"The Skinny"
By Eric Hornick
Game 30
Washington 2, Isles 0
Tom Wilson scored 4:35 into play and that was the only tally until Alexander Ovechkin hit the empty net with 10.2 seconds remaining as the Washington Capitals blanked the Isles 2-0, to end the Isles' three-game win streak and five-game point streak, before another sellout crowd of 17,255 at UBS Arena.
Despite the loss, the Isles are 6-3-1 in their last ten games and have earned at least a point ten times in the last 13 games (6-3-4). Vitek Vanacek stopped 23 shots to earn his third career shutout; he has also blanked the Isles in consecutive appearances over two seasons.
The Scoring:
1st Period
Tom Wilson (10) Aliaksei Protas (6) 04:35 WSH 1,NYI 0
2nd Period
No Goals
3rd Period
Alex Ovechkin (25)EN Evgeny Kuznetsov (24), Nicklas Backstrom (4) 19:49 WSH 2,NYI 0
The Skinny
The Isles have been shutout four times this season; the first three were all in November and twice were in games during the opening homestand where the Isles were missing numerous players due to COVID.… Mathew Barzal was blanked for the first time in his last ten games while Kieffer Bellows had his points streak snapped at four… In the seventeen games that the Isles have earned points, their power play is 12-44 (27.3%); the Islander power play is 3-38 (7.9%) in their 13 regulation losses…The Isles are 5-1-1 in their last six games at home after going 0-5-2 to open UBS Arena… Andy Greene was penalized for the first time this season; it was only the fifth penalty he has taken in 91 games with the Islanders…The Isles failed to regain NHL -.500; they were last at .500 when they were 5-5-2…Semyon Varlamov allowed only one goal for the third straight start, stopping 109 of 112 shots; Varly has allowed only nine goals in his last five games (2-2-1)…The Isles have not scored in their last 142.48 against Washington; it is the first time the Caps have ever blanked the Islanders in consecutive meetings…Alex Ovechkin's empty-netter was his 755th career goal and 45th empty-netter; he has now scored in 41 different areas. It was also his 41st career goal against the Isles (tops among active opponents and 6th all-time vs NYI).
The COVID List!
Ryan Pulock and head coach Barry Trotz are the only Islanders on the COVID list; fifteen Islanders have missed games due to COVID. Pulock is still on LTIR while Kyle Palmieri remains on IR.
Streak Busters
The Isles did not score on the power play; they had scored in five straight games (first time since December 2017) and in eight straight home games (first time since January – February 1996).
This was the Isles' first regulation loss in 32 days (December 14th in Detroit).
Lots of Home Cooking
Beginning with their return from their most recent pause, the Isles are playing ten games out of eleven games at home to get them to the All-Star Break. The Isles are 1-1-0 in that stretch:
• 1/13 vs. New Jersey W 3-2
• 1/15 vs. Washington L 0-2
• 1/17 vs. Philadelphia
• 1/18 @ Philadelphia
• 1/21 vs. Arizona
• 1/22 vs. Toronto
• 1/25 vs. Philadelphia
• 1/27 vs. Los Angeles
• 1/29 vs. Seattle
• 1/30 vs. Minnesota
• 2/1 vs. Ottawa
Including the seven games played between December 9th and January 1st, the Isles are playing 16 of 18 at home; they are 5-3-1 in that stretch, with nine games remaining.
Histor-Z
Zdeno Chara played in his 1,635th NHL game, matching Scott Stevens for 2nd place among defensemen in NHL history. He is now just 16 games behind Chris Chelios' record for NHL defensemen:
• Chris Chelios 1,651
• Zdeno Chara 1,635
• Scott Stevens 1,635
Chelios is 8th among all players in games played, Dave Andreychuk is 9th (1,639) and now Chara is tied-10th.
Home and Road
The Isles are 11-13-6 overall; they are 5-6-3 at home and 6-7-3 on the road.
Washington is 21-8-9 overall; they are 10-4-5 at home and 11-4-4 on the road.
Home is Where the Fans Are
The Isles have played fourteen home games and sold out all of them. They are the fourteen largest indoor crowds to ever see the Islanders play at home. The Isles will welcome their 250,000th fan to UBS on Monday.
Leader of the Pack
Barry Trotz has coached more games and recorded more victories than any other active coach. Trotz' NHL record is 888-648-60-164 in 1,760 games, which includes the victory today. Under NHL rules, results from games coached by an interim coach (such as today's by Lane Lambert) are part of the head coach's record.
