"The Skinny"
By Eric Hornick
Game 27
St. Louis 6, Isles 4
Paul Stastny scored the tie-breaking goal with 6:34 to play as the St. Louis Blues rallied from 3-0 and 4-3 deficits to defeat the Islanders 6-4 before a sellout crowd of 16,170 at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The loss snapped Jaroslav Halak's franchise-record 11 game winning streak and dropped the Islanders back into a tie for first place in the Metropolitan Division with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Marty Brodeur recorded his 689th career win (and first as a Blue) in relief of Jake Allen.
The Scoring:
1ST PERIOD
07:57 NYI PPG - Frans Nielsen (6) Wrist shot - ASST: Kyle Okposo (18), Nick Leddy (7) 1 - 0 NYI
18:01 NYI Ryan Strome (6) Slapshot - ASST: NONE 2 - 0 NYI
19:39 NYI Michael Grabner (1) Wrist shot - ASST: Matt Donovan (2), Nick Leddy (8) 3 - 0 NYI
2ND PERIOD
02:36 STL PPG - Paul Stastny (4) Wrist - ASST: Kevin Shattenkirk (18), David Backes (5) 3 - 1 NYI
04:28 STL Patrik Berglund (3) Wrist shot - ASST: Chris Butler (1), Alex Pietrangelo (12) 3 - 2 NYI
12:34 STL PPG - Kevin Shattenkirk (3) Slapshot -: T.J. Oshie (5), Joakim Lindstrom (1) 3 - 3 Tie
19:06 NYI PPG - John Tavares (11) Wrist - ASST: Kyle Okposo (19), Frans Nielsen (10) 4 - 3 NYI
3RD PERIOD
04:51 STL PPG - T.J. Oshie (3) Slapshot: Kevin Shattenkirk (19), Joakim Lindstrom (2) 4 - 4 Tie
13:26 STL Paul Stastny (5) Snap shot - ASST: Joakim Lindstrom (3), Barret Jackman (5) 5 - 4 STL
17:32 STL Vladimir Tarasenko (17) Snap shot: Jori Lehtera (15), Jaden Schwartz (14) 6 - 4 STL
The Skinny:
Frans Nielsen scored his first goal since recording the only tally in a win in Arizona on November 8th. Kyle Okposo broke into the top-10 in assists with the first of his two helpers on the goal… Michael Grabner recorded his first goal since March 4th in Winnipeg (he had only played five games in the interim)… Jaroslav Halak allowed six goals after allowing just 14 goals in his career-best 11 straight wins…The Isles have led at some point of every loss but one; this was the first game this season the Isles lost when holding a two-goal lead at any point…Barrett Jackman played in his 750th NHL game.
Last Time First!
The Isles have had at least a share of first place for the last 15 days. It's the first time they've held at least a share of first place on December 6th or later since December 22, 2001:
(After the games of Dec 22, 2001)
Atlantic Division
|
W-L-T-OL
|
Pts
|
NY Rangers
|
19-14-3-2
|
43
|
NY Islanders
|
18-10-5-2
|
43
|
Philadelphia
|
18-10-5-1
|
42
|
New Jersey
|
14-13-5-2
|
35
|
Pittsburgh
|
14-15-5-2
|
35
|
(After today)
Metropolitan Division
Pittsburgh 18-6-2 38 points
ISLES 19-8-0 38 points
The Penguins will have a chance to break the tie on Monday at Madison Square Garden. The Isles next play on Tuesday in Minnesota.
Comparable Records
The Isles are 19-8-0 thru 27 games; it's the first time in franchise history that the Isles have won 19 of their first 27 games. The Isles were 8-15-4 through 27 games and 8-15-5 through 28 games last season, when they did not win their 19th game until January 16th (19-23-7).
Most wins in first 27 games:
· 19-8-0 in 2014-15
· 17-4-6 in 1978-79
· 17-5-5 in 1980-81
· 17-7-3 in 1976-77
· 17-9-1 in 1983-84
· 17-9-1 in 1987-88
Most points in first 27 games:
· 40 in 1978-79
· 39 in 1980-81
· 38 in 2014-15
· 37 in 1976-77
Halak's Streak Ends
Jaroslav Halak, the reigning NHL First Star, had won 11 straight games, breaking Billy Smith's club record. Halak is also the first goalie in Islander history to win 11 straight starts.
