Shootout Win Keeps Isles in Eighth

Panthers 1: Islanders 2 (SO)

Okay, so, seeing as this game was somewhat boring until the final period, I think a nice round of "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly" will suffice.

The Good:

- Rob Schremp. How amazing is this guy in the shootout? I mean, the moves he pulls are incredible, and last night was no exception. No wonder they call him "Bob the Builder"; he can pretty much fix anything, even goalies!

- speaking of shootouts, Matt Moulson is 3-for-4 this season in them. I love his signature move- he fakes the goalies out by pretending to go backhand and then switches back to forehand to put it right over the shoulder. He sealed the deal for the Isles last night, had four shots, four hits, one blocked shot and one missed shot, and was great defensively.

- Dwayne Roloson. The guy was as sharp as he needed to be and was outstanding in OT and on the PK.

-on the other side, Tomas Vokoun in net for the Panthers. The guy is just as athletic as Roloson, and made some great saves, including a beauty of a glove save on Doug Weight to keep the score tied. No wonder he's on his way to the Olympics for the Czech Republic.

- Overtime in general. Blake Comeau takes a penalty, and the three remaining on the ice- Richard Park (I believe), Jack Hillen and Frans Nielsen bust their butts to keep the game going, even after Hillen breaks his stick. Also credit Mark Streit with a huge hit on a Panther that freed up the puck and got it out of the zone.

-Dustin Kohn in the lineup for Andy Sutton, and the defense overall. They played a great game even without their top 4 defenseman there, and Kohn was good. He had good positioning and presence on the ice, and even notched an assist on Blake Comeau's goal in regulation.

- the crowd. Wow, were they ever loud, and it wasn't even a sellout. They really were into it, and that's exactly how you want them to be. Nassau Coliseum isn't the best of arenas, but it was certainly jumping last night as the Isles got the shootout win.

The Bad:

- the Isles' start. They played well defensively, not letting Roloson get tested too much; however, their offense wasn't great. They weren't moving the puck well at all through the neutral zone, and as such could not establish a forecheck, which meant the puck went the other way all too often.

- some of the passing decisions. Um, not to the skates, to the stick. And not to where a bunch of Panthers are, but to one of your teammates. Please? Thanks.

The Ugly:

-Just one of these, and it was the officiating. I mean, come on. Kyle Okposo gets thrown down twice with a crosscheck, Kerry Fraser's standing right there... and he DOESN'T BLOW THE WHISTLE. No wonder Okposo was screaming at him as he stormed back to the bench without a stick. Not only that, but the call on Jon Sim for goalie interference? Really? Terrible. He was pushed into Tomas Vokoun. The crowd only got more emotional because of it.

At any rate, the Isles were able to pull out a win, and make up for a not-so-great first period. Next up: another matchup with the Devils on Saturday at home. I hope it's as good as the one on Monday was. (I also hear whispers that Rick DiPietro will start this game... who knows.)

LET'S GO ISLANDERS!!

Notes: Best of luck to Nate Thompson, who was picked up on waivers by Tampa Bay yesterday and did not play against Toronto last night... There were only four penalties in all called last night, all of them in the third period and overtime, three of them going to the Islanders and two of them to Jon Sim.