The Skinny: Ottawa 4, Isles 3 (OT)

"The Skinny"

By Eric Hornick

Game 67

Ottawa 4, Isles 3 (OT)

Brady Tkachuk scored three times, including the game-winning goal with just 24 seconds to play in overtime as the Ottawa Senators rallied from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits for a 4-3 victory over the Islanders before a sellout crowd of 17,255 at UBS Arena. 

The Isles had grabbed leads on goals by Matt Martin (his first goal since January 6th) and Kyle Palmieri but could not protect the lead in the 3rd period. After Ridly Greig and Tkachuk gave the Sens the lead, the Isles needed a 6-on-4 goal from Bo Horvat to force overtime. 

The Isles, who are winless in their last three games (0-2-1), are 10-7-4 under Patrick Roy and 29-22-15 overall as they fall one point behind Detroit for the second wild card spot.  The Isles did move within three points of Philadelphia for third place in the Metropolitan.

The Isles head to Manhattan on Sunday for a nationally-televised game with the Rangers. 

The Scoring:  

1st Period

Matt Martin (3) Cal Clutterbuck (12), Kyle MacLean (2) 04:27 OTT 0,NYI 1

2nd Period

Brady Tkachuk (28) Drake Batherson (26), Erik Brannstrom (12) 11:46 OTT 1,NYI 1

Kyle Palmieri (21) Jean-Gabriel Pageau (19), Anders Lee (12) 16:22 OTT 1,NYI 2

3rd Period

Ridly Greig (10) Tim Stützle (45), Artem Zub (20) 06:35 OTT 2,NYI 2

Brady Tkachuk (29) Tim Stützle (46), Drake Batherson (27) 12:14 OTT 3,NYI 2 PPG

Bo Horvat (27) Noah Dobson (57), Mathew Barzal (49) 19:22 OTT 3,NYI 3 PPG

OT

Brady Tkachuk (30) Shane Pinto (13), Tim Stützle (47) 04:36 OTT 4,NYI 3 PPG

The Skinny     

The Isles are 9-5-3 since the All-Star Break … Since Christmas, the Isles are 6-5-4 at home and 7-9-2 on the road… The Isles' defense has 51 points under Patrick Roy (10-41-51) and have 41 points in the last 17 games (9-32-41)…The Isles have outscored their opponents 57-38 in the first period (fewest allowed in NHL), but have been outscored 90-68 in the second period (most allowed in NHL) and 85-73 in the third period and overtime this season…The Isles have been outscored 52-29 in the second period since the Christmas break and have allowed at least two goals in 17 of the 33 games; the goal allowed are the most in the NHL over that span …The Isles are 22-1-7 when leading after two periods …Mathew Barzal is 20-49-69; they are his highest totals in each category since his rookie season (22-63-85 in 2017-18)... Barzal now has 32 primary assists while Noah Dobson has 33 primary assists… Ilya Sorokin is 8-3-2 in his last thirteen decisions… Sorokin has allowed just 15 goals in his last seven games (5-2-0)… Brady Tkachuk (155) has fewer NHL goals than his brother Matthew (213) and father Keith (538) but he is the first in his family with a hat trick against the Isles….Tkachuk scored goals 5-on-5, 5-on-4, and 4-on-3 as he reached 30 goals for the third straight season… It was Brady Tkachuk's third career hat trick…Tim Stutzle had three assists, giving him 151 helpers in 275 NHL games…Kyle Palmieri has six goals in seven games in March…Matt Martin scored the first wrap-around goal of his career, ending a 126:15 team scoreless streak…It was the Isles' 10th home OT/SO loss of the season, breaking the club record set in 2013-14 (9).

 

First Time in a Long Time

• The Isles have not allowed a first period goal in nine straight games, matching the club record set December 26, 1978- January 12, 1979.

• The Isles have allowed five hat tricks this season; it is the first time since 2008-09 that five opponents have had hatty's. They have not allowed more since 2000-01, when they allowed six.

• The Isles tied the game with a last-minute power play goal for the 11th time in their history and first time since April 7, 2018 (Ryan Pulock in Detroit).