Halak's Streak:
5-Nov-14 @ Anaheim 3 2 Wot
8-Nov-14 @ Arizona 1 0 W
11-Nov-14 Vs Colorado 6 0 W
14-Nov-14 @ Florida 4 3 Wso
18-Nov-14 Vs Tampa Bay 5 2 W
22-Nov-14 Vs Pittsburgh 4 1 W
24-Nov-14 Vs Philadelphia 1 0 Wso
26-Nov-14 Vs Washington 3 2 Wot
29-Nov-14 Vs New Jersey 3 1 W
2-Dec-14 Vs Ottawa 3 2 Wot
4-Dec-14 @ Ottawa 2 1 W
Smith's Streak:
23-Jan-82 Vs New York 6 1 W
26-Jan-82 Vs Pittsburgh 9 2 W
30-Jan-82 Vs Minnesota 4 2 W
2-Feb-82 Vs Washington 7 6 W (in relief of Rollie Melanson)
4-Feb-82 @ Washington 5 2 W
7-Feb-82 @ Buffalo 7 3 W
13-Feb-82 Vs Philadelphia 8 2 W
16-Feb-82 Vs Pittsburgh 6 2 W
20-Feb-82 Vs Colorado 3 2 W
23-Feb-82 Vs Chicago 5 1 W
Streakers
The Isles won their first four games, lost their next two games, won the two games after that, lost the next three games and are 13-3-0 in last 16.
The Isles have had two winning streaks of at least five games this season. It's the first time since the 1987-88 season that the Isles have had two winning streaks of at least five games.
The Shots:
Isles 12-8-7=27
St. Louis 10-16-14=40
The Isles had out-shot 10 of their prior 11 opponents. The Isles allowed only 39 shots in the home and home series to Ottawa, but allowed 40 today.
Home and Road
The Islanders are 19-8-0 overall, 10-3-0 at home and 9-5-0 on the road.
St. Louis is 17-8-2 overall; 9-3-1 at home and 8-5-1 on the road.
By Division
The Isles are 8-2-0 in Division games and are 11-6-0 in games against other divisions. They are 5-2-0 vs. the Atlantic Division, 2-3-0 vs. Central Division, and 4-1-0 vs. the Pacific Division.
The Isles did not win their eighth divisional game last season until March 25th (8-15-3); they finished last season 10-16-4 against the Met.
Central Time Zone
This was the first of 4 consecutive games against the Western Conference's Central Division. The Isles are 0-1-0 in this stretch.
In the Nets
Jaroslav Halak made 34 saves but falls to 14-5-0 on the season. He is 0-1-1 in his career against the Blues.
Jake Allen made nine saves in the first period before replaced by Marty Brodeur. Brodeur made 14 saves in earning his 52nd career win against the Isles and 689th of his NHL career. It was only his sixth career relief appearance and first since April of 2009.
Power Plays
The Islanders were 2-5 on the power play while St. Louis was 3-5.
It's only the second time in the last four seasons that the Isles have allowed three PP goals in a home game, and both times they lost to Marty Brodeur (3/1/14 vs New Jersey). Since the start of the 2006-07 season, the Isles are 2-24-2 when they allow at least three power play goals.
The power play is 3-8 (37.5%) in the last two games after going 2-14 (14.3%) in the previous five games.
The Isles are 11-4-0 when they score at least one power play goal and 8-4-0 when they do not. The Isles are 7-7-0 when they allow at least one power play goal and 12-1-0 when they do not.
Three is (Usually) a Magic Number
The Isles are 14-2-0 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 5-6-0 when they do not.
Two Column Team
The Isles are the only NHL team without an overtime or shootout loss this season.
It's the second time in club history that the Isles have gone this late into the season without an overtime/shootout loss or tie:
· 30 games (1998-99; 12-18-0 before tying Anaheim in game 31)
· 27 games (2014-15; current)
· 24 games (1983-84; 16-8-0 before tying St. Louis in game 25)
One Goal Games
The Isles are 12-1-0 in games decided by a single goal including 4-1-0 in regulation. They are 3-0 in games decided in overtime and are 5-0 in shootouts. Three games have been decided by two goals in which the second goal was an empty-netter. The Isles are 2-1 in those games.
First Goal
The Isles are 11-6-0 when they score first and are 8-2-0 when they allow the opening goal.
Second to The One
Jack Capuano is the 2nd winningest coach in Islander history and was behind the bench for his 300th game on November 28th in Washington. Capuano is 137-128-39 behind the Islander bench.
