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GDT: Pens @ Islanders | 7:30PM 01/23/14

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Shrimper

Shrimper

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New York Islanders v Pittsburgh Penguins

PENGUINS (35-13-2) at ISLANDERS (21-24-7)

TV: NBCSN, TSN2; ROOT

Last 10: Pittsburgh 7-2-1; New York 7-3-0

Season series: The Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Islanders are playing the last of their four games this season. The Islanders won 4-3 on Oct. 25 in Pittsburgh, but the Penguins have won the past two, including a 3-2 overtime victory at Nassau Coliseum on Dec. 3.

Big story: While the Penguins continue to cruise to the Metropolitan Division title and push for first place in the Eastern Conference, the Islanders continue to try to dig out from an early-season slump and get back into the playoff race.

Team Scope:

Penguins: A 5-1 home loss to the Florida Panthers on Monday was one of the Penguins' worst performances of the season. They looked more like the team that has dominated its division on Wednesday by whipping the Montreal Canadiens 5-1 behind a pair of goals by Jussi Jokinen.

While any team that has Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin is unlikely to struggle offensively, one of the secrets to the Penguins' success has been their ability to get secondary scoring. The two goals were the 14th and 15th of the season for Jokinen.

"He came out big for us in a lot of ways, scoring some goals here for us," coach Dan Bylsma said. "To have his 14th and 15th goals for us, it's secondary scoring and it's been big for us."

Islanders: New York has had problems holding leads; the overtime loss to Pittsburgh came in a game the Islanders led 2-0. But they've been at their best when they get behind. In back-to-back games against the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers, they trailed 3-1 and rallied to win. A 5-3 win against the Rangers at Madison Square Garden was their League-high eighth of the season in a game they trailed by two or more goals.

They've outscored the opposition 20-6 in the third period in their past 13 games.

"During the last month and a half we've done a much better job in all three zones and battling through adversity when it's been there," said captain John Tavares, who's second in the scoring race with 62 points, seven behind Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby. "Everyone is playing as a unit out there, from our goaltender out to our forwards, you can just tell that in all three zones the execution level is much better."
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New York Islanders
Thomas Vanek - John Tavares - Kyle Okposo
Peter Regin - Frans Nielsen - Josh Bailey
Michael Grabner - Brock Nelson - Cal Clutterbuck
Colin McDonald - Casey Cizikas - Matt Martin

Andrew MacDonald - Brian Strait
Matt Donovan - Calvin de Haan
Radek Martinek - Thomas Hickey

Pittsburgh Penguins
Chris Kunitz - Sidney Crosby (C) - Chuck Kobasew
Jussi Jokinen - Evgeni Malkin (A) - James Neal
Tanner Glass - Brandon Sutter - Taylor Pyatt
Craig Adams - Joe Vitale - Jayson Megna

Brooks Orpik (A) - Paul Martin
Matt Niskanen - Kris Letang
Oli Maatta - Robert Bortuzzo

[size=+2][glow=black]Team Leaders[/size][/glow]
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Crosby 26|GOALS| Tavares 23
Crosby 43|ASSISTS| Tavares 39
Crosby 69|POINTS| Tavares 62
Niskanen +26|PLUS MINUS| Vanek +8
Bortuzzo 49|PIM|Carkner 93​

i
V
i


2.61 GAA - 7-2-1 & .906% V 3.10 GAA - 11-14-0 & .896​
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ByeBye

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Jul 13, 2010
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Doesn't Crosby completely own one of these Islanders backups? Which one was it? Nilsson?
 
LetangInTheSO

LetangInTheSO

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Oct 17, 2008
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Where's Scuds?

Also re: Bylsma's quote, how is Jussi Jokinen providing "secondary scoring?" He's on the 2nd line! Secondary scoring typically means scoring from the 3rd/4th lines.
 
cheesedanish87

cheesedanish87

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Jun 27, 2012
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I wonder if the Isles are going to go after Malkin at all after Geno got involved with JT at the end of last game.


I hope im wrong, but i think its going to be a tough game for the pens, Isles are playing desperate hockey right now, i think its going to be hard for the pens to match the Isles compete level tonight.
 
