"The Skinny"
By Eric Hornick
Game 11
Isles 5, Philadelphia 3
The Isles scored goals 65 seconds apart in the first period and 85 seconds apart in the second period to take a 5-2 lead just 25:38 into the game. The defense and Semyon Varlamov did the rest as the Isles extended their winning streak to seven straight games with a 5-3 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers before a crowd of 12,055 at Nassau Coliseum.
The seven-game winning streak is the club's longest (in a single season) since they won nine straight from December 31, 1989 – January 19, 1990. The streak is the season longest in the month of October in club history (8 in 1982) and is the longest in the NHL this season.
The Isles improved to 8-3-0; their 16 points is their highest total through eleven games in the post-Cup era (9-0-1-1 for 20 points in 2001-02).
The Scoring:
1st Period
Jakub Voracek (4) Travis Sanheim 01:07 PHI 1,NYI 0
Anders Lee (4) Josh Bailey, Johnny Boychuk 03:17 PHI 1,NYI 1
Derick Brassard (3) Brock Nelson 04:22 PHI 1,NYI 2
Ross Johnston (1) Cole Bardreau 11:46 PHI 1,NYI 3
Travis Konecny (6) Justin Braun, Kevin Hayes 16:38 PHI 2,NYI 3
2nd Period
Ryan Pulock (1) Cal Clutterbuck, Adam Pelech 04:13 PHI 2,NYI 4
Mathew Barzal (5) Anders Lee, Devon Toews 05:38 PHI 2,NYI 5
3rd Period
Claude Giroux (2) James van Riemsdyk, Jakub Voracek 17:04 PHI 3,NYI 5
The Skinny
Every Islander was on ice for at least one goal as 12 players tallied points; Anders Lee recorded the only multiple point game for the Isles (after a post-game scoring change took away a Mathew Barzal assist)…Every Flyer was on-ice for an Islander goal…The Isles scored three goals in the first period for the first time this season and scored five times in the first 25:38; it was the fastest five goals to start a game for the Isles since March 29, 2015 vs. Detroit (also at the Coliseum). The Isles led after the first period for the fourth straight game (after not doing it in the first seven games) …Ross Johnston scored his first goal of the season; Cole Bardreau, playing his fourth NHL game, earned his first assist on the play…Claude Giroux's late goal made Ryan Pulock's tally the game-winner; four of his 22 career goals have been GWGs; it was the first time the Isles have allowed at least three goals during this winning streak…Jakub Voracek opened the scoring with his 199th NHL goal.
The Streak
10/12: Florida (3-2 Wso)
10/14: St. Louis (3-2 Wot)
10/17: @ Winnipeg (3-1 W)
10/19: @ Columbus (3-2 Wot)
10/24: Arizona (4-2 W)
10/25: @ Ottawa (4-2 W)
10/27: Philadelphia (5-3 W)
The Streaks
This is only the 7th time in Islander history that they have won at least seven straight games:
• 15 – 1981-82
• 9 – 1989-90
• 8 – 1982-83
• 7- 1978-79
• 7- 1979-80
• 7- 1983-84
• 7- 2019-20
(The Isles also won seven games over two seasons in 2014)
First Time in a Ridiculously Long Time
When the Isles last won at least seven straight:
• Bryan Trottier was still a month away from scoring his 500th NHL goal (and his final goal as an Islander);
• The 7th straight win (on January 16, 1990) featured a 51-save shutout from Glenn Healy;
• Al Arbour was in the first full season of his second stint as Islander coach;
• Bill Torrey was in his 18th season as the Isles' general manager;
• Lou Lamoriello was in his 3rd season as the Devils' general manger;
• Barry Trotz had not begun his minor league coaching career;
• Pat LaFontaine was 10-7-17 in the 9-game streak, while defenseman Doug Crossman was +9;
• The Isles scored 12 power play goals in the 9-game streak (they have had 9 power play opportunities in the last seven games);
• Mark Fitzpatrick won six games in the streak, while Healy won three games;
• Josh Bailey turned three months old early in the streak; Thomas Greiss, Derick Brassard, Semyon Varlamov and Johnny Boychuk were the only other Isles who dressed tonight that were alive.
Brock-tober
Brock Nelson has been a fast starter during his NHL career; his assist tonight gave him 10 points in 11 games to start the season. He is 27-27-54 in 71 career October games, tallying more goals, assists and points than in any other month.
It's Good to be Home
The Isles are 5-2-0 on Coliseum ice. The Isles will play 28 of their 41 home games this season at the Coliseum.
