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Islanders News: Greiss be nimble, Greiss be quick

After surviving the Flyers’ best effort, the Islanders are one win away from another playoff series win in Toronto.

By Dominik
Philadelphia Flyers v New York Islanders - Game Four
“Oh oh oh, you’re their captain? Yeah, no entry for you either.”
Photo by Mark Blinch/NHLI via Getty Images

Thomas Greiss, holy cow. I don’t know if there will be any more back-to-backs for the Islanders (certainly not in this round), so there’s no telling if we’ll see #1 in the crease again. But last night he was his 2016 playoff self, standing on his head to steal a win for the Islanders.

The Islanders definitely played well in significant stretches — and Brian Elliott’s saves on the early PK kept the Isles from building an early lead — but Greiss kept the Flyers behind and robbed them of multiple chances to tie the game in the third. A memorable performance.

Islanders News

  • Jenny has our recap of a game that could have broken open a few different ways, depending on the period and the goalie. [LHH]
  • More recaps from the Battle of the Backups, most noting Barry Trotz calling it the Isles’ worst playoff game so far: [Newsday | NHL | Post]
  • And as you’ve all heard by now, they are one win away from getting reaching the conference final for the first time since 1993, which brings back memories. [Newsday | Post] Trotz: “When I came here I said this to the whole group: I had a great experience in Washington, I was able to go to the top of the mountain there in this league and I really want to share that with this group.”
  • For the Flyers, a painful one that got away. [BSH]
  • Feel-good story: Oskar Lindblom took part in warmups for the Flyers. (He was not scheduled to be “ready” until a little later in the playoffs, but if he’s ready now, wouldn’t Game 5 be a perfect opportunity for a spark?) [NHL]
  • Larry Brooks with the timely reminder of how much of this team was put together by Garth Snow. [Post]
  • From after Game 3, when Derick Brassard had a big interception and assist: BGB. [Post]
  • Also from after Game 3, Barry Trotz was looking to push his guys to the next level. [Newsday]
  • 31 Thoughts on many things, including the painstaking details of the Coyotes investigation that cost them a couple of draft picks. But also this: “spies have noticed adjustments in Semyon Varlamov’s style from March to now. In particular, the way he held his glove was slowing his movements left-to-right and opening his five-hole. Smarter people than me say the difference is apparent.” [Sportsnet]

Let’s take one more moment (or five) to admire cheeky Beau’s feet:

Post-Game Clips

Zen of Trotz here...

Brock dotes with love on Pageau and Greiss:

Greiss: It was “definitely nice” to get some reps in Game 2 first. He also said he doesn’t think about much, just “stop the puck. It’s not rocket science.”

Not gonna lie, I keep chuckling to myself that boy, they sure were right about how winning in the playoffs in Toronto would be different. Former Islander Arron Asham with the shade:

Elsewhere

The other games yesterday were out west, where the Avalanche were pushed to the brink by the Stars, and the Knights did the same to the Canucks.

The high-flying Avalanche are looking for answers, learning offense isn’t everything. (I suspect they actually knew that already.) [ESPN | Sportsnet]

El Paso, Texas, wins the annual Hockeyville USA contest. [NHL]

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