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The Skinny: Rangers 5, Isles 2

"The Skinny" By Eric Hornick Game 68 Rangers 5, Isles 2 Johnny Brodzinski broke a 2-2 tie with 4:59 left in the middle period and ...

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Stat Trick: Caps 3, Isles 2 (Overtime)

Stop me if you've heard this one before.  The Isles take a lead, even a multi-goal lead in the third period, but can't put it away.  On to the trick:

1. Brooks Laich scored 1:00 into overtime to give the Capitals a 3-2 win.  Mike Green and Keith Aucoin had scored in the third period for the Caps, who battled back from a 2-0 deficit to defeat the Isles for the fifth straight time.

2. Radek Martinek recorded the first shorthanded goal of his career when he scored in the first period.  The Isles held that lead until early in the third period, when a deflection from Jeff Tambellini doubled the Isles advantage, and eventually led to the Isles earning a single point for the fourth time this season.

3. The Isles went over sixteen minutes in the second period without a shot, but still outshot Washington, 30-24.  Jose Theodore finished with 28 saves, while Dwayne Roloson had 21 for the Islanders.  Tambellini led the Isles with four shots on goal, despite playing a team-low 9:14.

...and a few more...

4. The Isles held the great Ovechkin to a single assist -- he had scored in all four games vs. the Isles (six goals total) last season.  Ovechkin was held to two shots on goal, the Isles blocked five others and he missed the net three times.  Radek Martinek saw a lot of time against Ovechkin, and played a team-high 24:56.  Martinek was credited with seven blocks.

5. The Isles slaughtered the Caps in the face-off circle, winning 46 of 66.  Richard Park won 15 of 21 while John Tavares won 10 of 15.  Otherwise, Tavares was relatively quiet -- he played only 3:31 in the first period and 17:22 in the game.

6. The Isles are now 1-0-3 in games that they have led after two periods; all four games have gone into overtime.  The Isles have blown two goal leads in the last three of those four games.

7. The Islanders now lead the NHL in overtime games with five, but they have lost four of them.

8. The Isles have allowed fourteen goals over the first two periods this season, but they have now allowed sixteen goals in the third period and two goals in overtime.

9. Including Martinek's goal tonight, the Isles have scored on only 4 of 103 first period shots this season. 

10. The Caps have now beaten the Isles five straight times, including three consecutive overtime wins at the Coliseum. 

Up Next: The Isles make their second trip on five days to Montreal, looking to avenge a dismal performance on Thursday.  The two teams have combined for one regulation time victory this season, and it came by Montreal against the Isles.  Face-off is at 7:30pm.
 Forever1940 is the nom de plume of Eric Hornick, statistician on Islander home telecasts since 1982. Visit my blog: forever1940.blogspot.com and follow me on Twitter @ehornick

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