Stat Trick Extra -- more notes from Monday's win

A few more notes to ponder:

1. (Thanks Elias) - Roloson's 58 saves is the most by a winning goalie in 28 years.  Mario Lessard made 65 saves for the Kings in a win over Minnesota on March 24, 1981.  The Kings were out-shot 68-19 in that game.

2. Roloson's 58 saves are the most by any goalie since March 21, 1991.  Ron Tugnutt (70 - 3/21/91 @ Boston in a 3-3 tie) and Mike Richter (59 - 1/31/91 @ Vancouver in a 3-3 tie) both made more saves than Roloson in games that season. While Roloson stopped 11 of 12 from Phil Kessel, Tugnutt faced 19 shots from Ray Bourque!

3.  60 shots does not guarantees success. According to Elias, teams that have had at least 60 shots since 1991 are 3-3-4 (Three wins, three regulation losses, three ties and one overtime loss. One of those losses was the Islanders last season; they took 60 shots on Carolina's Cam Ward; Ward stopped Doug Weight on a penalty shot at 19:59 of the third to preserve a 4-3 Carolina win (10/25/08).

4.  The Leafs jump to the top of the league in shots per game (34.7), but they've won only 2 of the 13 games that they've outshot their opponents.

5.  The Isles are now next-to-last in shots allowed (34.0 per game); 21 of the NHL's 30 teams average 61 shots allowed (or fewer) per every two games played.   The Isles improved to 7-4-4 when they are out-shot.  They are 2-3-2 when outshooting their opponents and 0-1-1 when the shots are even.

6.  Face-offs were a major problem on this trip, and on the road in general this season.

    Check out these numbers:  The Isles win 57.3% of their draws at home, but lose 56.6% on the road.  Overall, the Isles win 48.6% of their draws.  (The numbers don't appear to balance because the Isles have taken 529 face-offs at home and 873 on the road)

Individual winning percentages:
Player                  Home Road Total
Richard Park         59.0 49.5 53.0
Frans Nielsen        60.3 48.9 52.2
John Tavares         54.1 42.4 47.4
Nate Thompson     66.0 36.5 47.4
Josh Bailey           53.6 33.6 41.8
 
Face-offs are harder to win on the road, but they're not impossible.  Of the 20 players who have taken the most face-offs in the NHL this season, eight have a better winning percentage on the road, including Sidney Crosby who has taken a league high 520 draws, winning 58.1% on the road and 54.7% at home.

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

Re: Rewriting the Islanders' record book

Correcting --thanks Kinger!

ISLANDER CLUB RECORDS:
 
Most shots allowed (overtime game): 61 (@ Toronto, 11/23/09)
Most shots allowed (regulation game): 60 ( @ Philadelphia, 11/22/72)
 
Most saves (overtime game):  58 Dwayne Roloson (@ Toronto, 11/23/09)
Most saves (regulation game): 55 Felix Potvin  (@ New Jersey, 4/12/99)
                                          and Billy Smith  (@ Philadelphia, 11/22/72)
 
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

----- Original Message ----
From: Eric Hornick <forever1940@yahoo.com>
To: IslesList <isles-list@replayer.com>; islanderfans@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Mon, November 23, 2009 11:54:30 PM
Subject: Rewriting the Islanders' record book

Dwayne Rolosn re-wrote the Islanders' record book on Monday night, and in doing so he erased, at least partially, an error that has been present in every Islander media guide since 1973.

Roloson made 58 saves and faced 61 shots.  Both are club records.  The 58 saves does indeed break Rick DiPietro's club record of 56, set in a shootout loss to the Rangers on March 5, 2007. 
 
However, the club record for shots allowed was 60, set in a November 22, 1972 loss to Philadelphia.  Billy Smith made 55 saves in that game, which was the club record for saves until it was tied by Felix Potvin, and later beaten by DiPietro.
 
Ironically, for over 30 years, the record was incorrectly listed in the Islanders' media guides.  The guide cited the correct shots total (60), but referenced a 10-2 loss to the Flyers on March 31, 1973.  The record was inexplicably replaced with the game against the Rangers after the 2006-07 season.
 
