SB Nation - Andy Sutton

Tracking the toughest players in the NHL: The Black and Blue Trophy

Hooks Orpik — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 19:54:39 -0000

More photos » by Gene J. Puskar - AP

Hits like these are why Brooks Orpik is 4th in the black and blue trophy race, despite missing time to injury.

Long-time readers might remember a metric we took a look at last season, the Black and Blue Trophy. It is a simple measure of which players are blocking shots and the opposition. It's tough, yeoman's work. Often times those throwing their body in front of rubber and into others end up on the shelf, an unfortunate reminder that shows the Black and Blue guys have to be durable to make it on this list.

This year's official Black and Blue trophy has a new twist: defensemen are now the only players eligible. In years past we've included forwards, but they don't block enough shots to be considered in the true spirit of what the award is trying to encompass. This isn't about the guys who forecheck hard (like Cal Clutterbuck and Dustin Brown) but someone that embodies the sacrifice of a black and blue player.

In this day and age there are a lot of great stats out there, like Behind the Net which does awesome work and has a vast database of in depth statistics. Here's a great resource that James Mirtle recently wrote to overview these new-age stats and metrics that are popping up more and more to judge how good players are beyond just goals and assists.

Behind the jump, your tough-nosed leaderboard.

A little more sophisticated look at defensive defensemen is Mirtle's list, which uses a secretive formula to rank players based off the quality of competition they play and the goals allowed by their team while they're on the ice. Brent Seabrook, Andy Sutton and Greg Zanon make both Mirtle's "best defensive defensemen" and the black and blue.

From last February's BnB list: Orpik, Greene, Robidas and Seabrook are on there, showing great durability. Most of those guys are towards the top of the lists and both years.

As always, this isn't a list without it's limitations (hits subjective from town to town, etc, etc) but it serves a purpose to recognize guys who may not be putting up goals/assists but are still specialized defenders.

Here's the rest of the list for the Penguins:

Among BnB/games played, Orpik is still the king (other than Guenin's very short sample size). What jumps out to me is Engelland, who did well to ring up a lot of hits in his brief time in the NHL.

Islanders Gameday: Laviolette's limping, identity-crisis Flyers

Dominik — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:15:10 -0000

After a couple of days between games, now the really crazy part of December's schedule begins, against a team that is still disorganized under a new coach and, frankly, ripe for the kill.

[Note: This game is on Versus in the U.S. Apologies for the copy/paste error earlier.]

New York Islanders (11-11-7, 4th/Atl) at Philadelphia Flyers (13-13-1, 5th/Atl)
7 p.m. | The [R.I.P. Spectrum] Center | VERSUS, TSN, radio
New Laviolette Disciples: Broad Street Hockey

The Flyers are playing on back-to-back nights (the Isles get that pleasure tomorrow in Toronto), and while last night's 3-1 loss in Montreal showed mild signs of improvement over Peter Laviolette's debut, they still have miles to go. Travis's recap at Broad Street Hockey reminds me of the early days of Scott Gordon, with lots of talk of systems and the challenge of transforming a team overnight. Watching last night's game, the number of times the Flyers announcers said "Laviolette's system" -- as if trying to decipher a teacher's methods with an unruly classroom -- told me the Philly team is still going through those new coach pains we know too well.

But while a new system and new forms of blueline pinching can bring initial chaos, a team with talent can still gut out a win on any given night. The Islanders better be ready. They better bring it. If they get the first goal, they better go for the kill. A slot in the standings is at stake. [Continued after the jump, with a look at faceoffs...]

For a moment I thought to myself, "Wait...do you remember any such chaos when Lavi took over the Islanders?" Followed immediately by: "Of course you don't!" Not only was Laviolette's 11-2-1 2001-02 start this decade's greatest Islanders run (still), it followed a summer hiring, when he had plenty of time to plan and work in the new blood who would lead that team.

I'm really intrigued by what Laviolette might be able to do, though. If that team is to reach the promised land with this core, they've pretty much wed themselves to doing it with Laviolette. Even this season, there is still plenty of time -- more time than when Pittsburgh brought in Dan Bylsma -- and the Flyers have legit talent in a lot of places that Laviolette should be able to employ in a cohesive whole. The one thing Laviolette doesn't have is a motivated-by-something-to-prove Chris Osgood or a pure talent like Cam Ward. In the end, my expectation for the Flyers will remain as it has been for the last 18 years, revolving around one question: Can this goaltending take them all the way?

But enough about those punks in Philadelphia. There is another proud flyer of the Orange banner to think about...

Tonight's Lineup

Goaltending: Dwayne Roloson isn't the officially declared #1 goalie, but he's been playing and starting like he is. Still, tonight is a great chance to put Martin Biron back in, to hopefully get revenge on his old team while allowing "58-save" Dwayne Roloson to haunt Toronto tomorrow night. The last NYI-PHI meeting -- John Stevens' final win as Flyers coach -- didn't go so well, but not because of Biron's play. True to form*, the Islanders gave him no goal support after Brian Boucher stood on his head for two periods. Yes, that game on Long Island remains the Flyers' only win in their last ten games. Please don't let tonight be their second.

