My Favorite Islanders Games Of The Decade

I'm going to the Islanders game tomorrow night. Not only is it my first game of the year, but it's the last home game the Islanders will play in this decade. It hasn't been the best decade in terms of wins and on-ice success, but I've had a ball attending games over the past ten years. Here are the games I've attended that stand out in my mind. It's crazy... the first of these games took place during my freshman year of college. Ten years later, I'm out of school, I've gotten a "real job", I've gotten married and have fathered two kids. And through it all, the Islanders have been solidly mediocre. (Zing!)

Without further adieu, here's the list, broken down by season.

1999-00

- 2.12.00 - Islanders 5, Penguins 1. This was the unquestioned highlight of yet another craptastic year by the Islanders. It drew an unusually large crowd because the game was the host of a protest against SMG, but I didn't really care about that back then. Instead, I cared because it was a game and it was part of my Valentine's Day date with my then-girlfriend Leslie. This was before I realized that you're not supposed to take a girl to a hockey game for Valentine's Day. Either way, it worked; she now has season tickets and her own Islanders blog. Anyway, this game came at a point in time where I was starting to get very interested in hockey again after a few years where the losing drove me away a little bit. That they blew out the dominant Penguins was huge and quite unexpected.

2000-01

- 1.2.01 - Canadiens 3, Islanders 0. There are three things I remember about this game. First, we went with some sort of church youth group and got really good seats. Second, the people we went with thought Zdeno Chara was hilarious and awful and mocked him constantly. Of course, he was hilarious and awful back then. Third, and most importantly, Canadiens goalie Jose Theodore sealed this one by shooting a puck into the empty net that was on our side of the ice. At the time, I was pretty distraught. Then, I realized that only like five goalies have ever scored goals, and I came to realize the significance of the achievement.

Honorable Mention: 11.24.00, Rangers 4, Islanders 3 (first Isles-Rangers game)

2001-02

- 10.13.01 - Red Wings 5, Islanders 4. The score sheet will show that the Islanders blew a lead with under ten seconds left, then lost the game in overtime. But this was the night when the culture at Nassau Coliseum really began to change. Charles Wang came out for the home opener ceremonies and referred to the "first-place Islanders" to a huge ovation. It was also the home debut for both Alexei Yashin and Chris Osgood (Michael Peca was injured). Yes, the Islanders lost the game, but it was a huge sign of things to come.

- 10.20.01 - Islanders 2, Sharks 2. I was named after Bryan Trottier, so when tickets went on sale for the retirement of #19, I was all over it. Not only was Trottier my namesake, but #19 was my number in soccer and hockey. I asked my dad to go, but he turned me down, so I took my (then-girlfriend, but future) wife. The Wednesday before this game, my dad died suddenly, and the funeral was scheduled for the morning of this game, which had a 1 PM start time. I wasn't sure what was the norm for this situation, so I went straight from the funeral to the game. Within two or three hours of each other, I saw my dad laid to rest and then saw the name and number he gave me raised to the Coliseum rafters. It was only years later that I saw the symbolism in all this, and even now I don't totally know what it's supposed to represent, but it's quite eerie.

- 4.28.02 - Islanders 5, Maple Leafs 3. It's impossible to convey the emotion of this game, and this series in general, to someone who didn't experience it. But I'll put it this way. Zach, your Rangers blogger who HATES the Islanders, was at this game... and CHEERED for the Islanders. That's how intense it got. It was the game after Gary Roberts and Darcy Tucker injured Kenny Jonsson and Michael Peca respectively, so the crowd was at a fever pitch. And everyone remembers the fights at the end of the game, but that wasn't even the loudest moment of the night. Before the game, they played a highlight package to "Going the Distance" from the Rocky soundtrack. After the montage, the screen went black and displayed the following... "Let's win this one... for Michael and Kenny." The place went ballistic. I was at Shea Stadium for Endy Chavez's catch in the 2006 playoffs, and the raucous scene after that catch didn't even compare to the Coliseum at that moment. Sure, it's a bit sad that the sporting highlight of my lifetime so far was a non-deciding game of a first-round series the Islanders didn't even win. But there was something so special about that series. Just thinking about it gives me goosebumps.