First Periods

The Isles scored the only goal of the first period. The Isles have scored 12 consecutive first period goals (over nine games), for the 6th-longest streak of consecutive first period goals for in club history:

• 17  12/26/1978 - 1/14/1979

• 15  2/15/1994 - 3/1/1994

• 15 10/21/1977 - 11/5/1977

• 13 1/10/2019 - 2/2/2019

• 13 3/8/1980 - 3/22/1980

• 12 2/26/2024 - present

March to the Playoffs

Metro Division

3rd  Philadelphia 76 points in 68 games  (Tuesday vs. Toronto, Thursday at Carolina)

4th  Isles 73 points in 66 games  (Sunday at Rangers, Tuesday vs. Carolina, Thursday at Detroit)

5th Washington   71 points in 65 games  (Late: Saturday at Vancouver, Monday at Calgary, Wednesday vs. Toronto)

Wild Card

1st WC Tampa Bay  78 points in 67 games  (Tuesday at Vegas, Thursday at San Jose)

2nd WC Detroit       74 points in 67 games  (Sunday at Pittsburgh, Tuesday vs. Columbus, Thursday vs. Isles)

3rd Isles                73 points in 66 games  (Sunday at Rangers, Tuesday vs. Carolina, Thursday at Detroit)

4th Washington      71 points in 65 games  (Late: Saturday at Vancouver, Monday at Calgary, Wednesday vs. Toronto)

5th Buffalo             69 points in 68 games (Monday at Seattle, Tuesday at Vancouver, Thursday at Edmonton)

Milestone Men  

• Brock Nelson has 270 goals, two behind John Tavares for 7th in club history.

• Brock Nelson is one goal away from his third consecutive 30-goal season, a feat last accomplished for the Islanders by Matt Moulson.

• Casey Cizikas played in his 799th NHL game.

• Bo Horvat now has 495 career points.

Mr. Consistency

Mathew Barzal has had five point streaks of at least five games this season, including an 8-game and a 7-game streak.

Woah Noah

Dobson is the first Islander defenseman with at least 65 points since 1984-85 when Denis Potvin had 68, and the first with at least 57 assists since 1983-84, when Potvin recorded 63.

Dobson is on pace for 71 assists; Denis Potvin holds the club record for assists by a defenseman (70 in 1978-79). Dobson is on pace for 81 points, which would trail only four seasons by Potvin.

Dobson has recorded only the fifth season in club history with at least 57 assists by a defenseman:  

1. Denis Potvin 70 (1978-79)

2. Denis Potvin 67 (1975-76)

3. Denis Potvin 64 (1977-78)

4. Denis Potvin 63 (1983-84)

5. Noah Dobson 57 (2023-24)

Dobson has a point in twelve straight home games, which is the third-longest defense streak in club history (Denis Potvin - 15 in 1974-75 and Tom Kurvers -14 in 1991-92). Only one other active defenseman has had a streak of at least 12 games (Brent Burns -12 in 2017-18)

Dobson is now tied-24th overall for assists in a season by an Islander.

Most assists (Islanders, last 35 years)

1. Pierre Turgeon 74 in 1992-93

2. Mathew Barzal 63 in  2017-18

3. Noah Dobson 57 in 2023-24

Coach Roy

The Isles are 10-7-4 under Patrick Roy and have allowed only two goals or fewer in eight of their ten wins. Ilya Sorokin is 9-4-2 under Roy while Semyon Varlamov is 1-3-2.

Scoring Leaders Under Patrick Roy

1. Mathew Barzal 8-15-23

2. Brock Nelson 9-11-20

3. Noah Dobson 2-18-20

4. Bo Horvat 9-8-17 (4 GWG)

5. Kyle Palmieri 10-5-15

Since the Break

The Isles are 9-5-3 since the all-star break. While they were outshot 34.9-30.0 per game (-4.9) prior to the break, the Isles have out-shot their opponents 29.9-27.9 (+2.0) since the break.

Inter-Division Games

This was the last of eleven consecutive inter-division games; the Isles went 6-4-1 in that stretch. Beginning Sunday at Madison Square Garden, nine of the Isles' final sixteen games will be against Metro Division teams.

