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Final thoughts The Islanders' defense deserves a ton of the credit for an outstanding performance at even strength and on the penalty kill. They killed off six Rangers power plays, including a 38-second 5-on-3 during the third period. They blocked 19 shots and checked Jaromir Jagr tightly most of the night.
What the Islanders defense didn't prevent, Rick DiPietro did. Tonight's performance was exactly the type that will begin to get him more and more recognition around the league. He's matured into a calmer, more technically sound goalie, who leaves few rebounds and picks his spots when playing the puck.
The Rangers certainly have some kinks to work out, and need to take a hard look at why they only played well in spurts tonight. It seems like they're waiting for someone to do something, and they'd better hope that feeling fades away soon. They need to start playing like a team before they dig too deep a hole for themselves. I have confidence that they will do that, but the longer they wait, the tougher it will make it for them to ascend to the top of the standings, like everyone is expecting they will.
Hope you all enjoyed the blog. Have a great night.
-Mike Casey
9:35 p.m. Bizarre situation here. It looks like the Islanders are saying the Rangers reached out from their bench to grab the puck and stop play... Faceoff at center with 9.8 to go. Islanders clear, and that's the game. I'll be back with a final thought or two once I get back from the locker room.
9:34 p.m. Jagr slides the puck through the crease, nobody home. The Islanders take a penalty and the Rangers will have a 6-on-4 for the final 17.2 seconds. The Rangers take a timeout to rest Jagr, Drury, Shanahan, Straka and Gomez, who have been on the ice a lot in the last six minutes.
9:32 p.m. Lundqvist to the bench.
9:31 p.m. The Rangers have begun their full-court offensive press, but so far they haven't been able to break through. The Islanders have played an excellent defensive game, taking away shooting lanes, blocking shots and playing solid positionally.
9:20 p.m. Rangers kill the penalty, and Jagr moves in on DiPietro. Great glove save to keep the Isles in the lead. This game has featured one of the best combined goaltending perfomances I've seen in a long time. If I had a vote (I don't), DiPietro, Berard and Lundqvist would be the stars of the game.
9:19 p.m. Comrie goes off for holding Jason Strudwick, and now it's a 4-on-3. Sometimes, 4-on-3's can be more dangerous because there's more space and the offensive team is forced to shoot more often.
9:18 p.m. Toe save by Lundqvist on Guerin to keep the Rangers alive -- for now. Still 1:00 left on the 5-on-3, 1:08 on the Rozsival penalty.
9:17 p.m. Michal Rozsival goes to the box for boarding the Rangers have one foot in the grave. They need to kill this long 5-on-3 or it's probably all over.
9:15 p.m. Bad hooking penalty by Marcel Hossa puts the Islanders on the power play with 10:21 to go. The Isles can put this game away right now if they score. The Rangers are looking pretty frustrated right now.
9:14 p.m. Scott Gomez scored only 13 goals this year. I'm beginning to understand why. He's had two point blank, empty-net chances tonight. He was denied on the first try and he fanned on the second one.
9:12 p.m. Absolutely terrific penalty killing by DiPietro and the Islanders. Scott Gomez did flub the puck on an empty net, but DiPietro made several big stops and Andy Hilbert made a courageous dive to block a Jagr slapshot. If the Islanders win this game, that penalty kill will be the reason why.
9:08 p.m. Huge moment in this game as Bruno Gervais goes to the box, giving the Rangers a 38 second 5-on-3. Good pressure by the Rangers, but the Islanders twice clear the puck to kill the 5-on-3.
9:06 p.m. Tyutin knocks Comrie off the puck, creating a 3-on-2 for the Rangers. Guerin takes down Shanahan and the Rangers go on a power play. The Rangers, incidentally, are 0-for-12 on the power play so far this year. Yikes!
9:00 p.m. Scoring changes: Tyutin's goal was from Straka and Hossa, not just Hossa. Berard's goal was from Guerin and Bergeron, not Guerin and Comrie. Sorry, Mike Comrie fantasy-team-owners.
8:58 p.m. Third period, here we go...
8:41 p.m. Those back-to-back Islanders power plays took some of steam out of the Rangers' attack. The second period ends without any serious threats from either team and it's Islanders 2, Rangers 1.
8:34 p.m. The Islanders could have used another goal here to give them a cushion because I don't sense the Rangers are going away. But it's still 2-1 with 3:10 left in the second.
8:32 p.m. The Rangers are just shooting themselves in the foot (feet?) right now. Henrik Lundqvist takes a penalty for playing the puck outside of the trapezoid and the Islanders go on a brief 5-on-3.
8:31 p.m. A classic problem in hockey is overpassing by point men during 5-on-3 power plays. Not this time. Berard positioned himself for a shot and blasted it over Henrik Lundqvist's glove for a power play goal. First goal in Berard's first game back on Long Island. How about that? Islanders 2, Rangers 1.
