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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 ...

Friday, March 18, 2022

The Skinny: Isles 2, Rangers 1

"The Skinny"      

By Eric Hornick

Game 58
Isles 2, Rangers 1
Anders Lee and Kyle Palmieri both went to Notre Dame and the Luck (and Skill) of the Irish were on their side as they had the goals in a 2-1 St. Patrick's Day win over the Rangers at Madison Square Garden. 
However, it was a save that Ilya Sorokin made on Artemi Panarin in the first period that will be most remembered by the sellout crowd of 18,006.

Sorokin's save was part of his fourth straight win as he allowed only a power play goal to Chris Kreider.  

The Isles are 4-0-1 in their last five games as they moved over NHL-.500 for the first time in over seven weeks with a 25-24-9 record.

The Scoring:
1st Period
No Goals

2nd Period 
Anders Lee (23) Mathew Barzal (27), Noah Dobson (25) 00:49 NYI 1,NYR 0 PPG
Chris Kreider (40) Alexis Lafrenière (6), Jacob Trouba (21) 13:38 NYI 1,NYR 1 PPG

3rd Period
Kyle Palmieri (11) Ryan Pulock (12), Adam Pelech (17) 17:16 NYI 2,NYR 1

OT
No Goals

The Skinny          
Anders Lee extended his goal scoring streak to six games (9 goals), and now had 207 career goals – passing John Tonelli for 11th place on the club's all-time list… Lee now had 350 career points, becoming the 18th player to reach that mark…Kyle Palmieri extended his point streak to six games (matching a career high) and goal streak to three games with the winning goal; he is also 6-4-10 in his last 10 games. …The Isles have scored the first goal in ten of the last 13 games after allowing the opening goal in 11 of the prior 12 games…  Noah Dobson had another assist, tying Josh Bailey for second place on the team and remaining two behind Mathew Barzal. Dobson is 4-14-18 since the all-star break, leading the team in both assists and points. Dobson is also third in the NHL in defenseman points in that span …In total, the Islander defense had three more assists; they have 49 assists in the last 20 games after having 47 helpers in the first 37 games… The Islander defense has recorded 35.8% of the team's assists; that is the third-highest percentage in the NHL…Chris Kreider has 21 power play goals and 40 goals total; he is three power play goals and 14 overall goals shy of Jaromir Jagr's club records….Kreider is the first NHL player with 21 power play goals in a season since Alex Ovechkin had 25 in 2014-15….There was a moment of silence acknowledging Jean Potvin's passing before the game.

Strong PK
The Isles killed two of three penalties and have now killed 24 of 27 in the last eleven games (88.9%).  

First Time in a Long Time
Anders Lee is the first Islander to score in six straight games since Michael Grabner did so in 2011.  He joins Grabner as the only Islanders with a 6-game goal streak in the 2000's. Ziggy Palffy was the last Islander to score in seven straight games (1996); Lee will try to match that on Saturday. 

Most Career Goals by an Islander Wearing #27
1. Derek King 211
2. Anders Lee 207
3. John Tonelli 206

St. Patrick's Day
This was the fourth St. Patrick's Day game between the teams, with the Islanders improving to 3-1-0.  
The Isles won at the Coliseum in both 1979 (5-2) and 1990 (6-3); Brian Leetch scored the only goal in 2003 at the Garden. The Isles are 4-7-1 in the last 12 St. Patrick's games, all played on the road. Their last home game on St. Patrick's Day was the 1990 win over the Rangers.

Most Shutouts In a Season
7 Chico Resch 1975-76
7 Semyon Varlamov 2020-21 (56-game season)
6 Ilya Sorokin 2021-22
6 Robin Lehner 2018-19
6 Jaroslav Halak 2014-15

March Madness
The Isles are playing 17 games this month.  It is the first time in franchise history that they have played 17 games.  The Isles are 5-3-1 this month.

Home and Road
The Isles are 25-24-9 overall; they are 14-12-4 at home and 11-12-5 on the road.
The Rangers are 38-18-5 overall; they are 20-6-3 at home and 18-12-2 on the road.

Home is Where the Fans Are
The Isles have played 30 home games and recorded 24 sellouts. The sellout crowds of 17,255 are the largest indoor crowds to ever see the Islanders play at home. 

Leader of the Pack
Barry Trotz has coached more games and recorded more victories than any other active coach. Trotz' NHL record is 902-660-60-166 in 1,788 games.

Most Coaching Wins
1. Scotty Bowman  1,244
2. Joel Quenneville  970
3. Barry Trotz    902

Most Games Coached
1. Scotty Bowman  2,141
2. Barry Trotz        1,788
3. Joel Quenneville 1,768

Sweet Lou
Lou Lamoriello has the second-highest win total for any general manager in NHL history:
1. David Poile 1,481
2. Lou Lamoriello 1,351
3. Glen Sather 1,319

It All Starts at the Top
Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz have 2,253 wins between them. They start each game with more than any other pair in NHL history (David Poile and Peter Laviolette had 2,036 after their last game together). Bill Torrey and Al Arbour had a then-record 1,462 at the end of the 1991-92 season, which was their last season together. 