 

Overtime is Our Time

The Isles have played 23 overtime games, one behind Boston for the NHL lea. They are 7-11 in games decided by an overtime goal, and they are 1-4 in shootouts. Ilya Sorokin is 6-7 in overtime and 1-3 in shootouts, while Semyon Varlamov is 1-4 in overtime and 0-1 in shootouts. 

The NHL record for overtime games is 30, played by Boston in 2003-04. The Isles are on pace to play 30 overtime games.

The Isles have won 18 of the last 46 games decided by an overtime goal (since January 11, 2020).

Most Islander OT/SO Losses 

• 15 (2023-24; CURRENT)

• 13 (2010-11)

Most OT/SO Losses in a Season (Isles Goalie)

1. Ilya Sorokin 11 (2023-24; CURRENT)

2. Rick DiPietro 9 (2006-07)

3. Ilya Sorokin 8 (2022-23)

Evgeni Nabokov 8 (2013-14)

Most Career OT/SO Losses (Isles Goalie)

• Ilya Sorokin 29 (CURRENT)

• Rick DiPietro 28 

Empty Netters 

The Isles have scored 2 empty-net goals and allowed 16.

Killing Their Own PP

The Isles have taken a penalty to interrupt their power play 20 times this season.

Power Play Up; Penalty Killing Down

The Isles have scored 41 power play goals; they scored 35 all last season.

The Isles have allowed 55 power play goals; they allowed 39 all last season. 

Under Patrick Roy, the Isles Power Play is 13-64 (20.3%) and the Penalty Kill is 18-57 (68.4%). 

 

Building on a Lead

The Islanders have had a two-goal lead 47 times this season:

• Score the next goal: 13 times

• Allowed the next goal: 30 times

• Game ended with 2-goal difference: 4 times 

Heavy Hitters

Cal Clutterbuck and Matt Martin are 1-2 all-time in hits:

1. Cal Clutterbuck 3,980

2. Matt Martin 3,826

Martin (7) and Clutterbuck (3) have combined for the 10-biggest hits seasons in Isles history in the Real-Time era, which began in 2005-06. 

The 25-Goal Club

Brock Nelson is the 8th player in club history to have at least six seasons of at least 25 goals:

• Bryan Trottier 12

• Mike Bossy 10

• John Tavares/ Clark Gillies 7

• Pat LaFontaine/ Brent Sutter/ Anders Lee/ Brock Nelson 6

Anders Lee needs eight more goals this season for his 7th season with at least 25 goals.

Last Year vs. This Year

• 2023-24  29-22-15 for 73 points in 66 games

• 2022-23  33-25-8 for 74 points in 66 games

Offense from Defense

• Today:   0-1-1

• Season: 27-111-138 

• Season Pace 33-138-171

• Last Season (Final) 41-132-173

The Islander defense scored 41 goals last season, which was the most since they scored 42 in 2003-04. The 173 points were their most since 1993-94, when they had 174 points in an 84-game season.

Lots of Work for Sorokin

Most shots against:

• Ilya Sorokin 1,572

• Juuse Saros 1,519  (*)

• Alexandar Georgiev 1,490 (*)

• Jordan Binnington 1,449 (*)

• Thatcher Demko 1,427

• Connor Hellebuyck 1,426

(*) Later game Saturday

No goalie has ever played the full season for the Islanders and led the NHL in this category; Kelly Hrudey led the NHL in 1988-89; he was traded at the deadline to Los Angeles.

Facing 40

Ilya Sorokin has faced at least forty shots ten times this season and 27 times in his career. 

Most Games, 40+ Shots in a Season vs Isles Goalie

1. Jaroslav Halak 11  2017-18

2. Gerry Desjardins 10 1972-73

Ilya Sorokin 10 2023-24

No other NHL goalie has faced 40+ shots more than six times this season.

Most games, 40+ Shots (Since 2021-22)

1. John Gibson 34

2. Ilya Sorokin 27

3. Darcy Kuemper 23

4. Sam Montembault 21

Karel Vejmelka 21

Most Games, 40+ Shots (Islander History)

1. Billy Smith 46    (674 games)

2. Kelly Hrudey 27 (241 games)

Ilya Sorokin 27 (183 games)

Sorokin has made at least 40 saves six times this season and a franchise-record 16 times in his career. 

