Remember when Dwayne Roloson opened this season making us wonder if he'd ever make a shootout save? Not so much tonight. Just dynamite. That stop on Rick Nash alone was worth the extra point.
From opening faceoff to the final shootout attempt, Roloson delivered another gem, making 41 saves to do one better than his age. Many of those BJ shots were from outside, but his rebound control had me grateful -- once again -- that Garth Snow wasn't satisfied with last year's tandem.
Game Sum. | Event Sum. | Corsi | Recaps: nhl.com | Isles | IPB | Post | Dispatch
Oddly enough, while the Islanders were outplayed in most facets, they had their share of serious scoring chances when they did get Blue Jackets goalie Steve Mason scrambling, including a couple close ones in OT. The only Islanders goal was a fluke, the only Jackets goal came after Roloson had bailed the Isles out too many times.
Jeff Tambellini looked fine (despite his shootout miss, where he went uncharacteristically deep before unleashing his patented howitzer). Tim Jackman was credited with six hits; Tambellini: five hits. In coach's parlance, that may positively reflect his "compete level." ... Rob Schremp's shootout attempt was marvelous -- and Rob Schremp Hockey also got the quote of the night:
"A lot of the credit goes to Martin Biron, he gave me a lot of confidence (at the morning skate)," Schremp said. "I went 4-for-4 on him."
That is an impressive level of beat-up-on-the-goalie-who-gets-no-goal-support.
Powerplay: Still quite ill. I'm starting to wonder if John Tavares and Schremp are too much hands for the same PP unit. Initially, in Schremp's first couple games since his return from the press box, I favored it. Now they don't look like they're helping each other.
Sorry for the late (and brief) review: My best, oldest friend was in town for dinner and a late night of discussing everything under the sun. Standard video highlight clips (with Jiggs' classic voice) follow, along with Scott Gordon's presser and Rob Schremp Hockey talkin' shootouts to a soundtrack of techno victory beats.
Game Highlights
Scott Gordon Presser
Rob Schremp Hockey Post-Game
More later. Next game is New Year's Eve in Ottawa.