Honorable Mention: 10.28.02 - Islanders 3, Stars 2 (Peca scores on a breakaway in OT to win the game)

2002-03

No games

2003-04

Honorable Mention: 4.12.04 - Lightning 3, Islanders 0 (First Coliseum tailgate)

2004-05

No games :-(

2005-06

- 2.2.06 - Rangers 5, Islanders 2. This was the first game I attended after the lockout; it was also the first game I attended with Zach. More importantly than these events, though, it was the night I had my first ever pretzel twist. Clearly, it would not be the last. The other thing I remember about this night was being harassed and cursed at for wearing an Islanders jersey, even though the Islanders were the home team.

2006-07

Honorable Mention: 3.8.07 - Rangers 2, Islanders 1 (Simon-Hollweg incident, controversial no-goal call in final minute)

2007-08

- 10.6.07 - Islanders 3, Rangers 2. This game was our first experience with parking lot hockey. Unfortunately, we didn't know enough to bring tennis ball instead of the hard plastic Mylec balls, so we dented a few cars. Sorry. Adding to the pre-game fun was Zach showing up with at least twenty 24-ounce beers for pre-game festivities. The game itself was great, as I attended the game with three Rangers fans and I was able to talk trash to them all night long. Lastly, after the game ended, we went back to our friend Lou's house and played some midnight hockey. Despite being extremely hammered, I managed to score five goals, then threw up immediately after the fifth goal. Good times.

- 11.6.07 - Islanders 3, Rangers 2. The third period of this game was probably the best period of hockey I've ever seen live. The Isles were down 2-1 in the third, but tied it up and later scored to win the game. I still recall Miroslav Satan playing the point late in the third and just having a great feeling about what was coming next. Sure enough, it played out exactly the way my mind had scripted it. I yelled "NOW!", and at that exact second, Satan pinched in from the point, got a pass in the slot and fired it past Henrik Lundqvist for the game-winning goal. This game was on Versus and I was furious that my DVR ran out of space before the amazing third period. I would have saved it forever.

- 12.13.07 - Islanders 3, Coyotes 2. I'd gone to games before with Zach, but this was the first (and, so far, only) time we've gone to a game by ourselves. As cheesy as it sounds, it was a great night of in-depth hockey talk between two people who are a little too into the game - as it turned out, we started this blog two months later. The Coliseum was empty that night due to a bad ice storm, so we had our run of the place and moved all over the arena. We both wore our Gretzky jerseys in the hopes of meeting The Great One after the game. The Coyotes bus didn't stop for us, but he did give us a smile and a wave. That's more than I can say for Jon Sim, who got out of his car to sign autographs... only nobody actually wanted him to sign anything. Ouch.

- 3.21.08 - Islanders 3, Devils 1. This was my first time seeing the Islanders on the road. Rooting for your team at a road game is a totally unique experience. It was a blast. It helped that there were tons of Islanders fans there that night, even though the Isles were nowhere near playoff contention. The trip was also a tremendous eye-opening opportunity to see what a state-of-the-art arena could be like. I couldn't believe how gorgeous the Prudential Center was, and I couldn't help but think about how great the Lighthouse would look. In the end, it was Kyle Okposo's first career goal - the game winner on that night - that would be my best memory of this evening.

2008-09

- 11.26.08 - Penguins 5, Islanders 3. The Islanders blew this game in true 2008-09 fashion by choking away a three-goal lead, just like I knew they would. But this game is memorable because I got to watch it from the lofty perch of the Blog Box. As a result, not only did I get free admission and free parking, but I also got to rub noses with guys like Stan Fischler and Chris Botta. Best of all, I got to enter the Islanders locker room. For a kid who always dreamed of playing for the Islanders, this was beyond cool. I'm not sure if it could get any better than that.

The Blog Box & A New Tradition

On Wednesday night, I had the opportunity to watch the game from the Blog Box. I wasn't really sure what to expect, but the evening surpassed my wildest expectations. By now, you've probably read the quotes and post-game reaction from the club, so I won't regurgitate any of that here. But being in the Islanders locker room, a place I always dreamed I'd end up when I got older, was a huge thrill. It was also really neat to see so many of the people I've read and seen on TV in person, namely Chris Botta, Greg Logan, and Stan Fischler. Particularly Fischler, because he cracked me up when he asked Botta how to access his blog. Apparently, the Hockey Maven isn't the most Web-savvy person out there.