I've been trying to get it changed ever since.  Dwayne Roloson will likely have more pull.  :)

ISLANDER CLUB RECORDS:
 
Most shots allowed (overtime game): 61 (@ Toronto, 11/23/09)
Most shots allowed (regulation game): 60 ( @ Philadelphia, 11/22/72)
 
Most saves (overtime game):  58 Dwayne Roloson (@ Toronto, 11/23/09)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 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

Holy Roli! Stat Trick: Isles 4, Toronto 3 (overtime)

Dwayne Roloson made a franchise record (and career high) 58 saves as the Islanders beat the Leafs, 4-3 in overtime at the Air Canada Centre.  With the win, the Isles complete the franchise record-tying 7-game road trip with a 3-2-2 record.  On to the trick:

1. Roloson's 58 saves broke the club record of 56, set by Rick DiPietro in a shootout loss to the Rangers in 2007.  The 61 shots allowed by the Islanders broke a club record that had stood for 37 years and 1 day -- the Isles allowed 60 shots to the Flyers on November 22, 1972.  The 58 saves broke Roloson's personal mark of 53 (set in a 2001 game for Minnesota against Boston) in a regular season game.  Roloson made 54 saves in a double-OT playoff loss to Detroit in 2007.

2. The Isles grabbed a 3-0 lead in the second period on goals by Jeff Tambellini (7th goal in 15 games), Matt Moulson (team-leading 11th) and Sean Bergenheim (shorthanded), all in a span of 3:13.

3.  Toronto got back into the game with a Phil Kessel second period tally (his 6th in 10 games as a Leaf, and one of his 12 shots on goal) and third period goals by Wayne Primeau and Niklas Hagman.  That set the stage for the overtime winner by Josh Bailey--his third goal in as many games.  Bailey had never scored in consecutive NHL games prior to this streak.

...a few more...

4.  Trent Hunter extended his point streak to 7 games, matching a career high.  Hunter has a single point in each game (3-4-7) and has 9 points in his 9 NHL games this season..  John Tavares, in his NHL debut in his hometown, and Kyle Okposo were both held off the scoresheet for the third straight game.

5.  The Isles improve to 9-8-7 with the victory and 4-6-5 on the road.  All but one of their road victories have been overtime wins.  The Isles continue to be far ahead of last season's pace.  The Isles have 25 points in 24 games; they recorded their 25th point in game 35 last season.  They also have 13 points in 15 games; they had only 12 points in their first 24 road games last year.

6. Bergenheim's goal came with the Islanders shorthanded.  It was the Isles' third "shorty" of the season.  The Isles are one of three NHL teams not to allow a shorthanded goal.  Six of Bergenheim's 33 career goals have been scored scorehanded.  All three of Bergenheim's goals this season have come in the last eight games.

7. Vesa Toskala made only 12 saves before he was chased.  However, Jonas Gustavsson, who faced only six shots in 27:26 is charged with the OT loss.

8. Lots of strange stats in this one.  In addition to the 61 shots on goal, the Leafs missed the net 27 times, and had 28 shots blocked by the Islanders -- a total of 116 attempts at goal.  The Leafs played only 15 players regularly -- John Mitchell left injured after playing 4:!7 while Garnet Exelby and Colton Orr played just over eight minutes...combined.  Mark Streit was a +3, but Freddy Meyer and Brendan Witt (playing his first game in 9 days) were -3.  Bruno Gervais had 2 assists, 4 blocks, and was +2, but he was also charged with 6 giveaways.

9. The Isles had only two power plays, and failed to score on either.  They are now 0-16 in their last four games, after going 5-11 in the first three games of the trip.  The penalty kill did well, shutting down all 6 Leaf attempts and scoring a shorthanded goal.  The Isles have killed 26 of the last 29 and killed 27 of 32 on the trip.

10. It's the third straight overtime game between the teams -- the Leafs won both contests last season. The Isles are now 3-3 this season in games decided by an overtime goal, while the Leafs are 0-5. The Isles will be back in Toronto on December 9th.

Up next: The Isles play their first home game in 18 days when they entertain Philadelphia in the traditional Thanksgiving Eve game.  The Isles have hosted a Thanksgiving Eve game every year since 1995 except for 1999 (did not play) and 2004 (lockout).  The Isles are 6-3-3 in those 12 games, but have lost two straight, including last year's 5-3 loss to Pittsburgh in a game the Isles led 3-0 in the final seconds of the middle period.
   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

Rewriting the Islanders' record book

Dwayne Rolosn re-wrote the Islanders' record book on Monday night, and in doing so he erased, at least partially, an error that has been present in every Islander media guide since 1973.