First Things First
The Isles are 20-6-5 when scoring first and are 5-18-4 when allowing the opening goal. 

The Shots
Isles    7-11-10=28
Rangers    12-10-8=30
The Isles are 10-6-4 when they outshoot their opponents, 0-1-1 when the shots are even and 15-17-4 when they are outshot. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 80-53-17 when outshot.

In the Nets
Ilya Sorokin made 29 saves; he is 21-12-7 on the season and 2-1-0 vs. the Rangers.   

Igor Shesterkin made 26 saves; he is 29-8-3 on the season and 1-5-1 vs. the Isles.  

Special Teams
The Isles were 1-3 on the power play (5:26); the Rangers were 1-3 on the power play (5:12).

The Isles are 13-7-5 when they score at least one power play goal and 12-17-4 when they do not. The Isles are 6-9-4 when they allow at least one power play goal and 19-15-5 when they do not.

Three is (Usually) a Magic Number
The Isles are 21-7-4 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 4-16-5 when they do not. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 108-16-15 when scoring three or more.

One-Goal Games
The Isles are 7-7-9 in games decided by a single goal including 5-7 in regulation. They are 1-3 in games decided in overtime and are 1-6 in shootouts. The Isles are 0-6 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game (including one game the Isles scored after allowing an empty-netter).

Back-to-Backs
The Isles are 6-4-1 in the front end and 4-6-1 in the back end. The next back-to-back will be March 19th vs. Dallas and March 20th in Philadelphia.
 
Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 25-10-5 in back-ends. 

Matinee Isles
The Isles are 2-1-3 in matinees this season; the next matinee will be on March 19th against Dallas. The Isles are scheduled to play thirteen matinees this season.

Ice-time Leaders
Isles: Ryan Pulock (20:47); Rangers: Adam Fox (24:03)
Anders Lee led Isles forwards with 18:37 of ice-time. 

Isles record by ice-time leaders: Adam Pelech (9-4-4), Noah Dobson (7-7-3, Ryan Pulock (5-4-1), Anthony Beauvillier (0-1-0), Mathew Barzal (0-0-1), Zdeno Chara (2-1-0), Sebastian Aho (0-1-0), Robin Salo (0-2-0), Scott Mayfield (0-3-0), Jean-Gabriel Pageau (0-2-0).

Face-offs
Isles 16, Rangers 22 (42%)
Jean-Gabriel Pageau won 8 of 12 for the Isles; Ryan Strome won 7 of 9 for the Rangers. 

Hit Count
Isles 21 (Matt Martin-5)
Rangers 27 (Ryan Reaves -7)
Fights 
There were no fights. Season total: 19 (Chara 5, Martin 4, Johnston 2, Pageau 2, Mayfield 2,  Bellows 1, Nelson 1, Palmieri 1, Wahlstrom 1)
 
Blocked Shots
Isles 16 (Scott Mayfield -6)
Rangers 9 (Two with 2)

For the Analytics Crowd 
Corsi: All situations: Isles 48, Rangers 53
Corsi: 5-on-5: Isles 33, Rangers 36

5-on-5 leaders:
Isles:  Noah Dobson +7
Rangers: Two with +4

High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)
All situations: Isles 14, Rangers 9
5-on-5: Isles 11, Rangers 8

Scratches
Kieffer Bellows, Ross Johnston, Sebastian Aho
Games Lost: 125 (76 to injuries and 49 to COVID protocol)

Iron Man
Scott Mayfield played in his 147th consecutive game. Only two other Islanders (Zach Parise and Cal Clutterbuck) have played in every game this season.

Challenges
Isles: 3 successful, 1 failure
The Isles are 2-0-1 in games that they are successful (offside 1/18 @PHI, no goalie interference 2/22 @SEA, offside 3/15 @ WSH) and 0-1-0 in games that they are unsuccessful (no goalie interference 10/14 @CAR).

