That last one hurt…really bad. Losing a two-goal third-period lead is nothing new for the Islanders but the third period fold-a-roo against Ottawa at home right before the break was killer. Time will tell if it proves to be a fatal blow to their playoff chances but it certainly added a bit more of an incline to what was already an uphill battle in their final 20 games.
It has been an interesting first 62 as the team and entire NHL break for the 2010 Olympics. Progress is a fair word to describe the season to this point. Equally apt are the words frustrating and inconsistent.
The Isles currently sit in the 12th spot in the Eastern Conference, tied with the Florida Panthers at 58 points, six points behind eighth-place Montreal. To properly put the aforementioned “progress” in perspective, they finished the 2008-09 season with 61 total points and are just one win away from the 26 they had all last year.
However, when you think of all the points they’ve blown with these disastrous third periods (see last Sunday night) it’s difficult to bask in the “progress” when you consider how much better off they’d be with just a few of those points.
But, as they say in New York, it is what it is, so we’ll deal in the here and now as we look at five keys for the Isles as their fight for a playoff spot resume on March 2 against the Hawks at the Coliseum.
5 – It’s great that Rick DiPietro appears to be close to 100 percent after leading the NHL in lower body surgeries the last two seasons, but razor sharp he is not. Once Garth Snow straightens out the Martin Biron situation, Dwayne Roloson needs to see the bulk of the action the rest of the way. The veteran has been sharp and occasionally spectacular and deserves to lead the Isles on this final charge. At 40 he’s clearly not the long term solution and DP will be back in the saddle as the teams’ No. 1 next season.
4 – Establishing a real power play. Can’t figure out why Scott Gordon had Bruno Gervais and Andy MacDonald manning the point on a two-man advantage in Pittsburgh last week in a 0-0 game…and then again with a two-goal lead against Ottawa this past Sunday. Are we missing something? Go with four forwards and Mark Streit if you have to but the team simply has to start scoring with the man advantage. They don’t have enough pop five-on-five to be throwing away power plays.
3 – Take some of the pressure off John Tavares. The kid has clearly hit a wall, yet Gordon keeps going to the 19-year-old on the power play—almost 5 minutes worth on Sunday against Ottawa. Time for those minutes to go to another forward like Schremp or Moulson. Tavares’ day will come—don’t force it in these final 20 games. Let the kid breath.
2 – The Rangers actually nabbed two forwards the Isles should have been looking at in Jody Shelley and Brandon Prust. While Matt Martin has been solid (skating needs work) and is certainly throwing his weight around, they still need a veteran forward with some scrap, as that’s what they’ll need to be doing a lot of as they battle down the stretch. Not sure if the roster, as currently constituted, has enough of that element to make a serious run.
1 – OK, we realize that Kyle Okposo (21), Josh Bailey (20), Sean Bergenheim (25) and Frans Nielsen (25) are still young bucks, but they all need to step it up a notch (in the case of Bergenheim and Nielsen several notches) offensively if the Isles are to have any real chance at making a run. You’d think we would ask this of the veterans up front but it’s clear by now offense isn’t going to come from this group (Hunter, Weight, Park, Sim). With 159 goals scored the Isles are near the bottom of the league and for a team that isn’t exactly air tight defensively they are going to have to find some offense in these final 20 games. Green as they are, the aforementioned foursome needs to provide a good chunk of it.
With the trade deadline looming it’ll be interesting to see how Snow plays it—is he a buyer or a seller? Either way there is reason to hope again on Long Island as a beacon of light is shining, even though it may not be emanating from owner Charles Wang’s Lighthouse Project.