Coach Trotz
Barry Trotz is second among active coaches, trailing only Joel Quenneville, in both wins and games. Trotz' NHL record is 818-598-60-141 in 1,617 games.
Most Coaching Wins
1. Scotty Bowman 1,244
2. Joel Quenneville 895
3. Ken Hitchcock 849
4. Barry Trotz 818
5. Al Arbour 782
Most Games Coached
1. Scotty Bowman 2,141
2. Joel Quenneville 1,647
3. Barry Trotz 1,617
4. Al Arbour 1,607
+79
The win pushes the Isles five games over NHL-.500 for the first time this season and to 79 games over NHL-.500 all-time for the first time since a 1-1 tie with Chicago left them at 941-862-294 on January 5, 1999.
First Things First
The Isles are 3-1-0 when scoring first and are 5-2-0 when allowing the opening goal.
The Shots
Isles 9-12-12=33
Philadelphia 5-13-13=31
The Isles are 2-0-0 when they outshoot their opponents, 0-1-0 when the shots are even and 6-2-0 when they are outshot.
Home and Road
The Islanders are 8-3-0 overall; 5-2-0 at home (5-2-0 on Long Island and 0-0-0 in Brooklyn) and 3-1-0 on the road.
Philadelphia is 5-4-1 overall; 4-1-0 at home and 1-3-1 on the road.
By Division & Conference
The Isles are 2-2-0 in Division games and 6-1-0 in games versus other divisions. The Isles are 4-2-0 against the East and 4-1-0 against the West.
In the Nets
Semyon Varlamov made 28 saves to improve to 4-2-0 on the season and 6-2-1 in his career against Philadelphia.
Carter Hart made 9 saves before being replaced at a TV timeout shortly after the Isles' 5th goal; he is 2-3-1 on the season and 0-2-0 in his career against the Isles.
Brian Elliott stopped all 19 shots he faced in relief.
Power Plays
The Isles were 0-2 on the power play in 4:00 of power play time; Philadelphia was 0-3 on the power play in 6:00 of PP time.
The Isles are 3-1-0 when they score at least one power play goal and 5-2-0 when they do not. The Isles are 3-2-0 when they allow at least one power play goal and 5-1-0 when they do not.
The Isles are 0-1-0 when they have more power plays than the opposition, 0-0-0 when the power plays are even, and 8-2-0 when the opposition has more power plays.
Three is a Magic Number
The Isles are 8-0-0 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 0-3-0 when they do not.
One Goal Games
The Isles are 3-1-0 in games decided by a single goal including 0-1 in regulation. They are 2-0 in games decided in overtime and are 1-0 in shootouts. The Isles are 2-0 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game.
Tired vs. Rested
• The Isles are 1-0-0 when both teams played the night before.
• The Isles are 2-0-0 when they are rested, and their opponents are not.
• The Isles are 1-0-0 when their opponents are rested, and the Isles are not.
• The Isles are 4-3-0 when both teams are rested.
Ice-time Leaders
Isles: Adam Pelech (21:39); Philadelphia: Ivan Provorov (25:02)
Brock Nelson led Isles forwards with 18:48 of ice-time.
Isles record by ice-time leader: Adam Pelech (4-0-0), Ryan Pulock (2-1-0), Nick Leddy (0-1-0), Devon Toews (1-1-0), Scott Mayfield (1-0-0).
Face-offs
Isles 25, Philadelphia 30 (45%).
Casey Cizikas won 9 of 16 for the Isles, Claude Giroux won 11of 18 for Philadelphia.
Hit Count
Isles 34 (Cal Clutterbuck -9)
Philadelphia 14 (Sean Couturier -3)
Fights
Ross Johnston fought Chris Stewart in the first period. Season total: 3 – Johnston-2 (vs. FLA, vs PHL), Cizikas (vs. OTT).
Blocked Shots
Isles 23 (Scott Mayfield -4)
Philadelphia 8 (Ivan Provorov-3)
For the Corsi Crowd
All situations: Isles 52, Philadelphia 66
5-on-5 Isles 44, Philadelphia 46
5-on-5 leaders:
Isles: Derick Brassard +9
Philadelphia: Tyler Pitlick +9
Back-to-Backs
The Isles are 1-1-0 in the front-half and 2-0-0 in the back-half. The next back-to-back will be November 1st vs. Tampa Bay and November 2nd in Buffalo. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 13-1-1 in back-ends.
Night and Day
The Isles are 7-3-0 in night games and 1-0-0 in matinees. The next matinee will be on November 9th vs. Florida.