Roloson made 58 saves and faced 61 shots.  Both are club records.  The 58 saves does indeed break Rick DiPietro's club record of 56, set in a shootout loss to the Rangers on March 5, 2007. 
 
However, the club record for shots allowed was 60, set in a November 22, 1972 loss to Philadelphia.  Billy Smith made 55 saves in that game, which was the club record for saves until it was tied by Felix Potvin, and later beaten by DiPietro.
 
Ironically, for over 30 years, the record was incorrectly listed in the Islanders' media guides.  The guide cited the correct shots total (60), but referenced a 10-2 loss to the Flyers on March 31, 1973.  The record was inexplicably replaced with the game against the Rangers after the 2006-07 season.
 
I've been trying to get it changed ever since.  Dwayne Roloson will likely have more pull.  :)

ISLANDER CLUB RECORDS:
 
Most shots allowed (overtime game): 61 (@ Toronto, 11/23/09)
Most shots allowed (regulation game): 60 ( @ Philadelphia, 11/22/72)
 
Most saves (overtime game):  58 Dwayne Roloson (@ Toronto, 11/23/09)
Most saves (regulation game): 56 Rick DiPietro (@ NY Rangers 3/5/07)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 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

Lost weekend: Stat Trick: Minnesota 3, Isles 2 and St. Louis 4, Isles 1

It was a lost weekend in the midwest for the Isles as they dropped back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday, dropping their record to 2-2-2 on this seven game trip and 8-8-7 on the season.  On to the trick:

1.  Owen Nolan was the star of the Friday game, scoring twice, including the winner with 67 seconds to play as the Wild erased a 2-1 deficit to defeat the Isles.  It was the the first time this season that the Isles had lost a game in regulation that they led after two periods (7-1-3) but equalled Florida and Colorado for the most non-wins in games that were led after forty minutes.  The loss broke a five-game point streak (3-0-2) for the Isles, including the first four games of this trip (2-0-2).

2. Patrik Bergulund broke a 1-1 tie with a goal late in the second period and David Perron added two third period goals as the Blues beat the Isles 4-1 on Saturday.  It was Berglund's first goal in thirteen games, while Perron now has six goals in his last six games, after scoring just 31 in his first 157 NHL games.

3. Josh Bailey scored in both games, giving him five goals on the season.  Bailey has two goals and one assist, and is +3 in four games since being scratched in Carolina last Friday.  It's the first time in his NHL career that Bailey has scored in consecutive games. Jon Sim had the other Islander goal on Friday and also assisted on Bailey's goal. It was his first goal in seventeen games.

...and a few more...

--Minnesota game--

4.  Martin Biron and Niklas Backstrom each faced 29 shots.  The Isles dropped to 2-6-2 with Biron in their nets, but Biron has allowed three goals or less in eight of the ten games.

5. Special teams let the Isles down.  The power-play was 0-6, while Miko Koivu scored the tying goal for Minnesota on a third period power play.

6. Matt Moulson led the Isles with five shots, while Mark Streit and Blake Comeau each had four.  However, it was Comeau's mis-play that led to the winning goal.  The Isles won 30 of 57 face-offs; Frans Nielsen led the way, winning 12 of 20.

7. Minnesota broke a 4-game losing streak with the victory.

8. The Isles have lost five straight to Minnesota (0-4-1) dating back to a 3-1 victory on March 19, 2004 at the Coliseum.  They are now winless in their last three trips to St. Paul, dating back to a 4-2 win in December, 2002 in Rick DiPietro's first NHL game after having spent all of the preivous season in the minors.

9.  Brendan Witt rejoined the team after missing the game in Boston due to "personal reasons" but did not play.  In a related note, the Islanders were out-hit 27-9.

10. This was the only meeting of the season between the teams.  The Isles are 0-3 against the Wild under Scott Gordon.

--St. Louis game--

11.  The Isles dropped to 6-3-3 when scoring first, meaning that they have won only half of the games in which they have grabbed a 1-0 lead. Only four teams in the NHL have won a smaller percentage of games in which they scored first. 