In any event, the whole thing was excellent, but it wouldn't have been nearly as nice if not for my fellow Blog Boxers helping me out and showing me the ropes. While everyone has been awesome so far, I'd like to publicly shout-out Gary from The View From Section 317, Doug from Official's Outlook, and Michael from IslesBlogger for looking for out for me on Wednesday and answering all my stupid questions. As cool as it is to get the access the Blog Box provides, the group in there is quality. I look forward to attending more games with them as the season unfolds.

***

Traditionally, Thanksgiving is a football day. The NHL calendar is blank. Families get together and have nothing to do except watch whatever is on TV. Usually, that ends up being football. For many of us, though, watching the NFL on Thanksgiving isn't enough. Lots of people participate in their own "Turkey Bowls", which become as much a part of Thanksgiving as turkey and stuffing.

For years, we had our annual football game at my old house in Hicksville. Our neighbor's cousins would come in, we'd get all the kids on the block together, and take part in this massive football game on this massively long (but extremely narrow) field. Unfortunately, our family sold that house last year, so the game is no longer going on. So we went back to the drawing board.

Around this time, my brother informed me that the annual football game he played in with his friends was undergoing a change in format. They'd played football for years at some park in Westbury, drank beers afterward, and awarded the Iron Man trophy to the winning team after the game. I even played in the 2004 version of this game, but didn't return due to my frustration with my role in the offense. Turns out playing offensive line and tight end aren't all that fun. Anyway, when they decided to change it up, the idea came up to turn the event into a hockey game. It didn't take me very long to declare my interest. The others followed suit, we bought a new trophy (El Pavo de Oro, which means "Golden Turkey"), and Thanksgiving 2007 saw us play a spirited four-on-four game of hockey. Personally, it was probably the best game I'd ever played.  I contributed six goals and four assists, including a helper on the game-winning goal, in a 13-11 victory. While it wasn't quite the Stanley Cup, taking a victory lap around the Carle Place rink with El Pavo de Oro was an awesome feeling. I even got to take the trophy home first due to my status as highest scorer. However, it didn't last long before my wife asked me to give it to the next person.

We all said we'd do it again this year, but I had my doubts. What if nobody was into it? What if we didn't have enough people for a game? My fears ended up being unfounded, as just about everybody came back for Round 2. A few of the guys even built a new net for the event. This year's game, however, wasn't such a wonderful exhibition of my ability. I chipped in two goals and an assist, which sounds good, until you realize we played four-on-four with no line changes and our team scored eight goals. We ended up losing 11-8, which meant El Pavo de Oro went to the other team.

Now, I've played a decent amount of hockey in my day, and I've lost some tough games. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't pretty bummed out about this one. By the time we were down 10-8 and their next goal won the game, I was ready to dive in front of pucks if I had to. I even slid across the ground (with no pads on) to block a passing attempt. One of my teammates said he'd take a puck to the face before giving up the Pavo. But that's hockey for you. For whatever reason, hockey is such an emotional game that pain and fatigue barely matter, even in a friendly game. We all went to work today with aches and bruises, but nobody really minded. 

Whereas people had to be coerced into playing football, hockey is working out a lot better for us. Hockey just seems to have that little extra bit of competition missing from football. I'll spend a lot more time thinking about the empty nets I missed than the passes I've dropped playing football. I know I'm not the only one who feels that way. And it goes without saying that we'll all be back next year. It's a new tradition, one that's only going to get better. And I'm already counting down the days until next Thanksgiving.

Live Blog: Pittsburgh Penguins at New York Islanders

What better way to ring in the holiday weekend - and our first night in the Blog Box - than to do a live blog of tonight's game? Here we go!

 - I'm not sure what I'd rather have happen: The Islanders moving to Las Vegas or hearing this stupid "Meet Me At The Lighthouse" song one more time.

 - They're doing the whole giant-American-flag-at-center-ice thing yet again. This was a cool thing when they did it the first time. Now? Sort of old hat. They kind of ruined it when they started doing it every game.

 - The Islanders take a penalty and Pens goalie Danny Sabourin stays in the net. Good idea.

 - Right off the bat, Joey MacDonald makes a nice save on a Malkin blast from the point. The crowd is chanting "Princess Crosby" at Gary Bettman's favorite player. Interesting, but effective.