Ironmen
Anders Lee 211, Brock Nelson 188, Mathew Barzal 175, Ryan Pulock 148 and Josh Bailey 96.
Iron D
Ryan Pulock is only the 6th defenseman in Islander history to play at least 145 consecutive regular season games:
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. Andrew MacDonald 12/19/2011- 3/2/2014 164 (**)
5. Nick Leddy 10/23/2016 – 3/26/2018 153
6. Ryan Pulock 12/29/2017 – CURRENT 148
(*) Start of NHL career.
(**) Entire career with Islanders
Scratches
(Andrew Ladd -INJ), (Jordan Eberle-INJ), (Matt Martin-INJ), (Tom Kuhnhackl-INJ),(Leo Komarov-ILL), Noah Dobson
Total games lost: 29.
Late Heroes
The Isles have scored once in the final two minutes of regulation to either tie or take the lead:
10/14 vs. STL – Mathew Barzal scored at 19:33 and the Isles won in OT.
Late Goals Allowed
The Isles have not allowed a goal in the final two minutes of regulation to either tie or win a game:
Challenges
Isles: 0 - 0
Opponents: 1 successful, 0 failures (Nelson-kick 10/8 vs EDM)
All-time Islander Leader Boards:
Games Played (skaters)
1. Bryan Trottier 1123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1060 *** 3. Bob Nystrom 900 *** 4. Clark Gillies 872 ***
5. Bob Bourne 814***6. Josh Bailey 808
Goals
1. Mike Bossy 573 *** 2. Bryan Trottier 500 *** 3. Denis Potvin 310 …
14. Patrick Flatley 160 *** 15. Anders Lee 156 …
17. Mariusz Czerkawski 145 *** 18. Josh Bailey 144 *** 19 Kyle Okposo 139 *** 20. Jason Blake and Brock Nelson 128
Assists
1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553…
9. Stefan Persson 317 *** 10. Bob Bourne 304 *** 11. Josh Bailey 298 …
26. Ziggy Palffy 163 *** 27. David Volek and Nick Leddy 154
Points
1. Bryan Trottier 1353 *** 2. Mike Bossy 1126 *** 3. Denis Potvin 1052…
12. Patrick Flatley 488 *** 13. Billy Harris 443 *** 14. Josh Bailey 442…
24. Ed Westfall 286 *** 25. Anders Lee 263 *** 26. Jason Blake and Steve Thomas 258 ***
28. Brock Nelson 251
Games Played (Goalies)
1. Billy Smith 674 *** 2. Rick DiPietro 318 *** 3. Glenn Resch 282 …
6. Jaroslav Halak 177 *** 7. Glenn Healy 176 *** 8. Thomas Greiss 168
Wins (Goalie)
1. Billy Smith 304 *** 2. Glenn Resch 157 *** 3. Rick DiPietro 130*** 4. Kelly Hrudey 108***
5. Thomas Greiss 89
Shutouts (Goalie)
1. Glenn Resch 25 ***2. Billy Smith 22 *** 3. Rick DiPietro 16 *** 4. Tommy Salo 14***
5. Jaroslav Halak 12 *** 6. Thomas Greiss 10
Season Series Stats
The Isles lead the season series 1 games to 0 (and 2 points to 0). The season series will continue in Philadelphia on November 16.
The Isles are now 6-3-0 in the last nine vs. Philadelphia; the win reverses the pattern of last season that saw the road team win each game.
On the Farm
The Sound Tigers are 1-5-2-1 on the season, following a regulation loss and an overtime loss to Hartford on Saturday and Sunday.
Bridgeport is off until Friday, when they begin a 3-in-3 set in Syracuse.
Up Next
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 1st — TAMPA BAY AT ISLANDERS (AT NASSAU COLISEUM) 7:00PM
[MSG+ (Islanders pre-game at 6:30pm), 88.7 WRHU-FM, WRCN 103.9FM, ESPN 1050]
The Isles look to extend their longest winning streak in nearly 30 years to eight games as they entertain the reigning President's Trophy champion Tampa Bay Lightning.
This will be the first meeting of the teams since last February, when Thomas Greiss and Andrei Vasilevskiy battled to a scoreless tie at the Coliseum (Tampa won in a shootout).
While the Isles will be coming off four consecutive off days, the Lightning will be playing their third game in the Metropolitan Area in four days (Tuesday at Rangers, Thursday at Devils).
The Isles went 1-1-1 against the Lightning last season and are 2-6-1 in the last three seasons against the Bolts.
Eric Hornick has been the statistician on Islander home game telecasts since January 21, 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