8:30 p.m. Big chance for the Islanders to retake control of this game. 5-on-3.
8:28 p.m. Here comes Bryan Berard and the Islanders power play unit.
8:25 p.m. Oh, and what's this I hear during a stoppage in play? An Islanders-Rangers game at the Coliseum would not be complete without a little chicken dancing.
8:23 p.m. Excellent shift by the Shanahan-Gomez-Straka line. They were able to get some spacing in the offensive zone and control the puck for nearly 90 seconds in the Islanders zone. But the Islanders did a good job of mostly keeping them out of the prime scoring areas.
8:21 p.m. I've been very impressed by the goaltending in this game. Lundqvist and DiPietro seem to be in midseason form already. Both teams have had numerous quality scoring chances, and so far it's just one goal apiece.
8:15 p.m. The Rangers are making more of an effort to take the body, but they've made a lot of glaring defensive miscues in this game. Mike Comrie nearly had a breakaway down the center of the ice, and the Islanders missed another two-on-one caused by a bad line change. A moment ago, the Rangers started to fly up the ice while the puck was still in their defensive zone, creating a scoring chance for the Isles.
8:12 p.m. Unbelievable save by DiPietro on Scott Gomez to keep the game tied. Jagr races ahead of Andy Sutton and feeds a wide-open Gomez in front, but DiPietro makes a desperate lunge across the crease to rob Gomez.
8:10 p.m. Give Marcel Hossa credit for helping to set up that goal by the Rangers' Fedor Tyutin. He took the body on the Islanders defense, creating a turnover, which led to a quick shot by Tyutin from high in the slot that beat Rick DiPietro just under the crossbar. Islanders 1, Rangers 1.
8:07 p.m. Just about ready for the second period to begin. I'm going to try something a little different this period, blogging less and observing more, so hopefully my observations will be a little bit more insightful. Let's see how that works.
7:55 p.m. I've been coming to Nassau Coliseum since 1996 and each year the building's condition seems more and more unfortunate. The Islanders have consistently produced hard-working, blue collar teams that are easy to like and should appeal to a large hockey-loving fan base. But you look around the arena and you realize how badly it's in need of an update to compete with more modern facilities.
That said, the Coliseum is an outstanding place to watch a hockey game. Its low roof and relatively compact seating area make it one of the loudest buildings in the NHL on a nightly basis. But you need fans to make noise, and I'm always disappointed to learn that the Islanders don't draw more sellouts or near-sellouts.
If anyone has any ideas about why the Islanders are having so much trouble drawing fans (maybe it's the lack of true Stanley Cup contenders in the past 12 or so years, maybe it's the prices or the lack of mass transit access), feel free to make a comment below. I'll try to address your comments during the second intermission.
7:49 p.m. Wow, huge moment in the game. Shanahan goes off for holding the stick, and the Islanders get a faceoff deep in the Rangers zone. Mike Sillinger pulls it back, and Marc-Andre Bergeron rips a shot over Henrik Lundqvist's right arm to give the Isles the lead with 3.5 to go in the period. Islanders 1, Rangers 0
7:48 p.m. Brendan Witt goes off with 15.6 to go in the period. The Rangers will probably be happy to start the second period on a power play, since they haven't been particularly impressive this season .... Oops, never mind, there goes the power play. Brendan Shanahan gets nailed for a penalty.
7:46 p.m. Pretty blatant dive their by Ryan Callahan, but here's a rule in hockey I don't understand:How can a player be called for diving, when a penalty has been committed? And if a player dives, by definition, doesn't that mean there shouldn't have been a penalty??? It makes no sense.
7:44 p.m. The ice has even out after the Islanders held the early advantage in the attack zone. The Islanders seem to have settled down and the Rangers have raised their level a notch.
7:40 p.m. Fedor Tyutin cranks one off the outside of the net, and another loud roar goes up, this time from the Rangers contingent. Looking around the rink, there seems to be about a 60/40 split of Islanders fans to Rangers fans. But I'm happy to report that, in their own building, Islanders fans are clearly making the most noise.
7:38 p.m. Rick DiPietro made some trouble for himself there by allowing a big rebound on a long shot by Brendan Shanahan. But he recovered nicely to shut down Shanahan and Blair Betts on the rebound tries.
7:35 p.m. Excellent defensive play by Radek Martinek on Jagr just a moment ago. With the teams four-on-four, Jagr tried to put the puck between Martinek's leg and dispy-doodle around him. But Martinek anticipated the play and bodied Jagr away from the puck.
7:33 p.m. Finally, some rough stuff. First Andy Sutton slugs Ryan Callahan in front of the Islanders net, then Callahan mixes it up with Ruslan Fedotenko (of all people) in front of the Rangers net. Callahan and Fedotenko both get two minutes. Time for four-on-four hockey.
