Power Play... or Mission Impossible?

Flyers 3: Islanders 1

Neither of these teams came for the opening faceoff this afternoon with brilliant records; the Islanders have only managed one point in 2 games that they could have won, whereas the Flyers had dropped three in a row. But the latter team had something the former did not: a goaltender who'd won 7 straight against them, and a sniper by the name of Daniel Briere.

Briere broke a virtual stalemate at 13:40 of the second period after four Philadelphia penalties- including two 5-on-3 chances- that the Isles failed to capitalize on. Then, despite four more power play chances for the Isles, and great saves by Joey MacDonald (29), Mike Richards scored shorthanded to put the Flyers up 2-0 in the third period. (Remember, the Isles are unfortunately not the only ones to score a lot of shorties this season- now the Flyers also have six on the year.) Although Trent Hunter cut the lead in half on a turnover late, key saves by Martin Biron (35) and an empty-netter by Kimmo Timonen sealed the deal, and the Isles are sent reeling, having gone winless in their last three games and clearly having let play slip from their hands into the capable hands of the Flyers, who have fared well against them in past matches.

Unfortunately, it doesn't get any easier for the Islanders on Saturday, where they face off against the Ottawa Senators. They manhandled the Flyers 4-1 in their last meeting, lost a close one to Carolina 2-1, and as of this posting were being skated all over by the Canadiens, 4-0, so clearly they are a team that can go either way in any given game- however, they have a good record against the Islanders, and with their potent offensive talent, the Isles would do well to keep out of the penalty box, shut down their offense completely, and generate a good forecheck of their own for good measure. And please- please- in these next few days, work on the power play! Aggressive forecheck and moving the puck well are key; don't make it easy for the opposition to read the play. The best plays have come seemingly out of thin air, so maybe that's a sign- don't think. Just play.

Notes: Josh Bailey made his NHL debut and saw around 7-8 minutes of ice time, including 3:09 of PP time... He took two penalties but also won 64% of faceoffs, which have been a sore spot for the Isles in the absence of veteran center Mike Sillinger. His presence comes with another absence from the Isles roster, as Mike Comrie is out with a hip injury.