Islanders Gameday News: Flying toward the top of the Metro

The Islanders are in the City of Brotherly Love tonight to take on the Flyers. Philadelphia was playing pretty well through the month of November until a couple of losses this week. They fell to the Capitals on Wednesday night in the shootout, and the stunningly lost in regulation to the Senators last night in Ottawa.

Which brings me to my next point: the Flyers are on a back-to-back and had to fly back from Ottawa last night. The Islanders would be wise to take advantage of a tired opponent.

FIGs can go here.

Islanders News

• Let’s preview the damn thing, shall we? [Islanders]
• VIDEO: This video is from practice yesterday and it’s called Trust & Confidence. It needs no further introduction. [Islanders]

No morning skate today, so we’ll have to wait and see who will and won’t be dressing this evening. Really hoping Otto Koivula gets in his first NHL game.

Gotta love Andrew Gross’s battle level here. Also, the Wells Fargo Center ice will probably be trash.

• Matt Martin is back at practice, wearing no-contact orange. [Isles Day to Day]
• Mikey’s (mikey2timez18 in the comments) story about giving away tickets to honor his fiancée made it to the Islanders website. [Islanders]
• Eric Duhatschek went through the biggest surprises and disappointments through the first quarter of the season, and the Islanders were the cover story. Though he says he shouldn’t have surprised. [The Athletic]
• The Islanders are on an incredible run but they know they can be better. [Newsday]
• Despite the run, the Capitals have been equally as good and have played more games. It’s highly unusual for a team to do as well as the Islanders have so early on and not lead their division, but here we are. [Newsday]
• Old-school Lou Lamoriello has had to step outside the structure he’s always carried because he’s got four very talented teenagers in his ranks. [The Athletic]
• The Sound Tigers took off to Canada yesterday. They’re were in Belleville last night, and they’re in Laval tonight to play the Rocket. Yes, singular, Rocket. I don’t get it either. [Sound Tigers]
• They fell to the B-Sens last night in overtime, 4-3 in overtime. Oliver Wahlstrom (goal, assist), Simon Holmstrom (two assists), and Sebastian Aho (two assists) all had two point games in the effort. [Soundin’ Off pregame | CT Post recap | Sound Tigers postgame]
• Andrew Ladd is down there now, as Mike Fornabaio pointed out in Soundin’ Off. But how does it impact the Islanders? [LHH]
• Among the buy-or-sell topics this week was whether Mitch Korn is the man most responsible for the Islanders success. [ESPN]

Some puppy love:

• We all love the puppies the Islanders have helped to be service dogs, Radar and now Tori. Meet the lady who’s responsible for raising them. [Islanders]
• For some reason, Sterling Equities, the firm owned by the Wilpons and Katzs, has not put down any money toward the Belmont project, despite being part of New York Arena Partners and despite construction having begun already. It is unclear why. [Forbes]
• Stan Fischler’s memory has served him the clashes between the Isles and the Rangers in 1984-85. [Maven’s Memories]

Elsewhere

Last night’s NHL scores include the Capitals finally losing a game in regulation, a 5-2 home loss to the Canadiens; the other main Metro foes lost in regulation, too: Flyers, as I mentioned, in Ottawa and the Penguins to the Devils. The Maple Leafs also lost in regulation to the Bruins.

• Today is the 17th time in NHL history, and first of two instances this season, where fifteen games are scheduled. In both instances this season, it is the Blue Jackets that are the odd team out (damn odd-numbered league).
• Alexander Kerfoot will be out for the foreseeable future after surgery to repair his dental fractures. Tough season up in Toronto. [NHL]
• J.T. Bourne posits the idea that many are wondering aloud about right now: in loading up on skill, did teams like the Lightning and the Leafs go too far? [The Athletic]