New York 2, Anaheim 1

New York Islander Fan Central | 1/21/2009 08:43:00 PM |
















First period:

Comeau great play to strip the puck and feed Comrie, Streit had a wide open Gervais on the delay penalty the play drew.

Okposo makes Scott Gordon look good (and me not so good) drilling a shot past Anaheim goaltender J.S Giguere for the opening goal but he did not have his post on a shot without much of a screen.

Streit makes great play against four players, Guiere kicks a rebound to Blake Comeau who misses a wide open the net or had his shot redirected.

Comrie missed an easy chance to clear, Anaheim took the puck and almost scored a goal and drew a penalty as the Islanders struggled.

Islanders lose faceoff, Witt block, Martinek penalty. Okposo on pk.
Danis save on Pronger point shot.

Danis again gave up rebounds.

Nielsen to Kurtis McLean for a shot that beats Giguere for his first NHL goals.
(who is immediately pulled and furious)
Jack Hillen's second NHL point who beat two forwards moving puck, first point of this season.

Nice save off Hedican by Danis.

Witt delay of game putting puck in stands.

End first.

Not a bad period by a lot of open point shots by Anaheim, a lot of down-low play where they tried using size to crash Denis crease. Islanders seemed to have the goals but not a lot of chances.
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Second period:

Niedermayer robbed by Danis after he beat Richard Park. Anaheim had pressure.

Islanders line with Martinek-Witt-Bailey-Guerin-Park pinned. Anaheim after chance another big save by Danis.

Islanders look short-handed at even strength and having problems clearing.

Pucks squirts out for Isles odd-man rush, save off Sim-Jackman.

Bailey turnover almost cost them. Line with Park-Bailey-Guerin mostly outworked.

Anaheim dominating, Danis holding them in for first eight minutes.

Too many men against Islanders, Thompson fails to clear, all Danis/crossbar as Anaheim has done everything but finish.

Jonas Hiller is the new Anaheim goaltender who had faced about one shot in the second.

Another Islander penalty on Sim, redirection off post.

Ryan beats Brendan Witt, redirected pp goal 2-1 game, too easy.

Nielsen finds Kurtis McLean who redirects puck out of mid-air for a very good save.

Islanders survive second period outshot 19-5 in second.

No way they keep lead if the ice stays this tilted.
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Third period:

Took about four minutes of center ice play before Anaheim started getting chances, Streit broke up a chance.

Islanders thirteen shots and little pressure since the first and nothing sustained.

Eighteen minutes with no shots on goal.

Park-Guerin-Bailey pinned in again.

Anaheim seems to have four men in center ice waiting to hit the Islanders who are outnumbered, Nielsen breaks through for another pass to McLean that he dove to redirect over the net.

Two Islander shots wide, two Ducks collide at center ice but not getting much sustained pressure with eight minutes left.

Islanders forecheck a little and take an offensive zone penalty by Richard Park.

Here comes Thompson-Jackman who may have cleared one for an actual shot on goal or the first one in twenty six minutes.

Islanders kill penalty without pressure on Danis.
Hold that, huge scramble and pressure off final faceoff, puck somehow does not go in.

Nielsen and Park some sustained time in Duck end, shots wide.

Tambellini/Comeau-Jackman-Thompson the forwards out for extra long shift with goalie pulled for Anaheim. Danis stopped another point shot and held.

Thompson on the ice after timeout with Jackman and Park.
No Okposo, Comeau, Bailey, Nielsen. Puck cleared into Duck bench.

Ducks ice puck with 3.3 second left.

New York wins it's first game in 2009, Yann Danis his first NHL win since 2005.
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Summary:
Islanders played a team that skated last night that has lost five of seven, no way they should have been outplayed and outskated this badly regardless of end result,
especially the way the game started with a 2-0 lead.

It should have given them some confidence.

Anaheim takes more penalties than any club in the NHL, did Islanders draw one powerplay after the first?

Without Danis it could easily have been a blowout going into the third and he stole the two points for his club. Ducks like the Devils seem to have a big team that can skate and just manhandled the Islanders who are such a smaller club. Ducks ran out of gas a little in the third but Islanders generated nothing on offense.

Worst overall game on the homestand (or right there with the Devil game effort) and they win?

Go figure.

J.S Giguere starts the All-Star game and lets in some soft goals, Yann Danis steals the show. Islanders on defense dug in well getting excellent effort from all six on the backline in the third allowing only nine shots and few dangerous chances in the final twenty minutes.

Scott Gordon just called it skating against twenty Zdeno Chara's and he was dead on.

Not a good win at all but we'll take any at this point, should not have been this tough.
















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