive game. Four other Islanders have played every game this season Travis Hamonic (57 consecutive games), Matt Martin (48), Andrew Mac Donald & Brad Boyes (35).
Longest Consecutive Game Streaks, Islander History
1. Billy Harris 576
2. Bob Nystrom 301
3. Matt Moulson 281
4. Denis Potvin 262
Century Club
Mark Streit now has the sixth longest consecutive game streak of any defenseman in Islander history:
1. Denis Potvin 11/29/1975-1/17/1979 262
2. Bryan McCabe 10/7/1995-2/4/1998 220
3. Gerry Hart 3/1/1975-11/22/1977 198
4. Janne Niinimaa 3/13/2004-1/7/2006 136
5. Ken Morrow 3/1/1980-12/29/1981 134
6. Mark Streit 10/8/2011-CURRENT 117
7. Travis Hamonic 11/24/2010 – 2/4/2012 113
8. Jean Potvin 10/23/1975-1/2/1977 110
9. Kenny Jonsson 12/26/1996-2/4/1998 104
Hamonic, McCabe and Morrow's streaks came at the start of their NHL careers. Both Niinimaa's streak and McCabe's streak encompassed their entire Islander careers.
Missing Men
Eric Boulton was replaced by Marty Reasoner in the lineup. Joe Finley and Radek Martinek were also scratched. David Ullstrom and Brian Strait are on injured reserve. Jesse Joensuu is skating with the team but has not yet been added to the active roster.
Scoring
The Isles have scored 64 goals in their 16 wins (4.00 per game) and 33 goals in their other 19 games (0-16-3; 1.74 per game). In their 16 regulation losses, the Isles have scored 24 goals (1.50 per game).
Career Wins, Active Goalies
Career Wins
19. Nikolai Khabibulin 331
20. Harry Lumley 330
22. Sean Burke 324
23. Miikka Kiprusoff 317
Career Shutouts, Active Goalies
Career Shutouts
18 Clint Benedict 57
19 Evgeni Nabokov 55
20 Bernie Parent 54
20 Ed Giacomin 54
Career Goals as an Islander
| 21 | Ray Ferraro | 116 | |
| 22 | Matt Moulson | 108 | |
| 23 | John Tavares | 105 | |
| 23 | Benoit Hogue | 105 | |
| 23 | Ed Westfall | 105 | |
| 26 | Anders Kallur | 101 | |
| | | | |
| Career Assists as an Islander | |||
| 27 | Greg Gilbert | 138 | |
| 28 | John Tavares | 133 | |
| 29 | Jason Blake | 131 | |
| 30 | Trent Hunter | 130 | |
| 30 | Mark Streit | 130 | |
| 32 | Frans Nielsen | 128 | |
| 33 | Benoit Hogue | 124 | |
| 33 | Mikko Makela | 124 | |
Career Games as an Islander (skaters)
| 25 | Gerry Hart | 476 |
| 26 | Mariusz Czerkawski | 470 |
| 27 | Radek Martinek | 462 |
| 28 | Trent Hunter | 459 |
| 39 | Randy Wood | 381 |
| 40 | Frans Nielsen | 354 |
| 41 | Dave Scatchard | 347 |
| 52 | Brad Dalgarno | 321 |
| 53 | Ray Ferraro | 316 |
| 53 | Steve Webb | 316 |
| 53 | Richard Park | 316 |
| 53 | Josh Bailey | 316 |
| 57 | Gerald Diduck | 314 |
| 58 | Mikko Makela | 307 |
| 59 | Kyle Okposo | 306 |
| 60 | Gordon Lane | 304 |
| 61 | Arron Asham | 300 |
| 61 | Roman Hamrlik | 300 |
| 63 | Gordon Dineen | 287 |
| 64 | Jeffrey Norton | 282 |
| 65 | Matt Moulson | 281 |
| 66 | John Tavares | 278 |
| 67 | Steve Thomas | 275 |
| 68 | Mark Streit | 273 |
| 69 | Blake Comeau | 261 |
| 69 | Andre St. Laurent | 261 |
| | | |
Career Points as an Islander
| 23 | David Volek | 249 |
| 24 | Ray Ferraro | 238 |
| 24 | John Tavares | 238 |
| 26 | Travis Green | 237 |
| 35 | Anders Kallur | 211 |
| 36 | Matt Moulson | 205 |
| 37 | Marty McInnis | 198 |
| 38 | Wayne Merrick | 197 |
| 39 | Robert Goring | 195 |
| 40 | Jeffrey Norton | 188 |
| 41 | Frans Nielsen | 185 |
| 42 | Lorne Henning | 184 |
| 43 | Kyle Okposo | 175 |
| 44 | Randy Wood | 172 |
| 45 | Claude Lapointe | 171 |
| 45 | Jean-Paul Parise | 171 |
| 47 | Shawn Bates | 170 |
| 48 | Jude Drouin | 169 |
| 48 | Mark Streit | 169 |
| 50 | Dave Scatchard | 168 |
Season Series Stats
The Penguins win the season series four games to one (and eight points to two). The Penguins won the last four games by a combined 16 goals to five.
Happy Anniversary
33 years ago tonight (March 30, 1980): Butch Goring scored shorthanded into an empty net to complete his first hat trick for the Islanders as the Isles defeat the Nordiques 9-6 at LeColisee in Quebec City. Real Cloutier had a hat trick in a losing cause.
Also on this date: 1993 – Pierre Turgeon scores his 49th goal of the season to break a 1-1 tie as the Isles beat Philly 2-1.
All-time, the Isles are 4-9-1 on this date, including 0-8-0 since that 1993 win.
On The Farm
Bridgeport is 27-28-6-5 on the season after a 4-1 loss at Glens Falls on Saturday. The Sound Tigers are eight points out of a playoff spot with ten games to play. Bridgeport visits Worcester on Tuesday; following that game, seven of their final nine games are at home.
Up Next
MONDAY, APRIL 1st ISLANDERS AT NEW JERSEY (7:00PM)
[MSG+2 (pre-game show at 6:30), WRHU (88.7FM]
[MSG+2 (pre-game show at 6:30), WRHU (88.7FM]
The road trip concludes as the Isles face the Devils in Newark.
It's the final meeting of the season between the teams and each squad has won twice so far. Brad Boyes' overtime goal was the difference in an Isles win in the only previous game in Newark.
The Isles will come into the game four points behind the Devils; each team has 13 games to play.
As the Isles go in April in a playoff chase, an old friend steps back behind the microphone as Jiggs McDonald fills in for Howie Rose for the first of seven times this month.
Eric Hornick has been the statistician on Islander home game telecasts since 1982. Information contained in "The Skinny" has been gathered from various sources. Follow Eric @ehornick on Twitter.
Forever1940 is the nom de plume of Eric Hornick, statistician on Islander home telecasts since January 21, 1982. Visit my blog: NYISkinny.com and follow me on Twitter @ehornick