Opponents: 4 successful, 1 failure
The Isles are 2-1-1 in games where opponents' challenges go their way (goalie interference 10/16 @FLA and 10/23 @ARI; offside 12/19 vs VGK, goalie interference 3/5 vs STL) and 0-0-1 in games where challenges go the Isles' way (goalie interference 3/15 vs WSH)

Last Minute Heroes:
The Isles have scored four goals and allowed two goals in the final three minutes of the third period that were either the winning goal or forced overtime:
For: 4  (Noah Dobson 19:56 – 12/5/21 vs CHI; Isles lost in SO) (Brock Nelson 17:03 – 2/20/22 vs OTT; Isles lost in SO), (Anders Lee 18:01 – 3/15/22 @ WSH; Isles lost in SO), (Kyle Palmieri 17:16 – 3/17/22 vs. NYR -GWG)
Vs:  2 (Eeli Tolvanen 19:48 – 12/9/21 vs NSH-GWG), (Shea Theodore 19:12 – 12/19/21 vs VGK; Isles lost in SO)

All-time Islander Leader Boards:
Games Played (skaters)
1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 *** 3. Josh Bailey 969…
9. Brent Sutter 694 *** 10. John Tavares 669 *** 11. Matt Martin 661  *** 12. Brock Nelson 653 *** 13. Casey Cizikas 641 … 
18. Kenny Jonsson 597 *** 19. Garry Howatt 596 *** 20. John Tonelli 594 *** 21. Cal Clutterbuck 586 *** 22. Anders Lee 572

Goals    
1. Mike Bossy 573 *** 2. Bryan Trottier 500 *** 3. Denis Potvin 310 …
9. Bobby Nystrom 235 *** 10. Derek King 211 *** 11. Anders Lee 207 *** 12. John Tonelli 206 *** 13. Brock Nelson 192 *** 14 Billy Harris 184 *** 15. Ziggy Palffy and Josh Bailey 168

Assists
1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553 *** 4. Josh Bailey 373…
17. Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo 230 *** 19. Mathew Barzal 203 ***20. Nick Leddy 198 *** 21. Pierre Turgeon 193 *** 22. Ed Westfall 181 *** 23. Kenny Jonsson 175 *** 24. Brock Nelson 172

Points
1. Bryan Trottier 1,353 *** 2. Mike Bossy 1,126 *** 3. Denis Potvin 1,052…
8. John Tonelli 544 *** 9. Bob Bourne 542 *** 10. Josh Bailey 541 …
14. Billy Harris 443 *** 15. Kyle Okposo and Stefan Persson 369 *** 17. Brock Nelson 364 *** 18.  Anders Lee 350…
22. Ziggy Palffy 331 *** 23. Mariusz Czerkawski 295 *** 24. Duane Sutter 292 *** 25. Mathew Barzal 291

+/-
1. Bryan Trottier +467 *** 2. Denis Potvin +456 *** 3. Mike Bossy +380…
19. JP Parise +67 *** 20. Adam Pelech +62 *** 21. Jude Drouin +58 *** 22. Patrick Flatley +57 *** 23. Greg Gilbert +54 *** 24. Gord Lane +48  

Games Coached 
1. Al Arbour 1,500 *** 2. Jack Capuano 483 *** 3. Barry Trotz 264
 
Coaching Wins
1. Al Arbour 740 *** 2. Jack Capuano 227 *** 3. Barry Trotz 140

On the Farm
Bridgeport is 23-25-6-4 on the season following a 3-2 overtime loss in Springfield on Wednesday.  Chris Terry scored his team-leading 21st goal with 60 seconds to play to force the extra session and move the Islanders within two points of a playoff spot.

Chris Terry continues to lead the team with 21 goals and 45 points while Otto Koivula has a team-leading 27 helpers.

The Baby Isles return home to host Syracuse on Saturday.

Season Series Stats
The season series is even, 1 game to 1 (and 2 points to 2).  The teams will next play on April 1st at The Garden before concluding the season series on Long Island on April 21st.

The Isles are 5-1-0 in their last six games at The Garden. 

UP NEXT
SATURDAY, MARCH 19th- DALLAS AT ISLANDERS 2:00 PM 
[MSG+ (pre-game at 1:30PM), WRHU 88.7 FM, WRCN 103.9FM, ESPN Radio]
The Isles have faced every team in the NHL except the Dallas Stars, and that will change on Saturday when the Stars become the final Western Conference team to visit UBS Arena.

This will be the first meeting of the teams since February 4, 2020, when Anthony Beauvillier's overtime goal gave the Isles a victory at Barclays Center.

Dallas never played a game at the Coliseum after the Isles returned there so this will be their first game on Long Island since October 25, 2014, when Frans Nielsen completed his only hat trick into an empty net.

It will be a reunion of sorts for Zdeno Chara. Chara, who turned 45 on Friday, made his NHL debut in 1997 for now-Dallas coach Rick Bowness.

The teams will meet again in Dallas on April 5th.

Eric Hornick has been the statistician on Islander home game telecasts since January 21, 1982. Information contained in "The Skinny" has been gathered from various sources. Follow Eric @ehornick on Twitter & on his blog www.nyiskinny.com



Forever1940 is the nom de plume of Eric Hornick, statistician on Islander home telecasts since January 21, 1982. Visit my blog: NYISkinny.com and follow me on Twitter @ehornick

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