Varly, Varly

Semyon Varlamov has 40 career shutouts and 279 career wins. Among active NHL goalies (and excluding Carey Price, who is technically still active), Varlamov is seventh in wins and fourth in shutouts.

All-time Goalie Wins

51. Brian Elliott 279

51. Semyon Varlamov 279

53. Marty Turco 275

Home and Road

The Isles are 29-22-15 overall; they are 15-8-10 at home and 14-14-5 on the road.

Ottawa is 28-33-4 overall; they are 18-14-2 at home and 10-19-2 on the road.

East and West

The Isles are 18-10-9 against the East (8-4-5 vs. Metropolitan and 10-6-4 vs. Atlantic) and 11-12-6 against the West (5-6-2 vs. Central and 6-6-4 vs. Pacific).

Home is Where the Fans Are

The Isles have played 114 games at UBS Arena and recorded 79 sellouts of 17,255. 

Sweet Lou

Lou Lamoriello has the second-highest win total for any general manager in NHL history:

1. David Poile 1,531

2. Lou Lamoriello 1,434

3. Glen Sather 1,319

Leaders of the Pack

Lou Lamoriello (1,434) and Patrick Roy (140) have combined for 1,574 career wins as general manager and coach. That is the highest in the NHL among active combos by a wide margin.

First Things First

The Isles are 21-3-10 when scoring first and are 8-19-5 when allowing the opening goal. Under Patrick Roy, the Isles are 8-0-1 when they score first and are 2-7-3 when they do not.

The Shots

Isles     5-13-13-2=33

Ottawa 8-12-6-4=30

The Isles are 11-8-6 when they outshoot their opponents, 1-1-0 when the shots are even and 17-13-9 when the opposition has more shots.

In the Nets

Semyon Varlamov made 26 saves; he is 7-7-4 on the season and 7-5-3-vs. Ottawa.

Joonas Korpisalo made 30 saves; he is 15-20-4 on the season and 5-5-3 vs. the Isles. 

Special Teams

The Isles were 1-3 on the power play (5:12); Ottawa was 2-3 on the power play (3:47).

The Isles are 16-7-9 when they score at least one power play goal and 13-15-6 when they do not. The Isles are 11-15-10 when they allow at least one power play goal and 18-7-5 when they do not.

Three is (Usually) a Magic Number

The Isles are 27-4-11 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 2-18-4 when they do not. 

One-Goal Games

The Isles are 16-3-15 in games decided by a single goal including 8-3 in regulation. They are 7-11 in games decided in overtime and are 1-4 in shootouts. The Isles are 2-6 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game.

Back-to-Backs     

Including today, the Isles are 3-1-4 in the front end and 0-4-3 in the back end this season. This back -to-back concludes Sunday afternoon in Manhattan. The next back-to-back set will be on Saturday vs. Winnipeg and Sunday vs. New Jersey; it is the only back-to-back home set this season played entirely at home. 

Ice-time Leaders

Isles: Ryan Pulock (24:12); Ottawa: Jake Sanderson (25:09)

Brock Nelson led Islander forwards with 22:07 of ice-time. 

Isles record by ice-time leaders: Ryan Pulock (4-1-2), Noah Dobson (22-19-9), Alex Romanov (2-2-0), Adam Pelech (0-0-2), Matthew Barzal (0-0-1), Bo Horvat (1-0-0).

Face-offs

Isles 28, Ottawa 33 (46%)

Bo Horvat won 12 of 23 for the Isles; Brady Tkachuk won 6 of 9 for Ottawa.