Most games coached (Islanders):
1. Al Arbour 1,500
2. Jack Capuano 304
3. Mike Milbury 191
4. Terry Simpson 187
5. Scott Gordon 181
Most wins by Islander coaches:
1. Al Arbour 740
2. Jack Capuano 137
3. Terry Simpson 81
4. Peter Laviolette 77
5. Ted Nolan 74
They Said It
John Tavares: "We didn't play very well and we let them dictate the play."
They Tweeted It
@Scheben We are down three of our best defenseman and we're shocked we lost to the Blues? It'll be OK. NINETEEN AND EIGHT. #isles
@DisgustedNYer Actually, John Tavares is the best star in NY Sports right now.
The Coach
"No question we struggled on the back end, I'm not going to lie. All the icings, it was just a matter of time before it came back to haunt us and it did. We're missing three of our top four D but we have confidence in this group of guys."
Back-to-Backs
The Isles are 4-1-0 in the front-end and 4-1-0 on the back end of back-to-backs this season.
The Isles will play only one set of back-to-backs in December. They will visit Detroit on December 19th and then host Tampa Bay on December 20th.
Leading Ice Men
Nick Leddy led the Isles with 24:38 of ice-time; Kevin Shattenkirk led St. Louis with 28:01.
Isles record by ice-time leaders: Johnny Boychuk (9-2-0), Travis Hamonic (4-1-0), Lubomir Visnovsky (2-1-0) John Tavares (1-2-0), Thomas Hickey (2-0-0), Nick Leddy (0-1-0), Frans Nielsen (1-0-0) and Calvin deHaan (0-1-0).
John Tavares led the Isles forwards with 22:05 of ice-time. Isles record by Forward ice-time leaders: John Tavares (9-8-0), Kyle Okposo (7-0-0), Brock Nelson (1-0-0), Frans Nielsen (1-0-0) and Casey Cizikas (1-0-0).
In the Circle
The Islanders won 39 of 77 draws (51%). Casey Cizikas won 6 of 9 for the Isles; David Backes won 9 of 15 for St. Louis.
The Isles won 16 of 27 (58%) in the first period, but only 23 of 50 (46%) in the second and third periods.
Heavy Hitters
The Isles out-hit St. Louis 33-31. Nikolay Kulemin led the Isles with five hits. David Backes had five hits for the Blues.
There were no fights. The Isles have been involved in seven fights this season: Martin (4), Hamonic (2), Lee (1). All seven fights have come in games against Metropolitan Division opponents.
Giving Up the Body
The Isles were credited with 20 blocked shots, including 5 from Calvin deHaan.
For the Corsi Crowd
The Blues finished with a total Corsi advantage of 72-51, which measures shots attempted for and against (including blocks). The Isles were held without an attempt in the first eight minutes of the second period and had only two attempts in the final eight minutes.
Casey Cizikas was one of three Isles with a +1 even-strength Corsi. Cizikas also had a team-leading 55% of Corsi For events. TJ Oshie (+14) led St. Louis.
Head of the Class
Islander Captain John Tavares has 339 career points; he is 58 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.
All-time Winners
The Islanders fall to 17 games over all-time NHL .500 (1424-1407-450 in 3,281 games).
The Isles have not been more than 1 game under NHL-.500 since January 11, 1978 and have finished every season since 1977-78 over all-time NHL .500.
Ironmen
Nick Leddy and Brock Nelson are the Islanders' reigning ironmen. Leddy has played 279 consecutive regular season NHL games, while Nelson has played 79 consecutive regular season Islander games.
Missing Men
Eric Boulton, Matt Carkner, Travis Hamonic, Johnny Boychuk, and Lubomir Visnovsky are all on injured reserve. Cal Clutterbuck returned to the lineup, replacing Cory Conacher. Josh Bailey (injured) missed his 2nd straight game. Ryan Pulock took the warm-up but was returned to Bridgeport without playing in his first NHL game.
The Isles have lost 107 games this season due to injury/illness.
Good Company for Halak
Jaroslav Halak became the 110th goalie in NHL history to record 150 wins with his shutout of Colorado on November 11th. His shutout of Philadelphia on November 24th was his 33rd career shutout, making him the 50th goalie in NHL history to reach that total.