 - I have to say, I'm not used to being this close to the action. Every shot looks like twice as hard as it does from the 300s. That said, MacDonald looks sharp early on. He has to be, as the Pens are firing at will.

 - The scoreboard educates us about Turdecken, the favorite Thanksgiving food of the immortal John Madden. Unfortunately for Mr. Madden, it doesn't come with a side of Brett Favre.

 - Two icings in a row for Pittsburgh. I bet Howie and Billy are complaining that they can't take at TV timeout.

 - Power play for the Isles. They should start declining penalties at this point.

 - Streit puts on a weak shot from the point. Nobody's in front of the net to deflect it. Of course.

 - One of the Penguins runs over MacDonald with 32 seconds left in the Islanders' power play. By the time Richard Park figures out what to do, eleven seconds elapse. Now the Isles only get a 21-second two-man advantage instead of a 32-second one. Big difference.

 - The Isles get a little pass-happy on the five-on-three and miss one opportunity, but end up getting the goal anyway as Doug Weight taps in a rebound. We thought they were going to give the goal to Josh Bailey, but they didn't. Damn. Anyway, 1-0 Isles.

 - Trent Hunter comes in on a broken play and backhands one past Sabourin to give the Isles a 2-0 lead! Sabourin could be getting rattled by a pretty impressive crowd tonight. And that's two assists for Bailey, who has all but written his ticket for a permanent stay on Long Island.

 - We were just given free Lighthouse shirts. Meet me at the Lighthouse... and don't forget your smile...

 - As soon as the puck drops after the TV timeout, Mitch Fritz engages in fisticuffs with former Islander Eric Godard. Nice, long bout, with both guys getting in good shots. Maybe Gordon should up Fritz's ice time to two minutes a game.

 - This game's starting to get a little physical, which is nice. We're starting to see more up-and-down action, with both teams having their chances.

 - The Islanders ice the puck, the Ice Girls come out... only there's no TV timeout because you can't have a TV timeout after an icing call. Whoops.

 - Now, we have our TV timeout, as Andy Hilbert takes a boarding penalty. Hard to believe, right?

 - Pat Sajak is being interviewed on the scoreboard and says, and I quote, "Rangers Suck". After the interview, the Coliseum game ops staff reminds us that we're two-thirds of the way to free chili. Personally, I'd rather pay the dollar for chili than have the cashier at Wendy's look at me like I have three heads after asking for free chili.

 - Miroslav Satan is playing in front of the net on the power play, as opposed to when he played for the Islanders, when he used to stand at the point and miss the net.

 - Bailey made an excellent play behind the net to steal the puck and create a great scoring chance. Unfortunately, Jon Sim can't put it home. We end the first with the Islanders comfortably ahead 2-0. And by "comfortably", I mean there's a great chance it'll be 2-2 before long.

 - The second period brings rise to all the crappy emo music I dread hearing at Islander games. How wonderful.

 - The puck is taking some weird bounces tonight. The Islanders would do well to keep firing the puck on Sabourin, who's given up some pretty good rebounds tonight.

 - The officials changed the scoring on Weight's goal, giving the assist to Streit instead of Bailey.

 - The pace has slowed down a little bit as the second period unfolds. The focus in the Blog Box turns to Family Guy clips on YouTube and the Ice Girl who stopped by to say hello.

 - The Isles have had at least three great opportunities, but have opted for the pass each time. However, they're working hard in the offensive zone and drew a penalty. Best part? It's on Malkin. Gotta score here.

 - And just like that, Guerin fires one from the top of the faceoff circle to make it 3-0. Which sounded awesome until I realized the Islanders now have a three-goal lead. Sabourin gets the yank; he's replaced by someone named "John Curry". He wears #1. It's actually his first NHL appearance, which means he'll be utterly dominant.

 - So you know how I said the Islanders should start declining penalties? They're 2-for-3 on the man advantage tonight. So much for that line of thinking.

 - This is kind of a jinx... but Pittsburgh is playing like crap. They haven't gotten consistent pressure all game long, the Islanders have had a number of odd-man rushes, and the Pens' goaltending hasn't been anything to write home about.

