Islanders Gameday News: Red Wings clipped, Canadiens next

The New York Islanders did what they needed to do against a tailspinning team last night in Detroit, depositing the Red Wings with relative ease and certainty.

That extended “Hockeytown’s” regulation losing streak to eight games (and 10 straight losses including bonus time), and surely the Canadian Media Attendance Police are on alert that another U.S. market — gasp — draws poorly when its team stinks. Unless Original Six teams get a waiver.

Now the Islanders must repeat the feat tonight in Montreal, where the Canadiens are mired in their own eight-game losing streak and drawing comparisons to WWII-era versions of the team, back before the franchise racked up so many Cups in a six-team, two-playoff-round league.

Leave your First Islanders Goal picks for tonight here.

Islanders News

About last night:

• Jordan Eberle broke the seal with two goals, and the penalty kill survived multiple big tests in the second period. [LHH | Newsday | Isles | NHL | Winging It in Motown]
• Eric Hornick’s Skinny: It was the 28th multi-goal game of Eberle’s career.
• Before all that, Dan S. and Mike discussed the California swing for a “full” (i.e. not hungry) team, and additions that will never happen. [Islanders Anxiety podcast]
• NBC Sports discovers the Islanders are good, “flexes” their game with the Bruins to a national broadcast. [Newsday]
• It’s a good thing Thomas Greiss is healthy — and set to start tonight — because Christopher Gibson is injured down in the AHL and the rest of the recallable minor pros are off to shaky starts. [Athletic]

Elsewhere

Other NHL results last night included the Sabres destroying the sad Devils, and the Knights dumping the Rangers in Manhattan.

• Carey Price and the Canadiens are befuddled by their losing streak. Long may it continue. Or at least for one more night. [NHL] They waived Keith Kinkaid though so that should fix things. [Sportsnet]
• Former Red Wing Johan Franzen sees the chorus, and raises it: He described Mike Babcock as a “thorough and detailed coach but also the “worst person I’ve ever met.” [Winging It In Motown]
• Chris Chelios said it was “stupid things” Babcock did to mistreat people and flash his power, which are now coming back to haunt him. [Sportsnet]
• After another concussion and multiple consultations, Kyle Okposo is back at practice but the team will have him take it slow. [NHL | Athletic]
• Evidently there are two Canadian sports pro Tyler Ennis’es, they get mixed up all the time, the most significant being when the hockey Tyler got the devastating x-ray belonging to the basketball Tyler. This is why we microchip our dogs and don’t ask questions. [Sportsnet]
• Zach Werenski’s injury, suffered against the Islanders, only raises the pressure on Columbus veterans to step up. [Athletic]
• The Bill Peters situation — in this case him punching and kicking players while coaching the Hurricanes — raises questions for his then-GM Ron Francis and how he handled the incidents (and then extended the coach’s contract). [News & Observer | ESPN] Will it haunt Francis in his role as Seattle GM? [Seattle Times]