Halak's 33 shutouts also rank tied-sixth among active goalies:
· Martin Brodeur 124
· Roberto Luongo 67
· Evgeni Nabokov 59
· Henrik Lundqvist 54
· Pekka Rinne 34
· Jaroslav Halak 33
· Jonathan Quick 33
· Marc-Andre Fleury 33
· Ryan Miller 32
All-time Islander Leader Board:
John Tavares has:
· 147 goals (tied-14th all-time with Pierre Turgeon and 13 behind Pat Flatley)
· 192 assists (16th all-time, 1 behind Pierre Turgeon and 57 behind Tomas Jonsson)
· 339 points (15th all-time, 1 behind Pierre Turgeon and 30 behind Stefan Persson)
· 377 games played (43rd among Islander skaters all-time, 4 behind Randy Wood, 6 behind Anders Kallur and 11 behind Travis Green)
Frans Nielsen has:
· 91 goals (35th all-time, 1 behind Travis Green and 2 behind Greg Gilbert & Garry Howatt)
· 179 assists (18th all-time, 2 behind Ed Westfall, 13 behind John Tavares and 14 behind Pierre Turgeon)
· 270 points (23rd all-time, 7 behind Kyle Okposo and 16 behind Ed Westfall)
· 474 games played (27th among Islander skaters all-time, 2 behind Gerry Hart, 5 behind Radek Martinek and 19 behind Ed Westfall)
Kyle Okposo has:
· 104 goals (26th all-time, 1 behind Ed Westfall & Benoit Hogue and 12 behind Ray Ferraro)
· 174 assists (20th all-time, 1 behind Kenny Jonsson, 5 behind Frans Nielsen and 7 behind Ed Westfall)
· 278 points (22nd all-time, 8 behind Ed Westfall and 12 behind Alexei Yashin)
· 417 games played (35th among Islander skaters all-time, 5 behind Dave Langevin, 6 behind Josh Bailey and 8 behind Greg Gilbert)
Michael Grabner has:
· 83 goals (38th all-time, 1 behind Tomas Jonsson and 4 behind Butch Goring)
Josh Bailey has:
· 423 games played (33rd among Islander skaters all-time, 2 behind Greg Gilbert, 3 behind Jason Blake and 27 behind Scott Lachance)
Season Series Stats
The Blues lead the season series 1 game to 0 (and 2 points to 0). The teams will meet again Thursday in St. Louis.
This was the first regulation win for the Blues on Long Island came since March 6, 2004, by a 4-2 score behind former Islander Chris Osgood.
35 years ago tonight (1979) – Bryan Trottier scored twice and Mike Bossy and Bob Bourne each added a goal and an assist as the Isles edged the Boston Bruins 4-3.
Bourne's goal was a special one, as it was his first of the season and the first since his son Jeffrey was born with spina bifida almost four weeks earlier.
Bourne told Newsday's Joe Gergen: "The team was terrific. No one put pressure on me to come back. And when I did come back, no one put pressure on me to play well. No one made me feel I was letting the team down. But that's the way I felt."
Bossy's tally, which broke a 1-1 tie early in the second period, came with Mike Milbury in the penalty box.
In a sign of things to come five months later, Stan Jonathan fought Garry Howatt late in the contest with the Isles leading 4-2.
The Bruins got a late tally to make it a one-goal deficit but could not find the equalizer, which would have extended their five game unbeaten streak.
The eventual Stanley Cup champion Islanders won only their eighth game of the season (8-12-4).
Also on this date: (2003) – In a season-turning game, Alexei Yashin scored two goals as the Islanders broke their seven game losing streak with a 5-2 win over Chicago. Dave Scatchard contributed his 99th career goal and 100th career assist as 3,863 very special fans braved over a foot of snow to reach the Coliseum.
All-time, the Isles have played 11 December 6th games at the Coliseum and have compiled a 6-5-0 record on this date at 1255 Hempstead Turnpike in Uniondale.
On The Farm
Bridgeport is 11-8-2-1 on the season, after a loss in Hershey. Bridgeport visit Lehigh Valley on Saturday before the Phantoms return the favor on Sunday at 3pm.
Up Next
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9th—ISLANDERS AT MINNESOTA 8:00PM
[MSG+ (Isles Pre-game at 7:30pm), 88.7 WRHU-FM, 103.9 WRCN]
[MSG+ (Isles Pre-game at 7:30pm), 88.7 WRHU-FM, 103.9 WRCN]
The Isles return to St. Paul for the first time since last season's come-from-behind 5-4 win over the Wild. The Isles trailed 3-0 in that game before rallying for the victory.
The Isles have won their last two games in The State of Hockey, and are 4-1-0 in their last 5 against the Wild.
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 & on his blog www.nyiskinny.com.
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
No comments:
Post a Comment