"The Skinny"
By Eric Hornick
Game 28
Washington 4, Isles 2
Matt Niskanen scored two third period goals, his first goals since March 5th, as the Washington Capitals broke a 2-2 tie and defeated the Islanders 4-2 before a crowd of 12,730 at Barclays Center.
Brock Nelson and Nikolay Kulemin scored for the Isles, who have lost two straight after going 5-0-1 in their previous six games.
The Scoring:
1ST PERIOD
09:32 New York Brock Nelson (7) ASST: Cal Clutterbuck (8), Dennis Seidenberg (6) 0-1
2ND PERIOD
02:09 Washington Brett Connolly (3) ASST: Lars Eller (2), Jakub Vrana (1) 1-1
07:37 Washington PPG - Justin Williams (6) ASST: Jakub Vrana (2), Evgeny Kuznetsov (12) 2-1
10:41 New York Nikolay Kulemin (3) ASST: Nick Leddy (9), Casey Cizikas (9) 2-2
3RD PERIOD
01:34 Washington Matt Niskanen (1) ASST: Dmitry Orlov (10), Marcus Johansson (10) 3-2
18:02 Washington PPG - Matt Niskanen (2) ASST: Evgeny Kuznetsov (13), John Carlson (12) 4-2
The Skinny:
The Isles scored the first goal for the 8th time in the last nine games …The Isles fell back below NHL-.500 (11-12-5) … The Isles defense contributed two assists, raising the season total to 19-40-59 … Each of Brock Nelson's last two goals have come against Washington…The Isles held Alex Ovechkin pointless for the 3rd straight meeting this season…The Isles have won only 4 of 12 games tied after two periods (4-5-3)…The Caps scored twice on the power play against going 1-26 in their previous eight games against the Isles…The loss ended an Isles six-game point streak at home (4-0-2) and was only their second regulation loss in 12 games at home (6-2-4)…The Caps have won 5 straight, and have converted 5 of their last 10 power play attempts…The Isles allowed two power play goals for the fifth time this season…Matt Niskanen matched a career high with two goals (3-4-14 vs. Nashville); he is the first Capital defender to score twice in a game since John Carlson (12-2-14 vs. Vancouver)....Cal Clutterbuck played his 599th NHL game…John Tavares' point streak ended at five games…Evgeny Kuznetsov extended his assist streak to five games…Jakub Vrana recorded his first two NHL assists…The Isles have been outshot 405-347 over the last 12 games; they have outshot their opponents only twice in the 10 games – both times by a single shot.
The Injury
Casey Cizikas left the game after his first shift due to a cut but returned to the game at the second TV timeout.
Countdown to 500
John Tavares' point streak ended at five games. He needs just seven points to become the 10th player in Islander history with 500 career points.
Last Minute Heroes
The Isles have scored twice in the final minute of regulation to either tie or win a game:
· 11/25 – SJ Sharks -- Nick Leddy (19:02); tied game, but Isles lost in regulation
· 11/30 – Pit Penguins – Anders Lee (19:33); Game Winning goal
Fit to Be Tied
The Isles have allowed the final goal of regulation in seven of their eight games that have gone to overtime this season, including three in the final minute:
· 10/16 – Ana Ducks – Ryan Getzlaf (19:00); Isles won in OT
· 11/3 – Phi Flyers – Jakob Voracek (19:02/PP); Flyers won in SO
· 11/12 – Fla Panthers – Jonathan Marchessault (19:46); Panthers won in OT
Late Losses
The Isles have been tied in the third period in eight of their 12 regulation losses (and 12 of their 16 overall losses) but have allowed the lead goal in the final 3 minutes of regulation five times:
· 10/18 – SJ Sharks - Joe Pavelski (17:49)
· 10/26 – Mtl Canadiens - Shea Weber (17:03)
· 10/27 – Pit Penguins - Sidney Crosby (17:35)
· 11/23 – LA Kings – Dwight King (17:07)
· 11/25 – SJ Sharks – Patrick Marleau (19:37)
Home Til the Holidays
The Isles are in a stretch where they will play 10 out of 14 at home. By the time the Isles host the Capitals on December 27th, the Isles will have played 22 of their first 34 games at home.
The Isles are 4-1-1 at home and 1-1-0 on the road during this stretch. The Isles do not play consecutive road games again until after Christmas.