7:31 p.m. The Rangers' second line of Shanahan-Gomez-Straka has shown little chemistry through the first 12 minutes. Remember, they're a new combination with normal second-line winger Sean Avery out for the next four weeks with a bad shoulder.
7:28 p.m. The Rangers finally got something going with their top line of Hossa-Drury-Jagr on the ice. They worked the puck deep and Jagr found Drury in front. Drury fired high to the short side, but appeared to hit the post or the end of Rick DiPietro's stick. Former Trumbull, Conn. baseball star Drury batted the puck out of the air towards Hossa at the side of the net, but he missed his swing at the fluttering puck.
7:26 p.m. Only one shot on the power play for the Rangers. They do not look like the msot improved team in the East right now. The Islanders have been the quicker team, and Henrik Lundqvist has made nine saves to keep the game scoreless through 10 minutes.
7:22 p.m. Time for the Rangers to test out their power play with Andy Sutton in the box.
7:19 p.m. The Islanders have definitely looked like a crisper team in the first six minutes. The Rangers haven't played in four days, so that might have something to do with it.
7:17 p.m. Rangers kill off the penalty, with the best chance going to Miro Satan, who fired the puck short side and hit the outside of the net, sending a momentarily roar up from the crowd.
7:14 p.m. First penalty of the game goes to the Rangers' Ryan Hollweg for interference, drawing especially loud cheers from the Islanders portion of the crowd. Given his history in this building with Chris Simon, that's no surprise either.
7:13 p.m. Loud boos for Rangers captain Jaromir Jagr on his first shift of the game. No surprise there.
7:11 p.m. First big hit of the game goes to Islanders defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron. Not exactly a likely candidate, but in an Islanders-Rangers game, it doesn't matter (especially to Islanders fans).
Hey everybody, Mike Casey here. Welcome to our in-game Rangers-Islanders blog. We're going to be having some fun with observations on and off the ice during the game. It's the first meeting of the season between these archrivals.
So far this season, the Islanders have started impressively with wins in their first two contests before losing to Washington in a matinee on Monday.
The Rangers won their season opener at home last Thursday, before falling to the Ottawa Senators on Saturday night.
It should be a great game, so let's get started!
Comments (7)
The Isles don't draw as well because of the personnel moves and ownership blunders over the past 13 seasons. Factor in ticket prices and there's my reason behind the attendance struggles. The Isles fanbase is out there, I know, because most people I work with are all hockey fans, just don't go to the games.
Eric and Casey both have points. Sure, the fans are there and there has been blunders in the last few years, but there isn't enough support. Heres your options:
1) Build a New Coliseum. attract fans that way
2) update Coliseum to a more modern facility (renovate during off season or move Isles to Barcleys Center for 3 years). New fan bases in Queens/Brooklyn
3) Move to Barcleys Center (if they build it) and play there.But risk of Ranger paraphanelia
Lets hope me make a wise decision soon
-Mike
p.s: contact me for any questions/opinions (sorry Casey)
All those $$$$ that Daddy's fat boy Dolan shelled out and the blueskirts are still pathetic.
the rangers, the knicks and fat boy all deserve each other.
The ticket prices are too high. If you want semi decent seats you have to shell out 150 bucks total for 2. Sorry, but that's just too much money.
I AGREE WITH "NOT POOR BUT...".THE ISLANDERS HAD THE HIGHEST TICKET PRICES FOR MANY YEARS AFTER THE 4 STANLEY CUPS, AND DESERVEDLY SO. THEY HAVE NEVER RECOVERED FROM THEIR PRICES BEING SO HIGH. I'LL BET IT IS THE MORE EXPENSIVE SEATS THAT DON'T SELL OUT RATHER THAN THE UPPER LEVEL, WHICH MOST OF US CAN AFFORD.
Well, FYI this game was the first of the three homes games thusfar that was technically NOT a sell out.
You want to know why the Isles don't sell more tickets? Its Nassau Veterans Memorial Crapiseum. I will always love the place, but the fact is that people dont want to spend their evening eating popcorn for dinner and using portapotties after a 20 minute shovefest through the hallway. You also HAVE to have a car to get there- there is NO good mass transit in LI other than the LIRR, and the LIRR does not go to the Crapiseum. NVMC is the crappiest venue in the entire NHL, it is the most isolated venue (relative to itsareas population) that I know of, and they still consistently get better attendance than the Devils- who have had a much beter venue (and now will have an Even BETTER venue) AND have had more success in recent years. THAT is the mystery.
The Isles are going to be juuuust fine.
Three words explain the lousy attendance: HIGH TICKET PRICES. Add in the fact that the team had been bad and dysfunctional for many years, it turned off fans. Now that they are on the right track, it will take awhile. But to exect someone to pay $120 for a seat in the the first 2 levels is crazy. I have 3 kids, no way I can afford to go to a game. All of the promos they have are for upper deck end zone. I would rather stays home.