Shady Machine

Shady Machine

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Aug 6, 2010
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LetangInTheSO said:
Where's Scuds?

Also re: Bylsma's quote, how is Jussi Jokinen providing "secondary scoring?" He's on the 2nd line! Secondary scoring typically means scoring from the 3rd/4th lines.
Click to expand...

So that's why our 3rd and 4th lines are filled with skill-less scrubs. Dan was under the impression that secondary scoring came from your 2nd line wingers so he didn't know he needed any in the bottom 6.
 

ByeBye

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Jul 13, 2010
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cheesedanish87 said:
I hope im wrong, but i think its going to be a tough game for the pens, Isles are playing desperate hockey right now, i think its going to be hard for the pens to match the Isles compete level tonight.
Click to expand...

True, especially after such an excellent all around performance against the Habs. I'm afraid there will be a little bit of complacency and that's not good against a team that has their back against the wall.
 
wej20

wej20

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Aug 14, 2008
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Is Vitale back already? Isles forward core looks pretty good but defense looks weak sauce.
 

crasherino

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May 9, 2013
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cheesedanish87 said:
I wonder if the Isles are going to go after Malkin at all after Geno got involved with JT at the end of last game.


I hope im wrong, but i think its going to be a tough game for the pens, Isles are playing desperate hockey right now, i think its going to be hard for the pens to match the Isles compete level tonight.
Click to expand...

If that was on Cappy's mind, I doubt he'd be dressing the line up he's dressing. Against the Flyers this weekend (and against the more physical teams in general), both Boulton and Carkner were dressed. Against the Rags, Regin and Martinek are skating. The Islanders mix and match their bigger players based on the perceived physicality of the game. If there was any thought as to what you suggest, they wouldn't be sitting those guys. He'd rather have guys more capable of moving the puck (or in Carkner's case, guys who know how to skate backwards).

wej20 said:
Is Vitale back already? Isles forward core looks pretty good but defense looks weak sauce.
Click to expand...

That's about right. Although Calvin DeHaan has been a breath of fresh air on our Dline over the past 2 months, but it is still a weak unit with Visnovsky out since October and Hamonic out for the past 2 weeks or so. If/when those guys come back, it will be a lot stronger. For now, they are an under-sized unit prone to making mistakes. If Matt Donovan is on the ice against Crosby, its bad news for the Islanders.
 
billybudd

billybudd

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Feb 1, 2012
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crasherino said:
If that was on Cappy's mind, I doubt he'd be dressing the line up he's dressing. Against the Flyers this weekend (and against the more physical teams in general), both Boulton and Carkner were dressed. Against the Rags, Regin and Martinek are skating. The Islanders mix and match their bigger players based on the perceived physicality of the game. If there was any thought as to what you suggest, they wouldn't be sitting those guys. He'd rather have guys more capable of moving the puck (or in Carkner's case, guys who know how to skate backwards).



That's about right. Although Calvin DeHaan has been a breath of fresh air on our Dline over the past 2 months, but it is still a weak unit with Visnovsky out since October and Hamonic out for the past 2 weeks or so. If/when those guys come back, it will be a lot stronger. For now, they are an under-sized unit prone to making mistakes. If Matt Donovan is on the ice against Crosby, its bad news for the Islanders.
Click to expand...

Haha. Nice way of putting it. I definitely noticed him struggling with that earlier this season. Think Sid had a point every time he was on the ice with Carkner.

Be happy, though, because Tavares will be drawing the fabled "Gladams" duo for much of the night (Craig Adams and Tanner Glass). Those guys can't even skate forwards.
 
billybudd

billybudd

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Feb 1, 2012
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Speaking of Gladams, who the Hell is centering the 4th line if Sill's down and Vitale's hurt? Tell me it's not Adams. Please, tell me it's not Adams.
 
billybudd

billybudd

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Feb 1, 2012
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Going to choose to believe Degen is right and the rest of you are just being dicks. Bit ostrich syndrome of me, but that's what I'm going to do.
 
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