The Shots
Isles 12-4-12=28
Washington 14-10-14=38
The Isles are 6-3-2 when they outshoot their opponents and 1-1-0 when the shots are even but are 4-8-3 when they are outshot.
Home and Road
The Islanders are 11-12-5 overall; 9-5-4 at home and 2-7-1 on the road.
Washington is 18-7-3 overall; 11-4-0 at home and 7-3-3 on the road.
By Division & Conference
The Isles are 3-5-2 in Division games and 8-7-3 in games versus other divisions (1-4-2 vs. Atlantic, 2-0-0 vs. Central and 5-3-1 vs. Pacific). The Isles are 4-9-4 against the East and 7-3-1 against the West.
Last season the Isles went 18-8-4 in Division games and 27-19-6 in games against other divisions. The Isles went 19-7-2 against the Western Conference, including 12-0-2 at home.
In the Nets
Jaroslav Halak made 34 saves but falls to 5-8-5 on the season and 7-7-0 in his career against Washington.
Braden Holtby made 26 saves to improve to 14-6-2 on the season and 12-2-3 against the Isles in his career. Holtby has a career goals against average of 2.18 and a career save percentage of 92.9% against the Islanders.
Power Plays
The Islanders were 0-2 on the power play, while Washington was 2-3.
The Isles are 3-4-3 when they score at least one power play goal and 8-8-2 when they do not. The Isles are 3-7-3 when they allow at least one power play goal and 8-5-2 when they do not.
Three is a Magic Number
The Isles are 10-1-2 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 1-11-3 when they do not. The Isles were 37-4-2 when they scored at least three goals (including SO winners) last season.
One Goal Games
The Isles are 5-4-4 in games decided by a single goal including 2-4-0 in regulation. They are 2-3 in games decided in overtime and are 1-2 in shootouts. The Isles are 1-0 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1 goal game into a 2-goal game.
First Goal
The Isles are 7-3-3 when they score first and are 4-9-2 when they allow the opening goal.
Second to The One
Jack Capuano, the 2nd winningest coach in Islander history, is 221-188-60 behind the Islander bench. Among the 9 New York area teams, only the Yankees' Joe Girardi has led his team longer than Capuano.
Most games coached (Islanders):
1. Al Arbour 1,500
2. Jack Capuano 469
3. Mike Milbury 191
4. Terry Simpson 187
5. Scott Gordon 181
Most wins by Islander coaches:
1. Al Arbour 740
2. Jack Capuano 221
3. Terry Simpson 81
4. Peter Laviolette 77
5. Ted Nolan 74
Capuano ranks 73rd in NHL history with 469 games coached, two behind Ted Nolan and three behind Bob Gainey. His 221 wins places him tied-64th all-time with behind Bob McCammon, and eight behind Robbie Ftorek.
Back-to-Backs
The Isles are 2-2-0 on the front-end of back-to-backs and 2-2-0 on the back-end. Last season, the Isles went 5-5-5 on the front-end and 9-3-3 on the back end of back-to-backs.
The Isles will play 16 sets of back-to-backs this season; the next set is December 15th vs Chicago and December 16th in Buffalo.
Tired vs. Rested
· The Isles are 1-0-0 when both teams played the night before.
· The Isles are 4-2-2 when they are rested and their opponents are not.
· The Isles are 1-2-0 when their opponents are rested and the Isles are not.
· The Isles are 5-8-3 when both teams are rested.
Ice-time Leaders
Isles: John Tavares (21:52); Washington: Matt Niskanen (23:00)
Isles record by ice-time leaders: Travis Hamonic (4-0-0), Nick Leddy (5-8-3), John Tavares (1-1-0), Johnny Boychuk (1-3-1), Dennis Seidenberg (0-0-1)
Isles record by Forward ice-time leaders: John Tavares (6-9-3), Josh Bailey (3-1-2), Casey Cizikas (1-0-0), Cal Clutterbuck (0-1-0), Brock Nelson (1-1-0)
Face-offs
Isles 32, Washington 32 (50%).
Casey Cizikas won eight of 14 for the Isles; Jay Beagle won 13 of 19 for Washington.