Hit Count

Isles 21 (Anders Lee -4)

Ottawa 14 (Artem Zub-5)

Fights 

There were no fights. Season total: 8 (Martin 3, Lee 2, Pelech 1, Mayfield 1, Horvat 1)

 

Blocked Shots

Isles 18 (Noah Dobson -4)

Ottawa 22 (Three with 3)

For the Analytics Crowd 

Corsi: All situations: Isles 63, Ottawa 63

Corsi: 5-on-5: Isles 54, Ottawa 46

 

5-on-5 leaders:

Isles:  Simon Holmstrom +16

Ottawa: Boris Katchouk +3

High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)

All situations: Isles 7, Ottawa 8

5-on-5: Isles 6, Ottawa 6

Scratches

Robert Bortuzzo, (Scott Mayfield – LTIR), Oliver Wahlstrom, Hudson Fasching, Samuel Bolduc

Games Lost to injury: 160

The Ironmen

Anders Lee is the Islanders' ironman, having played 178 consecutive games. Brock Nelson (150) is the only other Islander to have played at least 100 consecutive games. Four other Islanders (Noah Dobson, Cal Clutterbuck, Kyle Palmieri, and Jean-Gabriel Pageau) have played every game this season.

Most Overtime Goals, Season (Islanders)

1. John Tavares 4 (2014-15)

2. Bo Horvat 3 (2023-24)

Brock Nelson 3 (2019-20)

John Tavares 3 (2010-11)

Most Overtime Assists, Career (Islanders)

1. Mathew Barzal 15

2. John Tavares 12

Most Overtime Points, Career (Islanders)

1. John Tavares 23

2. Mathew Barzal 20

Barzal has a point on 20 of the 37 overtime goals that the Isles have scored since he became a regular in 2016-17.

National TV Games 

The Isles are 5-0-3 in games that air on one of the NHL's US national broadcast partners. The next nationally televised game will be on March 17th (TNT) vs. the Rangers.

Matinee Isles

The Isles are 0-3-1 in matinee games (all at home, including an OT loss at Met Life). The remaining matinee games are March 16th vs OTT, March 17th at NYR, March 23rd vs WPG, and April 13th at NYR.

The NHL considers games that start before 5:00 local time to be afternoon games. Since the start of the 2019-20 season, the Isles are 12-12-9 in matinees.

Challenges

Isles: 2 successful, 4 failures – WSH goalie interference (11/2), OTT offside (11/24), LA no goalie interference (12/9), VGK no goalie interference (1/6), PIT no hand pass (2/20) , BUF no goalie interference (3/14)

Opponents: 3 successful, 2 failures – BUF no offsides (10/21), CAR no high-stick (11/30); ANA goalie interference (12/13), CGY offside (2/10), TB offside (2/24)

Quickies

The Isles have scored two goals in under a minute seven times this season (four times at home – CBJ 12/7 x2, WSH 12/29, NYR 2/18-MetLife and three time on road-@OTT 11/24, @ARI 1/4, @SJ 3/7)  and allowed two in the same span eight times (COL 10/25 x2, MIN 11/8, @MTL 12/16, PIT 12/27, @NAS 1/13, @PIT 2/20, @STL 2/22 (3 in :32))

Multi-Goal 3rd Period Comeback Wins

The Isles have come from at least two goals behind in the third period to win one time this season and have allowed the opposition to do so five times.

For (1): LA 12/9 (trailed 0-2, won 3-2 in OT)

Vs (5): DET 10/30 (trailed 0-2, won 4-3 in OT); CAR 11/4 (trailed 1-3, won 4-3 in OT) ; @ NJ 11/28 (trailed 2-4, won 5-4 in regulation); SJ 12/5 (trailed 1-4; won 5-3 in OT); NYR 2/18 (trailed 3-5, won 6-5 in OT)

Last Minute Heroes:

The Isles have scored four goals and have allowed six goals in the final three minutes of the third period to tie or go-ahead:

For (5): Bo Horvat 10/20 vs NJ 18:49 (Isles lost in OT); Simon Holmstrom 12/13 vs ANA 18:27 (GWG); Kyle Palmieri 1/27 vs FLA 18:31 (Isles lost in OT); Pierre Engvall 2/5 @ TOR 17:58 (GWG); Bo Horvat 3/16 vs OTT 19:22 (Isles lost in OT).