*In fact, among goalies who have played five or more games, Biron has the worst 5-on-5 goal support in the league, with just 1.25 GF/60 minutes (5-on-5). In contrast, the Isles give Roloson 2.88. But the record isn't all on Biron's teammates (unless they're tanking the PK): On the PK, Biron is allowing 11.08 goals per 60 minutes (of 4-on-5), while Roloson is allowing just 5.43.

Lines, Damn Lines and More Statistics: Otherwise, during this relative period of health, the lines remain the same. Jack Hillen is banged up but will play, while Andy Sutton (soon) and Doug Weight remain on the shelf (not soon), and Rob Schremp Hockey and Blake Comeau continue to sport the yellow jerseys.

What are the Islanders missing without Sutton and out-for-the-year Radek Martinek? Well, two of the 20 best defensive defensemen through the first quarter by James Mirtle's metrics, but also the two most prolific shot blockers on the team. At 5-on-5 this year, Sutton has blocked 7.4 shots per 60 minutes, while Martinek blocked 6.8. Witt has also blocked 6.8/60. There is some warranted thought that a lot of blocked shots in no way indicates you're a good team -- if you don't have the puck much, you face (and block) more shots, and if you don't have the puck you're probably the weaker team. But on an individual level, it's hard to not value a guy who can get in the shooting lanes, particularly in the anti-obstruction (hallelujah!) post-lockout NHL.

For the record, the Isles are again near the top (3rd as of last night) in blocked shots with 490. And who's in fourth, with 479? Why, your Stanley Cup champ Pittsburgh Penguins.

Faceoffs: Not Just a Crappy Travolta/Cage Sellout Film

Since we're wading into team stats, how's that once vaunted, later de-vaunted faceoff acumen coming along? The Islanders are currently 19th, at 49%. Not as good as they were in the early-going when we were in awe of their video work, not as bad as they were when they came crashing down from that high. But all of them are above 53.9% at home, while only Nielsen is even above 50% on the road.

NYI	Faceoffs	Win%
Frans Nielsen	323	52.6
Richard Park	399	52.4
John Tavares	411	48.4
Nate Thompson	152	47.4
Josh Bailey	284	43.0

As with any consideration of faceoff proficiency, we should remember that shorthanded faceoffs are harder (fewer teammates on the ice means less help to "win" the puck after it leaves the faceoff dot), so keep in mind that Nielsen, Park and Thompson's numbers come under more difficult circumstances than Tavares and Bailey, who never take PK draws. (Okay fine: Tavares has taken 5, Bailey has taken 16. Never say "never.") But for the shorthanded go-to guys, Park has taken 91 shorthanded draws (41-49), while Thompson has taken 45 (18-27) and Nielsen has taken 27 (12-15).

Anyway you slice it, Josh Bailey still needs work at the dot. But he's 20, so he still officially has slack from me.

That's the story for now. Let's. Go. Islanders.

Prediction: It's been a whole five games since we tasted OT (the Roloson Miracle in Toronto). It's time we renewed acquaintances, and it's time Kyle Okposo's post luck changes.

Islanders Gameday: Not your father's Thrashers

Dominik — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 11:15:09 -0000

This trip to Atlanta begins the annual fathers road trip, but these are not your father's Thrashers. These are not the Thrashers of the Don "Punchline" Waddell we used to know. And doggone if they aren't even the Thrashers we saw last month.

Four weeks ago, we had the pleasure of facing an Atlanta team that was reeling with the loss of its captain and leading scorer, leading to a 6-3 Islanders win. Now that Ilya Kovalchuk is back and scorching earth, the Islanders face the third-hottest team in the NHL over their last 10 games (7-1-2). Yipe.

New York Islanders (10-10-7, t-9th/E) at Atlanta Thrashers (14-7-3, 5th/E)

7 p.m. EST | [some Spanish king's name] Arena | MSG+, radio

Birdwatchers: Anonymous (SBN) | Blueland Blog | Wazzupwitchu

That last meeting became a Battle of the New Young Coaches, with the Islanders outshooting Atlanta 45-34 overall, building a 3-1 1st-period lead on a shot margin of 21-11. But the Thrashers, despite an awful effort, scored enough to remind us they're dangerous. If tonight is a repeat of that sort of shooting gallery with Ilya in the lineup and shot-blocker/penalty killer Andy Sutton not, then look out.

These Are Not Your Father's Thrashers Goalies

Be not confused, the Thrashers are actually quite strong in goal. Which means the Islanders aren't the only team with the convenient problem of an oft-injured franchise goalie nearing a return. Rick DiPietro is due to return before Kari Lehtonen, but regardless, Lehtonen's return will create an annoying competitor for the Islanders' efforts to pawn an extra goalie off on a desperate team in need. Of course if the Isles aren't able to tie a pretty bow and nicer packaging on Martin Biron's numbers, then other sellers won't be the problem.

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Sure, that's getting ahead of ourselves -- we don't know in what form DiPietro will return, just as the Thrashers don't know how Lehtonen will look after rehabbing injury #218. Still, if a couple of teams need goalie answers in the next few months, it'd sure be nice if the Islanders were the team offering the best solution ... for a steep price.