 - On the penalty kill, Jordan Staal gets a breakaway, but Joey MacDonald comes up huge with a kick save. The Pens have had three good chances on this PK. Maybe they should play shorthanded for the rest of the game.

 - New feature on the scoreboard: The Supercuts "Who Needs A Haircut" cam. We're treated to a bunch of fans who badly need haircuts. I like this one. I've seen worse, anyway.

 - The Isles have blown a golden opportunity by allowing Curry, a cold goalie with nerves about making his first NHL appearance, time to get comfortable. This could come back to bite them later.

 - The Pens get one with 18.7 seconds left in the second. Looks like Satan tapped it in. Suddenly, a three-goal deficit becomes a very manageable two-goal deficit. Not good. We saw how late goals killed the Isles in Jersey on Friday. Let's hope for a different result this time. 3-1 Isles to end the third. So far, so good... but I'm still a bit worried.

 - Intermission Idiocy: The Human Puck Shoot! I love this one. Parents put their kids on sleds and shove them into the goal from the blue line. Clearly, this is something I'll be doing when my daughter is old enough.

 - My favorite guilty pleasure of attending Islander games is the text messages that appear on the scoreboard. If you haven't seen this, they basically take the dumbest comments people text to some number and put them on the scoreboard. Unfortunately, they never put up my texts. I always send the same one: "Stan Fischler is old."

 - According to the scoreboard, the average person consumes 4,500 calories on Thanksgiving. Very inspiring.

 - The Penguins knock one in at the same time as one of their players barrels over MacDonald, knocking the net off. After a review, the call on the ice (no goal) stands.

 - The refs let three consecutive penalties go, including one dive by the Islanders and one hook by Crosby. Seconds later, Crosby scores to make it 3-2. Here we go again...

 - The Isles have gotten extremely sloppy over the past 15 or so minutes. Pretty much ever since they scored that third goal, they stopped playing their game and reverted into the shell that has led to them blowing many a third-period lead. Since the end of the first period - that's 27 minutes of hockey - the Islanders have ten shots on goal. That's not going to get it done.

 - Right off the TV timeout, Petr Sykora gets a point-blank opportunity from the slot. If the Islanders lose this game, they're going to regret it. With a goalie playing his first NHL minutes on the other end, the Islanders haven't tested him at all. If I were Scott Gordon, I'd call a timeout and kindly remind his team that they've blown like five three-goal leads in the past month.

 - Ten minutes left in the third, and the Islanders ice the puck. I can't even remember the last time the Islanders carried the puck over the blue line. It was probably in the second period.

 - Malkin scores to make it 3-3. And I have to admit, I totally saw this coming. As did every other Islander fan in the building. The Islanders haven't played their game in well over a period and it finally came back to bite them. The good thing is, there's nine minutes left to get the lead back.  The bad thing is, Pittsburgh has all the momentum in the world right now.

 - Under a minute after scoring goal number three, Makin puts in number four. Crosby gets the assist once again. This is exactly what the Islanders deserve after mailing in the last 30 or so minutes of this game.

 - As if everyone in the Coliseum is under a malaise, the game ops staff play "I'll Stick Around" by the Foo Fighters. Which would have been fine, except they played it in the first period as well. Whoops.

 - Instead of playing hard and trying to get the lead back, Guerin tries to goad two Penguins into fights. This is with 7:19 left in a game the Islanders are currently losing. He gets two well-deserved minutes. Remember, this is our captain we're talking about here.

 - The Penguins are just having their way with the Islanders right now. The Isles are scrambling around on the PK and can barely contain the Penguins at this point. Not good.

 - We gotta wrap this up so that we can head down to the locker room and watch the players try to explain away their latest blown lead. Unless, of course, the Isles pull victory from the jaws of defeat yet again. As Tony Schiavone would say, the tape machines are rolling... should the Islanders not blow this game, that'd be excellent. But at this point, it's hard to expect anything else.

Islanders Notes

After watching tonight's abomination, I'm sort of at a loss for words. But being the trooper I am, I'll try to talk about what we've just seen.