Vs (7): Curtis Lazar 11/28 @ NJ 19:37 (GWG); Sebastian Aho 11/30 @ CAR 19:57 (Isles won in OT); Tomas Hertl vs SJ 18:30 (SJ won in OT); Morgan Rielly 12/11 vs TOR 19:53 (Isles won in OT); Alexandre Carrier 1/13 @ NAS 19:52 (GWG); Sean Monahan 1/25 @ MTL 17:48 (GWG); Mika Zibanejad vs NYR – Met Life 18:31 (NYR won in OT)

OT Winners

For (7): Mathew Barzal (vs CAR) 11/30, Jean Gabriel Pageau (vs LA) 12/9, Bo Horvat (vs TOR) 12/11, Mathew Barzal (vs TOR) 1/11, Bo Horvat (vs DAL) 1/21, Adam Pelech (vs PIT) 2/20, Bo Horvat (vs DAL) 2/26

Vs (11): Jack Hughes (NJ) 10/20, Lucas Raymond (DET) 10/30, Sebastian Aho (CAR) 11/4, Quinn Hughes (VAN) 11/15; William Eklund (SJ) 12/5; Dylan Strome (WAS) 12/20; Nathan MacKinnon (COL) 1/2; Seth Jones (CHI) 1/19, Oliver Ekman-Larsson (FLA) 1/27; Artemi Panarin (NYR) 2/18; Brady Tkachuk 3/16

Shootout Winners

For (1): Oliver Wahlstrom (Vs CGY) 11/18

Vs (4): Kailer Yamamoto (SEA) 11/16, Tyson Foerster (PHI) 11/25, David Pastrnak (BOS) 12/15, Tomas Tatar (SEA) 2/13

 

All-time Islander Leader Boards:

Games Played (skaters)

1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 *** 3. Josh Bailey 1,057…

5. Clark Gillies 872 *** 6. Brock Nelson 824 *** 7. Bob Bourne 814 *** 8. Matt Martin 809 *** 9. Casey Cizikas 799 *** 10. Mike Bossy 752 *** 11. Anders Lee 744 *** Patrick Flatley 712 *** 13. Cal Clutterbuck 702…

32. Rich Pion and Mick Vukota 509 *** 34. Ed Westfall 493 *** 35. Mathew Barzal 485 *** 36. Adam Pelech 484 *** 37. Radek Martinek 479 **** 38. Gerry Hart 476 *** 39. Mariusz Czerkawski and Ryan Pulock 470 *** 41. Scott Mayfield 469 

Goals    

1. Mike Bossy 573 *** 2. Bryan Trottier 500 *** 3. Denis Potvin 310 …

5. Pat LaFontaine and Brent Sutter 287 *** 7. John Tavares 272 *** 8. Brock Nelson 270 *** 9. Anders Lee 257 …

20. Kyle Okposo 139 ***21. Jason Blake 127 *** 22. Mathew Barzal 125…

29. Ray Ferraro 116 *** 30. Benoit Hogue, Ed Westfall, and Casey Cizikas 105

Assists

1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553 …

10. Stefan Persson 317 *** 11. Mathew Barzal 3065…

16. Billy Harris 259 *** 17. Tomas Jonsson 249  *** 18. Brock Nelson 248…

21. Nick Leddy 198 *** 22. Pierre Turgeon 193 *** 23. Anders Lee 188…

31. David Volek 154 *** 32. Mariusz Czerkawski 150 *** 33. Noah Dobson 147 *** 34. Travis Green 145 *** 35. Steve Thomas 140 *** 36. Mark Streit 139 *** 37. Ryan Pulock 137

Points

1. Bryan Trottier 1,353 *** 2. Mike Bossy 1,126 *** 3. Denis Potvin 1,052…

10. Bob Bourne 542 *** 11. Brock Nelson 518 *** 12. Bob Nystrom 513 *** 13. Derek King 499 *** 14. Patrick Flatley 488 *** 15. Anders Lee 445  *** 16. Billy Harris 443 *** 17. Mathew Barzal 431…