Do You Know Who Rich Peverley Is?

You should, by now. He was available on waivers last year -- just like Maxim Afinogenov was -- only the difference is someone actually claimed Peverley. Atlanta hasn't regretted it since.

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2009 - Rich Peverley	24	10	16	26	5	16	6	0	5	0	51	19.6

As far as Afinogenov goes, the easy case to make is that he's been scoring quite nicely -- both he and Peverley are outscoring the Islanders' top scorer -- so the Islanders should have made a run at him over the summer.

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2009 - Maxim Afinogenov	24	11	14	25	8	20	2	0	1	0	54	20.4

But I can't get past that no other team saw fit to grab Afinogenov both for free late last year nor during the summer free agency period. Atlanta didn't get him until they brought him to camp on a free agent tryout -- and for them, doing everything they can to please Ilya in his walk year, that was a no-brainer. For me, if the Islanders had fellow Russian speakers like Kovalchuk and Nik Antropov for Max to play with, then by all means: Bring him in. It was never a question of whether the man had crazy talent; it was a question of which Afinogenov you were more likely to get.

Given the Islanders' current roster and make-up, at minimum there's no way he would have been as good a fit here as he's been in Atlanta. Worst case, we'd be going through the same weird consistency issues that he saw in Buffalo. Of course, on the other hand, if Snow was willing to take a flier on Rob Schremp -- who has a similar reputation but a far less impressive body of work -- then, um ...?

This Is Not Your Father Doug Weight's Powerplay

The Islanders powerplay is now 1 for its last 28, not having tallied twice in a game since Nov. 14 in Florida. The unit's proficiency has dropped to 17.2%. I've said this before, but the easy answer is they miss Doug Weight's calm presence and vision on the point opposite Mark Streit. I don't mind seeing Kyle Okposo there, but he is a go-go player whereas Weight is a patient puck holder, a guy who can create space for himself (and Streit) just by moving the puck on his blade.

Who else can do that on this team? Is Jack Hillen an answer -- or will opposing penalty killers press Hillen more than they would press Weight, because they grew up watching Weight and they have no idea who this Jack Hillen guy is? This is when a Zach Bogosian would be nice to have, but alas, we'll have to wait a while on that front. Chris Campoli apparently thought he ought to be the next choice, but I notice he was a healthy scratch in Ottawa the other night.

There Will Be Goals

In the last five meetings between Scott Gordon and John Anderson's offensive pedal-to-the-floor teams, the Islanders have scored 17 goals and the Thrashers have scored 20. Yes, combined they average over seven goals a game. Look out, highlight reel, and pity the goalies. (This is why I root for the Gordons, the Andersons, the Boudreaus, the DeBoers and the Bylsmas of the world to have NHL success. No offense, Mr. Lemaire.)

Speaking of goalies, as of this posting I hadn't heard who draws the assignments. So if you hear it, leave it in comments (along with your usual gameday thoughts and such). I know I'd go with Dwayne Roloson -- who faced the Thrashers last time -- against a potent attack, but it's been a very very long time since I coached an NHL game.

Random: Richard Park wore a "non-contact" jersey yesterday, but it's hard to imagine that man letting an injury get in the way of his spot in the lineup. Frans Nielsen (also in "non-contact" chic) is day-to-day, which means the chances are very good for an encore showing of Rob Schremp Hockey.

See some of you tonight in the game thread, if not sooner.

Prediction: Last goal wins, and the fathers have the time of their lives.

The NHL's top defensive defencemen

James Mirtle — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 02:56:24 -0000

More photos » by Chris Carlson - AP

Browse more photos »

As with the top defensive forwards list, this is the same Rod Langway Award business I've been putting out for a couple years now. It ranks players defensively based on (a) quality of competition at even strength, (b) goals against per minute played at even strength and (c) goals against per minute played on the penalty kill.

Players also have to have played at least 15 games and fill a significant role on their team's shorthanded unit. Credit, as always, to Behind The Net for the data.

Here are the top 25 a little past the quarter-way mark:

	NAME	TEAM	GP	QCMP	EVGA/60	SHGA/60
1	CHRIS PRONGER	PHI	24	0.12	1.38	4.41
2	DUNCAN KEITH	CHI	25	0.14	1.59	4.12
3	JAY BOUWMEESTER	CGY	26	0.08	1.39	4.51
4	ROMAN POLAK	STL	24	0.12	1.71	5.06
5	PAVEL KUBINA	ATL	23	0.06	1.71	3.38
6	MIKE MOTTAU	N.J	23	0.09	1.69	5.00
7	COLIN WHITE	N.J	24	0.11	2.06	4.63
8	JEFF SCHULTZ	WSH	20	0.09	1.38	6.08
9	NICK LIDSTROM	DET	26	0.08	2.15	3.83
10	MIKE WEAVER	STL	23	0.03	1.12	4.38
11	BRENT SEABROOK	CHI	23	0.17	1.50	6.84
12	M-E VLASIC	S.J	28	0.13	2.51	3.01
13	ROB BLAKE	S.J	17	0.18	2.58	3.85
14	ED JOVANOVSKI	PHX	18	0.08	2.35	1.24
15	MILAN JURCINA	WSH	20	0.16	2.26	5.60
16	NIKLAS HJALMARSSON	CHI	25	0.04	1.56	5.02
17	ANDY SUTTON	NYI	26	0.08	1.60	6.26
18	ZBYNEK MICHALEK	PHX	17	0.07	1.92	5.53
19	ZDENO CHARA	BOS	26	0.23	2.65	4.97
20	RADEK MARTINEK	NYI	16	0.10	1.81	6.47
21	DARRYL SYDOR	STL	18	0.05	1.19	6.75
22	CHRISTIAN EHRHOFF	VAN	26	-0.06	1.31	3.52
23	GREG ZANON	MIN	24	0.06	1.81	6.31
24	JOSH GORGES	MTL	26	-0.05	1.39	3.91
25	WILLIE MITCHELL	VAN	26	0.15	1.85	7.85

