AP: Has the early recap of the Islanders 4-3 shootout loss against the Penguins Saturday night.
Would love to give the Islanders a better review for this game because a lot of great individual efforts (Sutton, Nielsen, MacDonald, Campoli, Streit) but overall they did not even deserve to get the game to overtime and played like a team that could not put two passes together for most of the third period.
The look on Scott Gordon's face said it all.
Pittsburgh for all they did was not every very good either and could not do much with their skills. It was more about a lot of sloppy play by the Islanders and an ice surface that again is a story line because it's not in good condition with players falling or getting caught in ruts all over the place. Dany Sabourin fell at least twice and at one point Nielsen took a long time getting a shot on goal with him slow to get into position.
Without MacDonald robbing Fedotenko at least twice and a few other Pens the game is over in regulation, he stole the Islanders point. The officials made a few very marginal calls against the Islanders and let Nielsen's hit from behind by Pittsbugh go without a powerplay.
Nielsen if he ever learns to shoot first is going to do some damage, the way he is getting to the quality spots on the ice is very impresive and the best storyline for the club. That play shorthanded in the second where he and Bergenheim drove the net was better than any goal the club scored and the Pens could not get them out of the crease afterward.
What would you have may say about Doug Weight, he flubbed in an even strength shot that somehow when in and a Pen slid by him for him to get another chance which Jackman finished, the second play was more impressive.
Again Jackman is even with or outscoring Tambellini.
Okposo made a very heady play to find Hilbert who showed nice hands and finally got back on right wing even if it was with Hilbert and Park. Bergenheim had a few moments (hopefully he did not get hurt) and Park was everywhere shorthanded.
Comrie, Sim did not look visible at all in this one.
Hard to blame Gervais for the choppy ice on the second Pens goal, Sutton was amaazing with two assist and at least eight blocked shots. Early last year they would hit him and go out but he picked up where he left off a year ago and many times kept Crosby to the outside or used the poke check well.
Too bad it took until overtime for the Islanders to relax and start skating, Guerin almost finished one but it was like the mud-bowl with that ice and it's every game now in the Coliseum.
A shootout is something that we have not seen since preseason. The least creative shooters took the ice for Scott Gordon and Dany Sabourin made it look easy. Ref made the right call as did the video officials on Hunter's shot, no view of the puck in the pad over the line.
Streit played over twenty eight minutes, this club cannot get Martinek, Meyer or Witt
back in this lineup fast enough.
Felt like we were back in the 2006-07 playoffs waiting for the call to go against the Islanders on the review.
The idea this is a 30th place team being dominated for sixty minutes just does not fly, these are games they have to close out and win. They should be over five hundred for the games they have led after forty minutes.
Hard to show overspeed when you play entire periods in your own end chasing the other club.
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BEFORE TUESDAY'S GAME ON VETERANS DAY AGAINST FLYERS.
The Nassau County Fire Fighters Operation Wounded Warrior (NCFF-OWW) will be collecting care packages at the main box office entrance and Gate 16. If you can stop in and help these folks and in their efforts it would be greatly appreciated.
NCFF-OWW is a registered non-profit organization of Fire Fighters who run a collection campaign of care package items prior to the holidays for the past several years.
During the first weekend in December the group will be involved with "Long Red Line" of fire vehicles that bring the collections to the Wounded Warriors who will be spending their holidays recovering in the Hospitals away from their families who visit, Fr. Bragg, Camp Lejeune, Bethesda Naval and Walter Reed Army Hospitals.