• Tonight was supposed to be my first night in the Blog Box, but I had to work late, so I couldn't do it. Turns out I picked a good night to put in some extra time. While tonight's game was all Dallas, the Stars won tonight's game as soon as the buzzer ended last night's game. After allowing five goals to the Devils, you knew the Stars would come out and destroy the Islanders. And that's exactly what they did.
• While I couldn't make tonight's game, my brother went to his first game of this young season. His thoughts? "The game sucked, but the pretzel twists were amazing." That's exactly what I'd say if I were there.
• The NHL tries pretty hard to keep stats that account for the intangible aspects of hockey. Plus/minus, blocked shots, and hits are among these stats. But there are a few stats that, quite frankly, need to be tallied. Chief among those stats are a stat for penalties drawn. And if penalties drawn was a stat, Sean Avery would be a star. He drew two penalties tonight that led directly to two Dallas power play goals. And maybe if stats like penalties drawn were kept, people wouldn't say stupid things like, "Avery doesn't do anything out there." He does. It's just that it doesn't show up on the stat sheet. And God forbid a player be considered elite without being elite on paper.
• If I have to see that stupid f'ing Nissan Versa commercial one more damn time, I'm going to throw a brick through my TV.
• So you know how the Islanders had like five enforcers in training camp? And you know how not one of them has so much as dressed for this team yet? Well, maybe they could have used one of them tonight. The Isles stunk up the joint in the first period, went down 3-0, blew four consecutive minutes of power play time (including two minutes of a 5-on-3), ended up down 4-1 midway through the second... and nobody even tried to start anything by being physical. In front of their own home crowd, the Islanders sat there and took the beating without fighting back. It doesn't take much to get the crowd going at a hockey game. In an instance like tonight's game, you're looking for a fight, but it doesn't even have to be that drastic. But then again, it's not like the Islanders have a line of big hitters they can throw out there to get the crowd back into the game. It's funny how all these other teams have room for fighters and checkers, and yet the Islanders don't. It's worth questioning.
• I'm not sure what that C.J. Papa soapbox thing was at the end of tonight's broadcast... but I liked it. I could have done without the egregious Lighthouse propaganda like ten times in tonight's game, but Papa's trashing of Gary Bettman is always nice. See, these are the things Deb Kaufman/Placey didn't give us last year. Besides, C.J. Papa is almost as corny as Howie and Billy, and that's tough to do.
• The next time someone trashes the NHL and their TV deal for being fan-unfriendly, point them to the events of tonight. As I write this, it's 10:10 PM, and the World Series game that "started" at 8 PM is in the fifth inning. We're looking at yet another MLB post-season game that will end after midnight. The NBA does this too, starting their Finals games at 9 PM, but nobody questions it because it's ESPN. However, the NHL begins their Finals games at 8, and all you hear is, "Nobody watches hockey anymore, who cares?". That's not fair. The triple-overtime Detroit-Pittsburgh Game 5, probably one of the five most exciting games played in any sport in 2008, ended at approximately the same time all these nine-inning baseball games are ending. Explain that one, MLB.

So that's our game. We've got the Hurricanes on Saturday. Say, when a hurricane comes to town, you're pretty scared. Now, imagine twenty of them! It's Hurricanes-Islanders, on MSG Plus! (Or C-Span 2, or wherever they decide to stick the Islanders. Because, you know, Islanders hockey can't possibly compete with re-runs of "The Game 365 With Fran Healy".)

Blog Box

So I guess we can talk about this now...

We here at The Rivalry are proud to be among the newest members of the NYI Blog Box. There are a lot of good blogs out there for just about every team; the Islanders were just the team that gave those bloggers the chance to be recognized as, in a sense, team-sanctioned. It's a pretty big thrill for both of us to even be on this level. We started this blog almost eight months ago, not really knowing what we were doing. To come from that to actually being credentialed media? Pretty cool.

I don't really know what happens from here on out. I know I'll get to go to games (unfortunately, we only get one credential) and watch the games from a really good seat. I'll get to meet a lot of the other bloggers who made this thing a success to begin with. I'll get the chance to be in the locker room and even ask questions, though I doubt I'll actually do so. But one thing is for sure - we're not going to go soft or anything. Unless, of course, the Blog Box offers free unlimited pretzel twists. Then we might have a bit of a problem.

Anyway, it's a pretty exciting time here at The Rivalry. The Rangers are 5-0, and while the Islanders might have a tough go of things this year, it'll be interesting to watch them find themselves. And thanks to the Blog Box, we'll get to do so with access we've never had before.