Pronger, Keith, Bouwmeester — sure, those are all names synonymous with tough defence. But how about Mike Weaver? Or Pavel Kubina?

It's early, but all of these players are playing significant defensive roles on their teams. Some benefit from having a great goaltender behind them, but there are a lot of blueliners here from weak teams, too.

Someone like Weaver, who has a really low profile, is considered by his coach a pretty big part of shutting down top opposition:

"I'd say Weaver is one of our best puck-movers," Murray said. "He's not a finisher, but in terms of moving the puck out of our zone and putting it in the hands of our forwards, he's pretty good. He's not a guy that contributes on the offensive side. But what is an amazing stat, he's plus-5. And for quite a while there, he and Roman (Polak) were playing the top line on every team. He's a plus-5."

Those are the sorts of guys I'm trying to highlight here, and for the most part, I think this works — even if there are some surprises. The real test is which guys can maintain play like this all season.

Islanders Matinee: Shout at the Devils

Dominik — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 11:00:13 -0000

If the Islanders have to play back-to-back afternoon games, at least today's opponent has to do the same. The Devils withstood a shot-heavy day (37-33, video and insight at ILWT) in Boston yesterday to tie 1-1 and win the shootout.

The Isles, meanwhile, gave the kind of 60-minute effort we've been pining for, impressing home fans (and even bringing some fas back after years of tested faith).

New York Islanders (10-9-7, t-3rd/Atl) at New Jersey Devils (16-6-1, 2nd/Atl)

1 p.m. EST | [a rocky non-Scout place] Center | MSG, MSG+, radio

Lamorell-atanic Verses: In Lou We Trust

Andrew MacDonald was called back up last night. We haven't seen enough of him, but I wouldn't call you crazy if you thought the Islanders' top four blueliners were in order: Mark Streit, Jack Hillen, Andy Sutton and MacDonald. But Sutton left yesterday's third period with a groin injury, so take him out. No big hip checks today.

Not that the Devils will shed a tear. They've been banged up all year, which is why our spring romance Dean McAmmond is up with them. Jay Pandolfo, Rob Niedermayer, Danius Zubrus, Paul Martin and Johnny Oduya are all still out. If the Islanders had that kind of talent on the shelf, well, they'd be in one miserable state. The Devils? They're 16-6-1.

A little food for thought on Islanders goalies and goal songs after the jump...

Goaltender Gazing

In 15 games, at 5-on-5 the Islanders have scored 34 goals for Dwayne Roloson, while giving up 33. For Martin Biron's 12 games, that figure is 11 5-on-5 goals for, 19 goals allowed. Shorthanded, per 60 minutes of 4-on-5 (PK) time, Biron is giving up about 10.4 goals. Roloson is giving up less than half that.

Their GAAs (Roloson: 2.80; Biron: 2.78) and save percentages (.916 vs. .913) are very similar, but their win-loss records (8-2-5 vs. 2-7-2) are quite different. The above differences may be part of the reason: The Islanders are giving Roloson more goal support, and their penalty killing unit (of which, granted, the goalie is the most important part) has been weaker for Biron. Just some food for thought to keep in mind while watching today's game.

Coach Gazing

Because I love watching coaches have to translate post-game for the media -- whether they're as engaging as Pat Quinn or as reserved as Scott Gordon. Here's Gordon, considerably less agitated than he was after the sleepy third period vs. the Flyers:

Goal Song: The Topic That Never Dies

They're holding a vote on the official site for a new (or the same) goal song. I am on record as saying I've never lacked for direction after a goal is scored: I cheer and clap my head off and don't even notice what sheep-guiding song is supposed to lead us to do whatever it is they want us to do whenever it is they want us to do it. I prefer organic celebration to spoon-fed singalong.

But if it's a singalong they're after, that "Bro Hymn" song sure sounds filled with "heys" and what-not. If it's my bias they're after, that Zombie Nation "Kernkraft 400" song has a place in my heart: The first time I heard it was in 1999 at an outdoor rally in Munich for their soccer team Bayern Munchen. The players came out in the town square wearing liederhosen. (Of course!)

Strangely, a few years later this song was popping up on the American sports scene, and I had the out-of-body experience of realizing that a European soccer celebration with pro athletes wearing liederhosen was, somehow, ahead of its time.