12.  Officially, the Isles were 0-3 on the power play, but they had only one complete power play (and 2:56 of power play time).  The Blues failed to capitalize on a 5-on-3, and finished 0-4 with the extra man.

13. Chris Mason made 23 saves to record the victory for the Blues, while Dwayne Roloson suffered his first regulation loss since October 16 (5-0-3).  Roloson finished with 22 saves.

14. Kyle Okposo led the Isles with five shots on goal, but both he and John Tavares were held off the scoresheet for the second straight game.  However, Tavares continues to lead all rookies in both goals [9] and points [19].  Tim Jackman led the Isles with 4 hits (in just 10:16 of ice-time) while David Backes led all players on both teams, with six hits.

15. Besides Perron, who had the two goals, ten other Blues figured in the scoring.  Blues Captain Eric Brewer had the other St. Louis goal--it was his first goal since October 16, 2008.

16. The Isles suffered their first regulation loss in St. Louis since December 19, 1995 (4 wins, including two in overtime, one overtime loss and two ties).  It was St. Louis' first regulation win over the Isles since March 6, 2004.

Up Next: The long road trip concludes with John Tavares' first game in Toronto as the Isles visit the Air Canada Centre (and the Maple Leafs) on Monday.  The Leafs won last season's series 3 games to 1, and 6 points to 4.  It will be the Isles 15th road game, out of 24 games played.  This marks only the second time in Islander histroy that they have opened with 15 of the first 24 on the road, having also done it in 1992-93.
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

Isles-St. Louis

The long and winding road trip continues in St. Louis tonight.

St. Louis has been a favorable stop for the Isles in recent trips, but the Isles haven't been to St. Louis in a loooooong time.

Last visit: December 6, 2005 - a 6-3 win.  (Mike York had two goals and three assists in that one; Mark Parrish had two goals as well.)
In their last seven trips to St. Louis, Isles own four wins (two in overtime), one overtime loss, and two ties.

They haven't been beaten in regulation in St. Louis since December 19, 1995, when a Mike Milbury-coached squad dropped a 4-1 decision to the Blues in their first visit to the Kiel Center.  (The Isles did not lose to St. Louis when the building was renamed the Savvis Center, and this will be their first visit since a subsequent renaming to the Scottrade Center in 2006.)

Scott Gordon's first NHL win came in the teams' last meeting, 5-2 on October 11, 2008 (last season's home opener).  Overall, the Isles are 2-0-2 in their last four against the Blues, dating back to a March 6, 2004 loss at the Coliseum, 4-2.

 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

Calling the Yukon; leading the Rangers?

The Isles resume their franchise record-tying seven game road trip in Minnesota tonight.

The Isles no longer lead the league in loser points and Tampa earned their 7th last night.  In fact, the Lightning, who got a magnificent goal by Steven Stamkos last night have a very similar record to the Isles.  Tampa is 8-4-7 while the Isles are 8-6-7.

During last night's Lightning-Ducks game, Ducks voice John Ahlers noted that the Lightning's record looked more like an area code than a hockey record.  In fact, with their loser point last night the Bolts record is an area code in suburban Chicago (847).

The Isles on the other hand have the entire Yukon covered as wikipedia explains:

<<Area code 867 is the area code for the three Canadian territories in the Arctic far north.  867 was created on October 21, 1997 from portions of two existing Canadian area codes. It has the largest land area of any area code in the North American Numbering Plan. The territorial extent reaches 3,173 km from Cape Dyer on Baffin Island to the Alaska border, and 4,391 km from the south end of James Bay to the North Pole. The largest distances between exchanges are 2,200 km from Sanikiluaq to Grise Fiord, and 3,365 km from Beaver Creek to Pangnirtung. Four different official time zones are observed within the area.
>>

Tonight in St. Paul, the Isles have an opportunity to do something for the first time in 22 months -- look down on the Rangers (and drop the idle Blueshirts into last place in the division).  The teams are tied with 23 points.  The Isles have not had more points than the Rangers at any point in the Scott Gordon era.  You have to go back to the morning of January 24, 2008 to find the last time.  A Ranger win and Islander loss that evening knotted the teams with 54 points.  The Isles have not led the Rangers in points since then.

 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