Islanders B2B Gameday News: Because we have to

The Islanders played pond hockey, then got drubbed by a better team. Turns out Christopher Gibson might not be the savior?

They’re back at it in D.C. tonight. Leave your FIG picks here.

Islanders Reading

• About last night: Jenny looked for signs of life, found none. [LHH] Funny, the Post headline writers (AP story, no byline listed) found none either. [Post] Gibson gets his first taste of being pulled after an onslaught. [Newsday] The official site has to report it too. [Isles] Staple: “It’s over.” [The Athletic] Compton with a summary noting the Caps held on to first place. [NHL]
• Andre Burakovsky with a damning quote about how lax the Isles defensive effort was, in analysis from Andrew Gross. [Newsday]
• Erick Hornick’s “Skinny” on last night with many telling tales, like: “The Isles scored first for the fifth straight game and for the eighth time in the last nine games… The Isles have scored three goals or fewer in 13 of the last 14 games.” [NYI Skinny]
• Doug Weight struggles with the reality of the team’s performance mixed with his sincere belief and hope for the direction of the franchise. [Newsday]
• For the second game in a row, the Sound Tigers won after overcoming a 4-goal deficit. [CT Post]
• The Sound Tigers have scored more 4-on-4 goals (9) than any other season in franchise history. [CT Post]
• Pierre LeBrun has gone Full Clickbait! IF humans didn’t land on the moon and IF there is actually a secret colony on Mars, here is how a John Tavares sign-and-trade, which has never happened in the NHL cap era, would work. [The Athletic and TSN Video | Dan updates the Encyclopedia]
• The 31 Thoughts podcast talks about Barzal, Tavares too. [Sportsnet]
• The Islanders signed Scott Eansor to a two-way deal. He’s the WHL teammate of Barzal who earned a look, and shined with the Sound Tigers this season. [Soundin’ Off | BST]
• Bridgeport will again host an Isles-Rangers preseason game in September. [CT Post | BST]

Elsewhere

Last night’s scores include the Blue Jackets keeping the Flyers reeling, the Panthers winning again and the...oh, are we pretending Metro/playoff bubble scores matter anymore?

• Jason Chimera hopes to win a Cup with the Ducks, who like his “veteran savvy.” Also, on having to go from one coast to the other with kids left behind: “Having a great wife is pretty cool.” Indeed. [NHL]
• JVR is definitely performing too well to be affordable for the Leafs. [Puck Daddy]
• The Jets won and Laine’s point streak reached 14 games. [TSN]
• Coaches have gotten more aggressive about pulling their goalie early when down late in the game, but...it’s not making a difference? Or worse? The variables are complicated. [The Athletic]
• Bryan Berard’s 9-year-old nephew’s “tearful goodbye to his Woonsocket North Stars teammates embodies everything we love about hockey, but it’s also a reminder how professionalism is eroding the minor hockey experience.” [THN | Bar Down]
• Some fun ideas, some no-brainer ideas and some dumb ideas on how to fix the NHL. Whatever, fun for debate and stuff. [Vice]
• Do the Canucks have any kind of plan? [Puck Daddy]