October 11, 2103
Even though it is early in the season, many were viewing
this game as a barometer as to how good the Islanders are. They played the
Blackhawks very close all game but fell just short losing 3-2 and are now 2-1-1
on the season. Both Islanders goals came in the final minute of the first
period, the first by Josh Bailey,
the second by Kyle Okposo.
The Important Things:
Backup goaltender Kevin
Poulin got his first start the season, and actually played pretty well. He
seemed to be a little nervous in the first period, which is where 2 of the
goals against him were scored. He settled down and made 3 very nice saves in
the final period. He wound up stopping 25 of 28 shots against him.
Cal Clutterbuck
made his season debut tonight as the rookie Brock Nelson was a healthy scratch. Clutterbuck was the only
Islander not to see double digit minutes tonight. His minutes should go up as
the season goes along. It will be interesting to see if Nelson will be in the
line-up tomorrow night.
The first and second lines were once again buzzing creating
the majority of the scoring chances tonight. John Tavares and Michael
Grabner picked up assists tonight. After only 5 assists in 45 games last
year, Grabner now has 5 in the first 4 games for the Islanders.
Heating Up:
The he didn’t register a point Matt Martin was silent hero in tonight’s game. Martin had 5 hits
and 4 blocked shots on just under 14 minutes. Josh Bailey also gets recognition as he picked up his second goal and
created some offensive chances. He really seems to be clicking with his Nielsen
and Grabner as each player now has at least 5 points on that line.
Cooling Down:
Matt Donovan played
his worst game of season tonight. On the first goal he was caught in his own
crease preventing Poulin from potentially making the save. His job is not in
jeopardy as Matt Carkner will only see time in games where they will need to
drop the gloves.
What’s next?:
The Islanders will stay on the road as they will travel to
Nashville to take on the Predators. The Predators are 1-3 on the year. Puck
will drop at 8PM
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