And you? Since Gary Glitter isn't an option, what's your preference for the goal song? You can also choose "just a little organ and a whole lot of crowd yellin'" if you want.

Prediction: Not many goals are scored today. The goal song vote -- which ends Dec. 4 -- satisfies no one.

Note: I'm not certain I'll put up a separate in-game thread today, so if this is the last post at game time, then just consider this your thread for random in-game observations and tomfoolery.

Blues 4, Islanders 1: In the end, not much fight

Dominik — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 18:25:13 -0000

This 4-1 loss to the Blues struck me as a case of running into a rested, physical team on the second night of back-to-backs.

Things opened up well, and Freddy Meyer and Andy Sutton did their best to send wake-up call hits to Blues forwards like T.J. Oshie. But when the Blues grabbed their first lead late in the second period, they had also ramped up their own physical game -- with big forwards like David Backes, Keith Tkachuk and Cam Janssen reminding the Islanders of their small size at both forward and defense. At that point, it seemed the Islanders ran out of gas, as backchecks got lazy, and the offense fizzled.

Game Sum. | Event Sum. | Recaps: nhl.com | Isles | StL P-D

Final - 11.21.2009	1	2	3	Total
New York Islanders	1	0	0	1
St. Louis Blues	1	1	2	4

Complete Coverage >

A surreal thing about watching two teams who never play each other but who you personally watch all the time: You see things developing before the unfamiliar opponents on the ice do. You want to shout warnings like a parent.

So here's my brain internal narration during the game: "Whoa, Bailey's gonna break in alone and Hunter will hit him!" ... "Look out, Streit, Perron has enough open space to try his -- whoa." ... "Bergenheim and Okposo are going to give and go here, and Weaver won't be ready." ... "Moulson, look out, Berglund will cut back to the middle here and shoot against the grain!"

Admittedly, I didn't foresee Eric Brewer scoring.

Kyle Okposo was a force early (and should have drawn a penalty when he was mauled in the Blues crease, only to see a tacky call on Mark Streit happen seconds later). But by the second half of the game, Okposo's efforts and those of his teammates including John Tavares were pretty ineffective, with all of their comeback attempts coming via harmless shots from the outside. Maybe they weren't gassed, but they looked it.

It was a funny thing with Meyer's and Sutton's big hits (and for Sutton, attempted hit that ended up with him in the Blues bench): They may have backfired. Because the Blues, rather than get run out of their own building, responded by making things difficult for undersized players like Jack Hillen, Bruno Gervais and Josh Bailey.

WebBard posted this at the end of the game thread about the Islanders on back-to-backs:

On the 2nd game of back to back games we’re 2-3-1 with 18 goals for and 21 goals against. Respectable, until you look and [see] we scored 11 of the 18 goals in the two wins. I get the feeling that back to back games are going to be problems throughout the year.

Special Teams

I'll say this, as a guy who was watching this hoping for OT but rooting for an Isles win: I thought the Blues received the benefit of home team officiating on the few calls that were made. That said, another 3-on-5 kill by the Isles was impressive, and I'm glad this game was decided 5-on-5. The Islanders' PP has gotten a little stale the past few games anyway.

Lineup Moves

I haven't seen anything from Andrew MacDonald to make me take him out of the lineup -- have you? Meanwhile, Jeff Tambellini got under 10 minutes, so it's hard to say yea or nay for his play. Okposo, Tavares, Moulson, Gervais, Hillen, Sutton all ended up minus-2, and tonight I'd say that was a fair reflection.

Being There

I don't have too much to say about being there tonight. I watched this one from a perch I've never had: Our friends took us to this game with reservations at one of those face-the-ice restaurant deals, so I watched the game with a plate of food in front of me and my neck permanently turned to my left to see the ice. So i didn't get to scan the building for fellow Islanders jerseys, but I did see two Streits and one Tavares in the section below us (all of them the retro thirds). Our "seats" had a great angle, though. Josh Bailey's goal came right at me, and I saw the daylight he picked to Chris Mason's right. Apparently, when they pimped this restaurant on the Jumbotron, they had a live image of me, in an isles jersey, stuffing my plate at the buffet. That's a first.

I was thinking before the game how it seems like it had been forever since I'd watched the Islanders in St. Louis, and sure enough their last meeting was before the lockout, with Brad Shaw as coach. I don't remember my mental state for that one (a 6-3 Isles win), but both teams were in disarray. Tonight, I found myself rooting for OT while also hoping players I like on each side would take advantage of players who need scratching on the other side.

Inadvertent 'What is their coach doing?' Quote of the Night

From Scott Gordon: "I can't believe (the Blues) are just .500 (8-8-4). That just blows my mind with the talent they have."

Flash just echoed the thoughts of many Blues fans.

Bottom Line

This is why the coughed-up game in Minnesota at the start of this back-to-back hurts. Suddenly a very winnable three-game trip against the league's struggling teams becomes a daunting, road-weary challenge. Another regulation loss in Toronto Monday would spell serious trouble, with two very tough Pennsylvania opponents waiting on either side of Thanksgiving.

