All the blueshirt faithful put their collective tails between their legs and left the building.
It was much joy in Islander Country last night. A 2-0 victory; another home shutout for Ricky, and a total DOMINANCE of a hockey game, especially when our boys needed to play an effective game. They did JUST THAT!
Forget about Rory Fitzpatrick, get Radek Martinek on the ballot! He has become such an OUTSTANDING player, one that I now do not get uneasy when he hits the ice. He plays physical when he needs to, brings up the puck so smartly, works real well with Brendan Witt, and his deceptive speed can fool a lot of forwards.
Also - Brendan Witt is now on my top 5 defensemen of all time for his WONDERFUL job, keeping that wimpy #68 off the scoresheet for the first time since 1995 on Long Island. He did not play nasty, he just did his job; keeping Jagr to the outside, and not allowing him 
much time behind the Islander net. When Witt put some good checks on Jagr, he started to get pissy and began playing with a chip on his shoulder. That took him off his game, and subsequently, on his arse!
Every Islander played physical, gave the body, without losing focus of their assignment. Trent Hunter was a one man wrecking crew. He hit anything in white, and with reckless abandon.
Is Aaron Asham becoming the next Fulton Reed? 1 in 5? I would take that. He hit a laser that I do not think Lundswiss even saw!
The only thing that I will put a damper on, is that the Isles really needed to get some men in front of the net and pepper shots that way. Although Lundswiss had a 950 or so save percentage on the evening, he was shaky at best. He did make some great stops, especially that glove save on the power play. However, he had real juicy rebounds, and we did not have our forwards up high enough to rattle him. However, we got the job done?
Jason “Rocket” Blake? Who knows - he is only four (4) behind Ovechkin. Hey Garth, sign him up. Lock him in; especially when he wants to STAY here!
Well - THREE STARS…. Actually, screw it, all twenty Isles are the collectiive FIRST STAR of the game!
GOLD STAR - anyone that wore their Islander jersey with pride!
TIN TWIT - I can bash anyone I want, but I will take the high ground. But I will nominate all the fans (both sides of the fence) that think this game is worth fighting about. Yes, we love our teams, we root hard, and we dislike the fans on the other end. But beating each other seneless is not cool. It is a GAME! Relax, root for your team, and move on.
In this case, thank goodness for the schedule maker - he got the team on a plane after the game, and off to Ottawa for a date with the Sens. The bad news, is that the Isles are woeful in Canada, specifically on a 14 game winless streak. The good news is this is another back-to-back game, our seventh this season. We are 6-0-0 in these games so far. Momentum has to switch our way.
Voice from the chartered plane after the game:
“Gentlemen, you may now move about the cabin, and please take your Airborne pills that are located in the pocket of the seat in front of you. These will help you remove the anticipated letdown after a Ranger game, and let you play to your full potential tomorrow night.”
The Race Palace is having another game watching party tonight. Right off exit 48 on the LIE. Go cheer the boys on!
Posted under Islanders 06-07
This post was written by Gary Harding on December 27, 2006
I wish I was home to have caught this game. Reading the reports is all and good, but it would have been nice to have heard the game, or to have been there.
I know the halfway point hasn’t quite been hit, but this was a big win. Besides making it 3 straight over the Rangers, it puts us that 1 point over them in the standings with 3 games in hand. Again, as I’ve said, this division is winnable. We need to come out and play with consistency and fire every night. Yes, Martinek is playing fantastic hockey. I think many of the boys are stepping up and getting it done. I only wish we’d get more consistent scoring from the guys who really should be farther up in the goals scored category.