This is the 12th game of the season they’ve lost by 1 goal in regulation. I realize how hated the current OT point system is, but still, if they had managed to score one more goal in half those games and go into OT they would be tied for 8th right now. That’s without considering games that the Islanders might have had an empty netter scored against them and lost by 2.

It’s a really thin margin between where the Islanders are right now and where they could be. You can take it to the other extreme, if the Islanders don’t have 8 OTLs and just lost those games they’d only be 2 points ahead of Toronto right now.

We’ve definitely improved though.
Last season we finished at 61 Points, we have 60 now.
Last season we finished with 26 Wins, we have 26 now.
Last season finished with 47 Losses, 30 now and they might not finish with 40

I just think its a team on the rise, and we have reason to be hopeful for next season.

the boys did pretty well. There were at least 2 goals which Tim Thomas single-handedly stole away. This game could have gone the other way, and that makes the pill easier to swallow.

First of all, happy the Isles had an afternoon game so that I can watch Big Andy now on Hockey Night In Canada ;-)

To me, one of the bigger question marks around the team lately have been the incredibly poor starts game after game. There surely were a few, but I hardly remember any bad start into a game in the first three months of the season. They always were ready and played some excellent opening periods also against tough opposition. But ever since the end of that good run in mid-January, they’ve been awful at the beginnings, even in the games they won.

The first game they lost after their best run was at Pittsburgh, 4-6. If I remember correctly the play was ok early in the game, they unluckily were down 0-3 after 27 minutes, but that was when it all started…
vs. Florida, 2-1 SO, 0-1 after 30 horrible minutes, outshot 6-14 in the first period.
vs. New Jersey, 2-4, outshot 5-13 in the first (0-1).
vs. Washington, 2-7, 1-4 after first.
at Carolina, 1-4, 0-2 after first.
at Philadelphia, 1-2, 0-2 after first.
at Florida, 0-2, good first for once in terms of shots (15-6), but down 0-1
at Tampa, 2-5, ok first (1-1, 14-10 shots)
vs. Carolina, 1-3, 0-1 after first (11-8 shots).
vs. Nashville, 4-3 SO, 0-0 after first, outshot 3-9
at Pittsburgh, 1-3, 0-0 after first (12-9 shots)
vs. Tampa, 5-4, 1-2 after first, outshot 9-14
vs. Ottawa, 3-4, 1-1 after first (9-11 shots)
vs. Chicago, 5-3, 1-2 after first, outshot 9-22
at Atlanta, 3-6, 0-4 after 14 minutes
vs. Boston, 2-3, 0-1 after first, outshot 4-16

That’s 0-12-4 in the first period since the end of that good run. And there indeed were only about three or four of these 16 periods not poor. That’s quite incredible paricularly compared to early in the season, when they were really good mostly at the beginnings. Does anybody have an explanation?
Not the main reason, but a part of it might be that many teams didn’t take the Isles too seriously early in the season and found themselves down by a goal or two after the first period. But since that good run by the Isles until mid-January everyone might have been a bit more ready to play them hard from the get-go. That however would mean this team could be further away than we might think from the impressions of the first three months of the season…

because part of that can be explained by having Roly vs two depth goalies. Another part can be explained by a much more serious injury problem last year.

Look at the pluses for this year. We had real finds in Moulson and Schremp. Moulson, in particular, looks like star material. The Moulson—Tavares—Okposo line has real potential as a top line. Okposo, Bailey, Hillen, and MacDonald have taken big steps forward in their development. Comeau is starting to look like the real thing as well.

Part of the future is still in the system. Players like De Haan, Hamonic, Donovan, Martin, Cizikas, Lee, and others are part of the future. JT and the aforementioned all have yet to show us anywhere near their full potential. I see this team as really becoming a big time contender possibly in 2012-13. Given that the 2011 draft is supposed to be weak, this upcoming draft is absolutely critical. We need a forward with elite top six potential to make the second line potent enough that opposing defenses can’t just key on the Tavares line. We also need 1-2 quality defensive prospects and a PF prospect.

Lighthouse and DP are the two albatrosses that this franchise needs to shed. If DP can’t play, he needs to retire. If Wang isn’t going to accept the diminished version of Lighthouse TOH will allow him, he needs to move aggressively to get things done with another location—probably Queens. Given how I feel about the Wilpons tearing down Shea in favor of their personal ATM and Mr. Shea’s involvement in the foundation of this franchise, I would not be against calling it Shea Center. It would be wonderful if we could bring the Cup back to the Island BEFORE 2015. Then perhaps Islander fans could get together and buy billboard space as near as possible to TOH offices and have a sign with a pic of the guys celebrating with the Cup and the message: “You LOST Kate!”

Sean looked good in his return from the doghouse… but he’s still in the yard. Before this season is over, if they’re not going ot bring up one of the larger LW’s (Jesse or Matt), then I’d like to see Bergie go out with a fight… and by that I mean he needs second line minutes with Schremp and Comeau(if healthy). That includes PP minutes.

It wasn\t in the NHL highlights.

It seems like many teams get a spark from a new guy, Atlanta was the opitime of new chemistry.
Garth should have made a deal, moved someone. I think th eteam looks stale.

th team looked pumped with Martin before the break. I would arther see him back up then Jackman with the face sheild. Jackman is useless if he can’t intimidate, that is the biggest part of his game, and needed more without Sutton. martin was able to park in front of the G on the PP an dhe was able to scrap and more importantly move bodies out of the way. I say bring hi back, and make Jackman a healthy scratch.