Finally, I know it hurts, but Perron's second was an incredible goal that will be remembered around the league all year long, so I'm saving it here. From an atmosphere perspective, you felt the oohs and aahs build in the crowd as he gained each zone:

Islanders 2009 vs. 2008: What a difference a year makes?

Dominik — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 18:44:02 -0000

Just got back from the optometrist. They do a lot of "is this better, or is this better?" tests on you, to check how your eyes are working and make sure you don't mistake Andy Sutton for Zdeno Chara on the eye chart.

Me: "A ... E ... G ... N ... Y ... I ... Chara ... M--"
Doc: "Sorry, did you say Chara? It was Sutton ... We may need to adjust your prescription."

They start off with really easy ones before they refine them, so of course the first either/or test was: "The New York Islanders: Is this better, or is this better?" Through 21 games, the 2009-10 New York Islanders are vastly superior to the 2008-09 version, right?

Intuitively yes. But with some of the numbers, it's closer than you might think. Because game #21 of last season, a shootout "win" over Montreal (the night of the O'Byrne own goal), was actually the high-water mark for the year (9-10-2). After that, the Isles won only once in their next 13 games (1-11-1), and Tank for Tavares became the clear Christmas-time mission.

Qualitatively, few would disagree that this year's top line is more consistent, more dangerous, and more effective on the powerplay (I mean, Tavares + Moulson easily trumps Comrie/Weight + Guerin, right?). Meanwhile, the goalies are more reliable. But some of the team numbers are fun to compare and contrast -- along with an expanded record that doesn't obscure extra-time wins and shootout losses.

I had a table of specific players' performances through 21 games last year vs. this year, but it crashed in the story editor, and well, serves me right for flying without a chute. But there were a few interesting factoids, such as Doug Weight having 4-17-21 through 21 games last year (versus 0-9-9 in just 13 games in 2009-10), while Kyle Okposo just had 2-3-5 at this point last year.

Anyway, here's a comparison of some team numbers. Keep in mind the Islanders have played 6 more OTs than they had at this point last year, so that adds minutes and can change the way teams play in those minutes.

The Record

Year	W	OTW	SOW	L	OTL	SOL
2008-09 (9-10-2)	7	2	1	10	1	1
2009-10 (8-6-7)	5	2	1	6	3	4

The Islanders have won two fewer games in regulation than this point last year, but they've lost four fewer as well. And they've been in basically every game except for the Montreal drubbing.

The Goals and Shots and Such

Year	GF	GA	SF	SA	Sh%	Sv%
2008-09	54	65	642	677	8.4%	.904
2009-10	59	60	642	701	9.2%	.914

How about that? Their shot differential is worse, but their goal differential is better. In other words, the Isles' shooting accuracy has been higher (thank you young snipers), as has their save percentage (thank you old goalies).

The Special Teams

Year	PPG	PPop	PP%	PPGA	PKop	PK%
2008-09	17	100	17	18	106	83%
2009-10	16	76	21%	16	81	80.2%

The Islanders have drawn fewer powerplay opportunities but made more hay of them. They've also been shorthanded fewer times (hmmm...fewer penalties on both sides: "New NHL" behavior fully adapted, or old-style officiating creeping back in?), but they've been less efficient killing them off.

That's just a 21-game look. A few key differences, as Scott Gordon often cites, has been health on the blueline. Doug Weight, Trent Hunter and Frans Nielsen have actually played fewer games so far than at the same point last year, but Andy Sutton only had 13 under his belt at this point (after missing all but one game in October 2008), and the whole blueline was in constant injury flux.

The happiest thing for me: This squad has flat-out been more fun to watch. In a year where I've pretty much not concerned myself with playoffs, that counts for something. Also, I'm going to go ahead and assume the Islanders aren't about to go on a 1-11-1 run like they did after the 21st game of last season. Call it a hunch.

Anything else you pick up on, either numerically or "I just got a feeling"-wise?

Islanders 6, Thrashers 3: Off-the-schneid goals overfloweth

Dominik — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 06:44:51 -0000

More photos » by Kathy Kmonicek - AP

These colors, and these expressions: Exactly what Saturday nights should look like.

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Let us pause now and admire the 2009-10 Islanders' commitment to a balanced record.

If 5-5-5 was pretty, then 6-6-5 begs for an OT loss Wednesday against the Capitals, who have a history of handing OTLs to the Isles.

You knew something was up when scoring opened with Andy Sutton down low, making like John Tavares by slipping Tavares's pass to his backhand and going top shelf on Ondrej Pavelec.

Game Summary | Event Summary | Recaps: nhl.com | Isles

Final - 11.7.2009	1	2	3	Total
Atlanta Thrashers	1	1	1	3
New York Islanders	3	2	1	6

Complete Coverage >

Dwayne Roloson let Thrashers phenom Zach Bogosian tie it on a weak stick-side goal (a favor Pavelec would return early in the 2nd for Blake Comeau, one of three Islanders who got off the schneid). Both Sutton's and Bogosian's goals were results of their young coaches encouraging their defensemen to jump up in the play, which makes things a little more entertaining than, say, Islanders-Devils.

Thankfully, 1-1 was as close as it got.