The Isles won 21 of 40 face-offs in the first two periods but only 11 of 24 in the final twenty minutes
The Isles won 29 of 56 draws at even strength, 2 of 3 on the power play and 1 of 5 on the penalty kill.
Hit Count
Isles 27, Washington 921. Cal Clutterbuck led the Isles with four hits; Alex Ovechkin had four to lead Washington.
Fights
There were no fights. Season total – 5: (deHaan 1, Hamonic 3, Mayfield 1).
The Isles were involved in 23 fights last season.
Blocked Shots
The Isles were credited with 19 blocked shots, including five from Thomas Hickey.
For the Corsi Crowd
All situations: Isles 52, Washington 67
5-on-5 Isles 44, Washington 56
5-on 5 leaders:
Isles: Anders Lee and Cal Clutterbuck +6; Casey Cizikas 70%
Washington: Nate Schmidt +10
Ironmen
Jason Chimera – 133 (including 105 for the Capitals); Josh Bailey 96
Scratches
JF Berube, Alan Quine
Injured Reserve: Adam Pelech
Total games lost: 48
Missing a Piece (or two)
Since the start of the 2014-15 season, the Isles are 19-18-4 in games in which they are missing Johnny Boychuk, Travis Hamonic or Nick Leddy, including 3-1-1 this season.
All-time Islander Leader Boards:
Games Played (skaters)
1. Bryan Trottier 1123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1060 *** 3. Bob Nystrom 900
….
13. Kenny Jonsson 597 *** 14. Garry Howatt 596 *** 15. John Tonelli 594*** 16. Josh Bailey 585*** 17. Ken Morrow 550 *** 18. Duane Sutter 547 *** 19. Lorne Henning 543 *** 20. John Tavares 538
Goals
1. Mike Bossy 573 *** 2. Bryan Trottier 500 *** 3. Denis Potvin 310
…
7. Bob Bourne 238 *** 8. Bob Nystrom 235 **** 9. John Tavares 216
Assists
1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553
…
10. Derek King 288 *** 11. Pat LaFontaine 279 *** 12. Bob Nystrom 278 *** 13. John Tavares 277
…
19. Ed Westfall 181 *** 20. Kenny Jonsson 175 *** 21. Duane Sutter & Alexi Yashin 171 *** 23. Josh Bailey 169
Points
1. Bryan Trottier 1353 *** 2. Mike Bossy 1126 *** 3. Denis Potvin 1052
…
9. Bobby Nystrom 513 *** 10. Derek King 499 *** 11. John Tavares 493
…
21. Duane Sutter 292 *** 22. Alexei Yashin 290 *** 23. Ed Westfall 286 *** 24 Josh Bailey 267
Season Series Stats
Washington leads the season series two games to one (and four points to two). Washington has outshot the Isles in each game, for a 104-79 margin in aggregate. The teams have two meetings remaining, both in Brooklyn (December 27th and January 31st).
Washington is 3-0-0 all-time at Barclays Center, including an overtime win on February 18th. The Isles have not beaten Washington at home in regulation time since March 9, 2013 (2-2-3).
On The Farm
The Sound Tigers are 16-8-0-0, coming off a 4-1 defeat to Wilkes Barre-Scranton on Sunday.
Bracken Kearns continues to lead Bridgeport in scoring (8-11-19), while Kearns and Steve Bernier share the team lead in goals with eight. Rookie Devon Toews leads the team with 12 assists and is second on the team in points (3-12-15); fellow rookie Eamon McAdam remains perfect in goal in 7 decisions (7-0-0).
The Sound Tigers will visit Lehigh Valley on Wednesday and Providence on Friday before returning home to face Syracuse on Saturday.
Up Next
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15th–CHICAGO AT ISLANDERS - 7:00PM
[MSG+ (Isles pre-game at 6:30), WFAN 660/101.9FM, 88.7 WRHU-FM, 103.9 WRCN]
It's been just over 14 months since the Isles saw the Chicago Blackhawks. That streak will end on Thursday when the Hawks visit the Brooklyn for the first time since opening Barclays Center with a 3-2 OT win over the Islanders; Patrick Kane scored the overtime goal. The teams then flew to Chicago the next night and Chicago won that game by a 5-1 margin.
The Isles are 2-4-3 in their last 9 games against Chicago, with the Hawks earning points in 8 out of 9 (7-1-1).
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 http://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
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