Congratulations to the New York Rangers on clinching a playoff berth. You've certainly earned it.
Now that we've gotten that out of the way... tonight's game might have been one of the worst hockey games I've ever seen. The Islanders fielded their AHL affiliate against a Rangers team that was on the verge of clinching a playoff berth, and it showed. If you saw the game, you saw the obvious - this is just not a team that can compete with the Rangers. The Rangers skated circles around the Islanders tonight, and I don't think you can blame it all on injuries, either.
Tonight's game was just awkward from the start. The telecast opened with an interview Howie Rose did with Charles Wang, where Wang stated Ted Nolan wouldn't be extended before the season. He sounded very adamant about it, too, like he almost doesn't want Nolan back past next season. Then, the game started, and from the first Jaromir Jagr goal, it was clear that these are two teams at two different levels. The Rangers are peaking at the right time as they make their Cup run, while the Islanders are pitiful and are fighting an uphill battle against any team.
I'm sick of hearing about how many injuries have befallen the Islanders. The truth is, we're not seeing the future of the New York Islanders right now. Do you really think Kip Brennan is going to be a key player someday? Drew Fata? Steve Regier? Every year, they bring up the same guys, and every year, the same guys begin the next season in Bridgeport. If the Islanders actually had a farm system worth its salt, they wouldn't be getting killed every night. Since the win against the Rangers on March 4th, the Islanders have the worst record in the league. Every team gets hit with injuries. It's no excuse.
If the Islanders want to see exactly what they should be doing, they should look at the team that mopped the floor with them tonight. The Rangers are the model for what the Islanders aspire to be. It wasn't so long ago that the Rangers were full of aging players and no real future in sight. Now, the Rangers have it all. They have scorers. They have checkers. They have enforcers. They have great goaltending. They can do it all, and they are definitely a threat to make a deep playoff run. The Islanders? They have a decent core of young players - Rick DiPietro, Kyle Okposo, Sean Bergenheim, Blake Comeau, Chris Campoli, Jeff Tambellini, Bruno Gervais, and Frans Nielsen - but that's only eight players. Add in their reliable veterans - Richard Park, Mike Comrie, Bill Guerin, and Brendan Witt - and there's four more. That's twelve. A hockey team consists of twenty players. Who will the other eight be? Garth Snow has a lot of work to do this off-season.
But there's more to a team than the players. The Islanders need an overhaul in terms of philosophy and style. Talent will go a long way in changing that. However, look at the Rangers' power play tonight. As Howie pointed out, the Rangers scored very quickly on their first two power plays - Jagr's goals came twenty seconds and eight seconds after Islander penalties. See what happens when you actually, you know, shoot the puck? Maybe if the Islanders didn't waste two minutes passing the puck around every time they get a man advantage, they wouldn't be 28th in the league on the power play.
There's still one more game against the Rangers, but I'm not expecting too much. Hopefully, the Islanders will get a big win when it really matters - on Monday, at the draft lottery.
Now that we've gotten that out of the way... tonight's game might have been one of the worst hockey games I've ever seen. The Islanders fielded their AHL affiliate against a Rangers team that was on the verge of clinching a playoff berth, and it showed. If you saw the game, you saw the obvious - this is just not a team that can compete with the Rangers. The Rangers skated circles around the Islanders tonight, and I don't think you can blame it all on injuries, either.
Tonight's game was just awkward from the start. The telecast opened with an interview Howie Rose did with Charles Wang, where Wang stated Ted Nolan wouldn't be extended before the season. He sounded very adamant about it, too, like he almost doesn't want Nolan back past next season. Then, the game started, and from the first Jaromir Jagr goal, it was clear that these are two teams at two different levels. The Rangers are peaking at the right time as they make their Cup run, while the Islanders are pitiful and are fighting an uphill battle against any team.
I'm sick of hearing about how many injuries have befallen the Islanders. The truth is, we're not seeing the future of the New York Islanders right now. Do you really think Kip Brennan is going to be a key player someday? Drew Fata? Steve Regier? Every year, they bring up the same guys, and every year, the same guys begin the next season in Bridgeport. If the Islanders actually had a farm system worth its salt, they wouldn't be getting killed every night. Since the win against the Rangers on March 4th, the Islanders have the worst record in the league. Every team gets hit with injuries. It's no excuse.
If the Islanders want to see exactly what they should be doing, they should look at the team that mopped the floor with them tonight. The Rangers are the model for what the Islanders aspire to be. It wasn't so long ago that the Rangers were full of aging players and no real future in sight. Now, the Rangers have it all. They have scorers. They have checkers. They have enforcers. They have great goaltending. They can do it all, and they are definitely a threat to make a deep playoff run. The Islanders? They have a decent core of young players - Rick DiPietro, Kyle Okposo, Sean Bergenheim, Blake Comeau, Chris Campoli, Jeff Tambellini, Bruno Gervais, and Frans Nielsen - but that's only eight players. Add in their reliable veterans - Richard Park, Mike Comrie, Bill Guerin, and Brendan Witt - and there's four more. That's twelve. A hockey team consists of twenty players. Who will the other eight be? Garth Snow has a lot of work to do this off-season.
But there's more to a team than the players. The Islanders need an overhaul in terms of philosophy and style. Talent will go a long way in changing that. However, look at the Rangers' power play tonight. As Howie pointed out, the Rangers scored very quickly on their first two power plays - Jagr's goals came twenty seconds and eight seconds after Islander penalties. See what happens when you actually, you know, shoot the puck? Maybe if the Islanders didn't waste two minutes passing the puck around every time they get a man advantage, they wouldn't be 28th in the league on the power play.
There's still one more game against the Rangers, but I'm not expecting too much. Hopefully, the Islanders will get a big win when it really matters - on Monday, at the draft lottery.
I forgot about Trent Hunter in the list of Islanders that are actually on the NHL level. That makes 13 out of 20, or 65% of an above-average team. In other words, we barely pass.
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