Because then: Sean Bergenheim with his 1st goal of the season, knocking in a rebound by driving to the net. Jack Hillen with his 1st goal (4-on-4), on a nicely placed screen slap shot. Comeau with his 1st goal (also 4-on-4), for the aforementioned Pavelec wave. Matt Moulson (on another sweet Tavares pass) with his team-leading 7th, and then to complete scoring in the 3rd, Josh Bailey with his newly assertive shot from the slot on the powerplay.

At home, on a Saturday, for the last home game before the Thanksgiving holiday, that's just what the doctor ordered.

Despite the loss of Radek Martinek for the year and Doug Weight for at least a week, I expected a good effort. But I didn't expect an explosion like that, even against rather free-wheeling Atlanta.

Freddy Meyer Steps In

Solid game from Freddy Meyer, who stepped in for Martinek with his first game since Oct. 22. We know what we get in Meyer: Never stellar but often a nice fill-in (truthfully, a good 7th man in that way), he deceives you with his size and can deliver hits like this:

I don't expect that all the time -- consistency is hard at this level -- but with Meyer it's nice to know you'll get the occasional unforgiving check to keep the opposition honest.

Meanwhile, with the scoring spread out evenly, you know who had the prettiest night on the scoresheet? Nate Thompson, with two assists and a +2 (Tavares, with his two assists, was only +1). Ha.

Turning Points

The Islanders won this game -- or the Thrashers lost it -- in the first period, with the Isles outshooting Atlanta 21-11. Bogosian's tying goal turned out to hardly be deflating, and the Islanders answered right back to close out the period 3-1. Said Atlanta coach John Anderson:

"We just didn't come ready to play," Anderson said. "Our first three or four shifts were good, but after that, we were nonexistent out there. I have to give them a lot of credit for the way they played after a hard loss last night. They came back and played very, very hard."

Comeau opened the 2nd to make it 4-1, and the Isles were on their way. Final shots were 45-34 for the Isles. This year's first meeting of the NHL's aggressive young coaches goes to Scott Gordon.

Up Next

Before a November-defining seven-game road trip, the Islanders get a rest before their next game in Washington Wednesday. But don't go away; we'll have some more wonky posts, as well as an epic tome about the RBK effect in the days ahead.

And of course -- as always -- if there are ideas ruminating in your head, have at it with a FanPost to keep the rest of us warm.

Canadiens 3, Islanders 2 (OT): Biron, Tambellini salvage a point

Dominik — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 04:02:47 -0000

More photos » by Graham Hughes - AP

Yeah, that's right. I got two goals. Whassup?

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That wasn't bad. It wasn't great, but it was much closer to the type of game I expected going into this season: Islanders were mildly outplayed, but good goaltending kept them in it, and they used some timely scoring to steal a share of the spoils in Montreal.

Coming off the previous bludgeoning in Montreal, plus the bounce-back OT loss versus the Capitals, this was a good sign. They played a hot speedy team in the Canadiens, and they drew some penalties and avoided running around chasing.

Game Summary | Event Summary | nhl.com Recap | Isles Recap

Final - 10.26.2009	1	2	3	OT	Total
New York Islanders	0	1	1	0	2
Montreal Canadiens	1	0	1	1	3

Complete Coverage >

Again, there's no fun in losing. But once I get past the day-to-day disappointment and look at it in the context of what this roster is and what Rebuild, Year 2 is about, I can find the little bits of progress I'm looking for.

Starting with, believe it or not, the prodigal Jeff Tambellini.

That Tambellini power move to the net on the powerplay -- well, that might never happen again in his NHL career, we'll see. But if his career is ever to swing to the NHL to stay, we'll be seeing more of that. Follow it up with his second goal -- a pouncing, go-to-the-net-and-good-things-happen jaunt on another powerplay, and Tambellini may have just had his biggest night ever in the NHL.

Quick Hits

The negative: On that OT goal in question, Tomas Plekanec rushed past Tambellini, John Tavares, made a move around Mark Streit at the blueline, and brilliantly saucered a pass over a sprawling Bruno Gervais to enable Roman Hamrlik to convert the 2-on-1. He shouldn't have gotten that far, but that can happen 4-on-4 in the NHL. A magnificent play from start to finish.

And of course, they lost. But this one was consistent with the Baby Steps rebuild standard.

Back to the positive: Tambellini very nearly made it an epic night, as Josh Bailey set him up to rush over the blueline with a shot in OT. Not to be. But that they even got there by coming back late was another reason I'm not crestfallen by this one.

Or, as is easy to say for the guy who got two goals and boosted his argument for sticking around:

"We're taking only the positives out of this game," Tambellini said. "We found a way to come back twice in a really hostile environment."

The Little Performances: Andy Sutton continued his recent strong play. He was blocking shots, making hits that rattle, and making smart plays with the puck. Richard Park was vintage Richard Park: using his speed on the penalty kill and forecheck to be a general pain, and create the kind of marginal chances that nets him 10-plus goals a year.

Kyle Okposo: You can drive him into the boards after the whistle (no extra call to add to an existing Habs penalty), and smear his visor with his own blood, but that kid simply doesn't quit.