Most Coaching Wins
1. Scotty Bowman 1,244
2. Joel Quenneville 969
3. Barry Trotz 888
Most Games Coached
1. Scotty Bowman 2,141
2. Joel Quenneville 1,768
3. Barry Trotz 1,760
Sweet Lou
Lou Lamoriello has the second-highest win total for any general manager in NHL history:
1. David Poile 1,469
2. Lou Lamoriello 1,337
3. Glen Sather 1,319
With his next win Lamoriello will also break a tie with Glen Sather for most wins, including playoffs. They are currently tied with 1,506.
It All Starts at the Top
Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz have 2,225 wins between them. They start each game with more than any other pair in NHL history (David Poile and Peter Laviolette had 2,036 after their last game together). Bill Torrey and Al Arbour had a then-record 1,462 at the end of the 1991-92 season, which was their last season together.
First Things First
The Isles are 9-4-4 when scoring first and are 2-9-2 when allowing the opening goal.
The Shots
Isles 7-8-8=23
Washington 16-10-10=36
The Isles are 2-3-2 when they outshoot their opponents, 0-1-0 when the shots are even and 9-9-4 when they are outshot. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 74-45-17 when outshot.
In the Nets
Semyon Varlamov Sorokin made 34 saves; he is 2-6-1 on the season and 8-10-2 vs. Washington.
Vitek Vanacek made 23 saves; he is 7-4-5 on the season and 4-1-0 vs. the Isles.
Special Teams
The Isles were 0-3 on the power play (6:00); Washington was 0-2 on the power play (4:00)
The Isles are 6-3-4 when they score at least one power play goal and 5-10-2 when they do not. The Isles are 4-6-3 when they allow at least one power play goal and 7-7-3 when they do not.
Three is a Magic Number
The Isles are 9-2-2 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 2-11-4 when they do not. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 97-11-13 when scoring three or more.
One-Goal Games
The Isles are 2-3-6 in games decided by a single goal including 1-3 in regulation. They are 1-3 in games decided in overtime and are 0-3 in shootouts. The Isles are 0-3 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game.
Back-to-Backs
The Isles are 2-2-1 in the front end and 1-3-1 in the back end. The next back-to-back is scheduled for January 17th vs. Philadelphia and January 18th in Philadelphia.
Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 22-7-5 (.727) in back-ends.
Matinee Isles
The Isles are 1-1-2 in matinees this season; the next matinee will be on January 29th against Seattle. The Isles are scheduled to play fourteen matinees this season.
Ice-time Leaders
Isles: Noah Dobson (23:36); Washington: John Carlson (23:48)
Mathew Barzal led Isles forwards with a season-high 21:40 of ice-time.
Isles record by ice-time leaders: Ryan Pulock (2-1-1), Anthony Beauvillier (0-1-0), Mathew Barzal (0-0-1), Adam Pelech (4-2-2), Zdeno Chara (2-1-0), Sebastian Aho (0-1-0), Robin Salo (0-2-0), Scott Mayfield (0-2-0), Jean-Gabriel Pageau (0-1-0), Noah Dobson (3-2-2).
Face-offs
Isles 24, Washington 25 (49%)
Jean-Gabriel Pageau won 6 of 10 for the Isles; Evgeny Kuznetsov won 6 of 9 for Washington.
The Isles are 6-8-4 when they win more face-offs than the opposition, 0-0-1 when face-offs are even, and 5-5-1 when they win fewer.
Hit Count
Isles 26 (Cal Clutterbuck -7)
Washington 20 (Martin Fehervary -5)
Fights
There were no fights. Season total: 12 (Chara 3, Martin 3, Bellows 1, Mayfield 1, Nelson 1, Palmieri 1, Pageau 1, Wahlstrom 1)
Blocked Shots
Isles 14 (Adam Greene -3)
Washington 11 (John Carlson -3)
For the Analytics Crowd
Corsi: All situations: Isles 43, Washington 57
Corsi: 5-on-5: Isles 27, Washington 49
5-on-5 leaders:
Isles: Josh Bailey -1
Washington: Tom Wilson +14
High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)
All situations: Isles 9, Washington 9
5-on-5: Isles 7, Washington 8
Scratches
(Ryan Pulock -LTIR), (Kyle Palmieri-IR), Grant Hutton, Sebastian Aho, Ross Johnston (suspended)
Games Lost: 88 (44 to injuries and 44 to COVID protocol)
Iron Man
Scott Mayfield played in his 119th consecutive game. Only two other Islanders (Zach Parise and Cal Clutterbuck) have played in every game this season.