31. Nick Leddy 243 *** 32. Ray Ferraro and Casey Cizikas 238

+/-

1. Bryan Trottier +467 *** 2. Denis Potvin +456 *** 3. Mike Bossy +380…

15. Bob Lorimer +105  *** 16. Tomas Jonsson +76 *** 17. Adam Pelech +75 ***  18. Garry Howatt +75 *** 19. Pat Price +70 *** 20. JP Parise +67 *** 21. Jude Drouin +58 *** 22. Patrick Flatley +57 *** 23. Greg Gilbert +54  

Defense Goals

1. Denis Potvin 310 *** 2. Tomas Jonsson 84 *** 3. Kenny Jonsson 57…

4. Stefan Persson 52 *** 5. Ryan Pulock 47 *** 6. Jean Potvin 46 *** 7. Nick Leddy 45 *** 8. Roman Hamrlik 43 *** 9. Mark Streit 40 *** 10. Noah Dobson 38

Defense Assists

1. Denis Potvin 742 *** 2. Stefan Persson 317 *** 3. Tomas Jonsson 249…

7. Jeff Norton 166 *** 8. Noah Dobson 148 *** 9. Mark Streit 139 *** 10. Ryan Pulock 137…

13. Roman Hamrlik 110 *** 14. Adam Pelech 110… 

20. Dave Langevin and Thomas Hickey 95 *** 22. Scott Mayfield 91

Defense Points

1. Denis Potvin 1,052 *** 2. Stefan Persson 369 *** 3. Tomas Jonsson 333…

6. Jean Potvin 213 *** 7. Jeff Norton 188 *** 8. Noah Dobson 186 *** 9. Ryan Pulock 184

13. Dave Lewis 141 *** 14. Adam Pelech 136 *** 15. Tom Kurvers 134 …

19. Vladimir Malakhov 125 *** 20. Thomas Hickey 117 *** 21. Scott Mayfield 116

Goalie Games

1. Billy Smith 674 *** 2. Rick DiPietro 318 *** 3. Glenn Resch 282 …

5. Thomas Greiss 193 *** 6. Tommy Salo 187 *** 7. Ilya Sorokin 184 *** 8. Jaroslav Halak 177 *** 9. Glenn Healy 176 *** 10. Semyon Varlamov 155

Wins

1. Billy Smith 304 *** 2. Glenn Resch 157 *** 3. Rick DiPietro 130…

5. Thomas Greiss 101 *** 6. Ilya Sorokin 92 *** 7. Jaroslav Halak 88 *** 8. Roland Melanson 77 *** 9. Glenn Healy and Semyon Varlamov 66

Shutouts

1. Glenn Resch 25 *** 2. Billy Smith 22 *** 3. Ilya Sorokin 18 *** 

4. Rick DiPietro 16 *** 5. Semyon Varlamov 15

On the Farm   

Bridgeport fell to 20-33-6-1 on the season as they dropped a 3-1 decision to Laval (Quebec) on Friday and a 4-2 decision in Belleville (Ontario) on Saturday. Garrett Pilon, the son of the former Islander, had two goals and an assist for Belleville.

Season Series Stats

The Isles win the season series 2 games to 1 (and 4 points to 2). 

The Isles are 12-2-2 in their last sixteen games with Ottawa, including 6-0-2 at home. 

UP NEXT

SUNDAY, MARCH 17th  – ISLANDERS AT RANGERS– 1:00pm

[TNT(pre-game at 12:30), WRHU 88.7 FM, WRCN 103.9FM, ESPN Radio].

It can take a long time to get to New York City from Long Island, but in the Islanders' case, it is 451 days since their last game at Madison Square Garden. The Isles make their return to Broadway with a nationally-televised St. Patrick's Day matinee on Sunday; both teams have changed coaches since the Rangers beat the Isles 5-3 on December 22, 2022, at MSG.

This is the second of four meetings this season; the Rangers won 6-5 in overtime at Met Life Stadium. The teams will meet twice in five days next month (April 9 at UBS, April 13 at MSG), but could there be a first playoff matchup in 30 years ahead?

Brendan Burke, Darren Pang, and Jackie Redmond will have the call on TNT (and in Canada on SportsNet 360).

AND FINALLY…

You are reading the 993rd consecutive edition of The Skinny. I expect to publish the 1,000th consecutive edition will be published after the game in Tampa Bay on March 30th.

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