The Record: 1-4-5. The Islanders have now gone to overtime six times, more than anyone else this season. A sign of some blown leads and a growing team. But a sign of a team that has been in a lot of games. This team has so much to learn and so much more talent to accumulate, but for the most part they're not giving opponents easy games.

The shots were even, 31-31 -- which is in part due to the powerplay disparity (7 for the Isles, 2 for the Habs). But that penalty disparity was in part due to the Isles' work 5-on-5. (And part due to luck, it must be said, such as Mike Cammalleri's crucial delay of game mishap.)

The Number 1 Line: Ever since I started referring to them as point-per-gamers, they haven't been point-per-game. And the PP, of which they are the fulcrum, has struggled. I'm gonna lay off the hymn book for a little while.

Questions, Questions

Mark Striet, 29:55 TOI. Is he being leaned on too much? He was at the end of a long shift on the goal that made it 2-1. He got caught flat-footed at the blueline on the OT goal. With him as the clear #1, though, it's hard not to keep going back to that well. Speaking of which, Bruno Gervais had a nice game at Streit's side, almost tying the game with a shot off the post on the second-to-last PP.

Martin Biron: A game-changing performance. Did he do enough to earn a second consecutive start? If it were me, I'd say yes. In fact, you might argue it's more important to get him into fine form since he's the more attractive deadline acquisition for a team in need.

Jeff Tambellini: So ... how long of a look did he earn with this performance before his next healthy scratch. The Islanders powerplay has been slumping, and he just got two PP goals. It's worth tracking.

Radek Martinek and the others: Quite a bit better than the last Habs game! 22:22 TOI. He and Sutton were credited with 4 blocked shots each, Streit and Gervais with 3 each.

Whither Brendan Witt? Witt didn't see the ice for the last third of the 3rd period and not in OT. Injury? Strategic move?

Recap: Capitals 3, Islanders 2 (OT)

David M. Getz — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 02:30:04 -0000

More photos » by Seth Wenig - AP

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[AP Recap - Game Center - Game Summary - Event Summary]

There's a certain joy that comes from watching a short-on-talent, long-on-effort team like the 2009-10 New York Islanders. Don't get me wrong - we Caps fans are very lucky that we get to watch guys like Alex Ovechkin, Mike Green, and Nicklas Backstrom wear our team's colors, and we're even luckier that the hometown team is legitimate Cup contender. But watching a group of guys bust their humps all night, throw themselves in front of shots, bear down and wins faceoffs, and park themselves in front of the opposing goaltender in the hope that they can eek out a win against a significantly more skilled team...that reminds me of why I fell in love with this game in the first place. Plus, truth be told, it feels pretty darn good to watch your team win against a team like that.

It's going to be a long season for the Islanders and their fans, but if the guys in Uniondale put forth an effort like they did tonight every night, they're going to be a very easy team to pull for.

Ten additional thoughts on last night's game:

If someone picks their knee up on Mike Green, every other Capital on the ice should be racing to be the first one to get their gloves off, instigator penalty be damned.
Speaking of the hit on Green: in his rookie season, Alex Ovechkin took a spear from the Penguin's Ryan Whitney on January 25th. On February 3rd, George McPhee traded AHL defenseman Dwayne Zinger to the Phoenix Coyotes for Doug Doull. Doull played two games for the Capitals that season, the second of which was a February 11th matchup against the Penguins where he finished the night with two fights and 14 total penalty minutes before being sent to Hershey for the rest of the season. I wouldn't be surprised to see McPhee make a similar move before Friday's Caps/Isles rematch.
Speaking of Green, I could watch his goal twenty times without getting tired of it. Beautiful. Trying to single-handedly skate through the Islanders' neutral zone trap, turning the puck over, and having it lead to a two-on-three? Not so much.
It won't make most highlight reels because it didn't lead to a goal, or even a great scoring chance, but Nicklas Backstrom had a great play about halfway through the first period where deftly redirected a neutral zone pass to Alex Ovechkin. The kid's vision and hockey sense are unreal.
There are only two ways a team gets an odd-man rush when they're shorthanded: a fortuitous bounce or some really half-assed backchecking on the part of their opponent. The latter was the case on Radek Martinek's goal. Simply unacceptable. Just because you're up a man doesn't mean you can afford to stop playing defense.
You know how you know you stink? Andy Sutton's part of your team's shutdown pairing.
Speaking of Sutton, you know the Islanders might have won that game if he'd bothered to play defense rather than try and show the world what a badass he was by knocking Ovechkin into the Islanders net.
Here's an example of how dubious subjective statistics can be: on Thursday the Capitals and Thrashers were credited with a combined 17 hits; tonight the Capitals and Islanders were credited with a combined 53.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Jeff Schultz is a totally different player when he plays with confidence.
Brutal night for the Caps in the faceoff dot. The team only won 30% of the game's draws, only one of its 16 defensive zone draws, and no Caps player won more faceoffs than they lost. Again, just brutal.

Finally, let's give a shout out to Jose Theodore for a very solid night. Not a ton of highlight reel stuff per se, but a great job of giving his team a chance to win and a well-earned check mark in the 'W' column for the netminder.