First Islanders Rangers game of the season

This past Tuesday The Islanders hosted the state rival New York Rangers. On top of that it was newly acquired winger Thomas Vanek's debut with the team. The first period had a lone goal scored by Chris Kreider for the Rangers. The second period however was all Islanders. Cal Clutterbuck tied it up for the Isles and then later in the period defense-man Travis Hamonick put the Islanders ahead 2-1. In the second period Matt Martin also had his first fight of the season, taking Derek Dorsett down with ease. The Rangers came out strong in the third period though, netting 2 goals while shutting the Islanders out to win the game 3-2. Thomas Vanek had no points in the game, but he skated well and just needs a few more practices to adjust to playing with John Tavares, Kyle Okposo and the rest of the squad. Below is a link to Matt Martins fight. 

http://www.hockeyfights.com/fights/118988

Thomas Vanek now an Islander

Over the last week the Islanders lost in overtime to the Canucks, came back in the third period to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins, and suffered a 5-2 loss to the flyers. The Islanders record is now 4-4-3. None of that though is as important as what happened on Sunday night. Thomas Vanek formally of the Buffalo Sabres was traded to the Islanders for Matt Moulsen and a couple future draft picks. Matt Moulsen was having a solid season for the Islanders with 9 points in 11 games, but the addition of Vanek will definitely be beneficial to the team. Vanek has 9 points as well this season so far and he is going to attempt to get that total up this season with the Islanders. He is a seasoned veteran and he has 497 career points in the NHL in 9 seasons. Below is a link with a report of the transaction from the team website.

http://islanders.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=688764

Islanders take 3 points in first 3 games of home stand

The Islanders started a 4 game home stand on Tuesday against the Buffalo Sabres. With goals from Franz Nielsen, Matt Martin and Matt Moulsen the Islanders and the Sabres were tied at 3 at the end of overtime. In the following shootout Matt Moulsen scored, but the Sabres scored twice and took 2 points. The Islanders earned 1 point.
On Thursday the Islanders played the Edmonton Oilers. Much like the Islanders, the Oilers are a good young team. The first period had a goal from Josh Bailey for the Islanders, followed by 2 unanswered goals from Trevor Hall of the Oilers. Both goals happened to come within 8 seconds of each other. As incredible as that is, the Islanders were able to hold them to just those 2 goals. In the Second period Kyle Okposo scored, on the power play and then with a minute left in the period John Tavares netted what turned out to be the game winning goal for the Isles. 3-2 was the final score of the game and the Islanders got 2 more points.
On Saturday the Islanders hosted the Carolina Hurricanes. The first period was scoreless, but the Islanders played a lot harder than the Hurricanes did. One minute into the second period though the Islanders gave up a goal. The Hurricanes then Scored 2 more unanswered goals to take a 3-0 lead. The Islanders never stopped fighting though, because Matt Moulsen scored on the power play at the End of the second period. Even after the Hurricanes took a 4-1 lead in the 3rd period the Islanders still didn't give up. Franz Nielsen scored to make it 4-2 and then with a minute left Kyle Okposo made it 4-3  with a snap shot. They played hard, but the Islanders still came up short losing the game 4-3. They took 3 points in those games bringing their record to 3-3-2. They look forward to taking on the Vancouver Canucks tomorrow night at home. It should be a very physical game.

Close weekend for the Islanders

The Islanders were in Chicago Friday to play the Blackhawks. They started badly being down 2-0 with 1 minute left in the first period. They ended the period tied at two though, because Josh Bailey and Kyle Okposo both scored goals in the last minute for the Islanders. They ended up losing 3-2 after the Blackhawks scored in the third period again. The Islanders had a similar fate on Saturday night when they played the Nashville Predators. John Tavares and Franz Nielsen both scored during the second period. Those goals weren't enough though as they lost the game 3-2 again. Their record dropped to 2-2-1 over the weekend, but it's a long season and the team is going to shake it off and go back to New York and battle the Buffalo Sabres Tomorrow night to start a 4 game homestand. Islanders Alternate captain Kyle Okposo is shown below along with Franz Nielsen.

Islanders win big against the Phoenix Coyotes, Improve record to 2-0-1

The Islanders had a 6-1 victory against Phoenix last night. They scored early and often and didn't hold back at all. The Captain John Tavares netted 2 goals and was inches away from making it his 5th career hat trick. Evgeni Nabokov played great in goal last night for the Islanders allowing only 1 goal while saving 33 shots. Last nights game was The Islanders first Western Conference game since April of 2012. They came out strong and dominated the game giving the rest of the league a reason to pay close attention to what is happening over on Long Island. The Islanders are really going to shock some people this season if they keep playing like they did against Phoenix last night.

Player to watch for Matt Martin

Matt Martin is a Left winger for The New York Islanders who rarely scores goals, but what he lacks in scoring he makes up for with his physical play and hustle. There isn't a shift on the ice where he isn't hitting someone or skating as fast he can. Last season alone he recorded 234 hits in the shortened 48 game season. He hustles, he finishes checks and he fights when necessary. Every team needs a player like him to protect the skill players. Martin does a great job protecting his teammates, especially the Captain John Tavares. Look for number 17 this season he's going to have a great year. Below is a link to one of his best fights from last season.

http://www.hockeyfights.com/fights/117209

Islanders start season off 1-0-1

The New York Islanders left the weekend with a shootout victory as well as a shootout loss. They took the W over the Devils on Friday with a Matt Moulson goal in the shootout. He was the only player to score in the shootout for either team. Even though they lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday they still earned a point which put their season total at 3.Not a bad first weekend for the Islanders as they are looking forward taking on the Coyotes on Tuesday at home. Below is a link to the shootout from the Friday night win.

   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rf3GcuxL7HU

Season Opener Friday, October 4th

The New York Islanders start the season off with a game against The New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center in Newark on Friday. The Islanders finished ahead of the Devils last season and they are looking to stay on top to start off the season led by the Captain John Tavares who scored 28 goals last season.