Challenges
Isles: 0 successful, 1 failure
The Isles are 0-0-0 in games that they are successful and 0-1-0 in games that they are unsuccessful.(no goalie interference 10/14 @CAR)
Opponents: 3 successful, 0 failures
The Isles are 1-1-1 in games where opponents' challenges go their way and 0-0-0 in games where challenges go the Isles' way. (goalie interference 10/16 @FLA and 10/23 @ARI; offside 12/19 vs VGK)
Last Minute Heroes:
The Isles have scored one goal and allowed two goals in the final three minutes of the third period that were either the winning goal or forced overtime:
For: 1 (Noah Dobson 19:56 – 12/5/21 vs CHI; Isles lost in SO)
Vs: 2 (Eeli Tolvanen 19:48 – 12/9/21 vs NSH; GWG, Shea Theodore 19:12 – 12/19/21 vs VGK; Isles lost in SO)
All-time Islander Leader Boards:
Games Played (skaters)
1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 *** 3. Josh Bailey 944…
11. Derek King 638 *** 12. Matt Martin 636 *** 13. Brock Nelson 625 *** 14. Billy Harris 623*** 15. Stefan Persson 622 *** 16. Casey Cizikas 614 …
20. John Tonelli 594 *** 21. Cal Clutterbuck 558 *** 22. Ken Morrow 550 *** 23. Duane Sutter 547 *** 24. Anders Lee 546
Goals
1. Mike Bossy 573 *** 2. Bryan Trottier 500 *** 3. Denis Potvin 310 …
11. John Tonelli 206 *** 12. Anders Lee 194 *** 13. Billy Harris 184 *** 14. Brock Nelson 178 *** 15. Ziggy Palffy 168 *** 16. Josh Bailey 164
Assists
1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553 *** 4. Josh Bailey 361…
20. Pierre Turgeon 193 *** 21. Mathew Barzal 191…
26. Jean Potvin 167 *** 27. Jeff Norton 166 *** 28. Ziggy Palffy and Brock Nelson 163
Points
1. Bryan Trottier 1,353 *** 2. Mike Bossy 1,126 *** 3. Denis Potvin 1,052…
9. Bob Bourne 542 *** 10. Josh Bailey 525 …
17. Frans Nielsen 349 *** 18. Brock Nelson 341 *** 19. Pierre Turgeon 340 *** 20. Tomas Jonsson 333 *** 21. Anders Lee 332…
26. Ed Westfall 286 *** 27. Mathew Barzal 274
Games Coached
1. Al Arbour 1,500 *** 2. Jack Capuano 483 *** 3. Barry Trotz 236
Coaching Wins
1. Al Arbour 740 *** 2. Jack Capuano 227 *** 3. Barry Trotz 126
On the Farm
Bridgeport is 13-16-3-4 on the season heading into Sunday's game in Providence. It's the first of three consecutive games between the teams (Friday in Providence, next Saturday in Bridgeport).
The Baby Islanders have points in all six games they have played in 2022 (3-0-1-2).
Season Series Stats
Washington leads the season series 1 game to 0 (and 2 points to 0). They will next meet on March 15th in DC, unless they make up an earlier postponement in the interim.
The Isles are 2-6-1 in their last nine games against Washington; four of the last five games gave ended in a shutout, including a 1-0 shootout win for the Caps last season.
UP NEXT
MONDAY, JANUARY 17th– PHILADELPHIA AT ISLANDERS 7:30pm
[MSG+ (pre-game begins at 7:00), WRHU 88.7 FM, WRCN 103.9FM, ESPN Radio]
The Isles will look to get back on the winning track as they face the Flyers for the first time this season in the front-end of a home-and-home series. The teams will meet four times this season and three of them will be in a nine-day span (1/17 and 1/25 at home; 1/18 in Philly).
The teams meet eight times last season and only two were decided in 60 minutes. The Flyers won the first three games (twice in overtime) before the Isles won the last five games (including twice in overtime and twice in a shootout). Ilya Sorokin was in goal for all five Islander wins, becoming the first rookie in NHL history to beat the Flyers five times.
The Isles have won their last four games on MLK Day, including last season's home opener. The last home loss on MLK Day was to Barry Trotz' Nashville Predators in 2012.
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
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