Turnaround on LI?

After opening the season with a 1-3 roadtrip out west, the Isles compelted a 7 game homestand last night. In that stretch, they took at least a point in all but 1 of the games (a 3-0 loss to the Sabres). The team has 12 points, and is 1 game above 500. Nice way to finish October.

So why the sudden change? This team, that all of the experts picked to finish last or near last in the conference is actually holding their own right now, tied for 6th in the conference. What is it that has caused such solid play after an awful opening.

Well, part of it could be tied to the opening trip being on the West Coast, basically playing the home opener for each of those teams. Home teams are usually pumped up by the big crowds at the opener, making it hard for a visitor to do well. Add to that the fact that Rick DiPietro played the first few games with a groin injury before sitting in favor of Mike Dunham, and you have a recipe for a poor start.

Dunham played real well once he stepped in, with the team capping the road trip with SO win versus the Ducks (who should be a Stanley Cup contender this season, so no easy points there.) He then won the home opener, lost in a SO and lost in OT. This allowed the team to get some points, and allowed Rick the time to heal. Since returning, DiPietro is 3-1, the only loss to Buffalo, when the team no-showed in front of him. Rick seems to be keeping within himself. The key for him is to not try to do too much. The defense in front of him is adequate, but they cannot compensate for his excursions out of the crease to play the puck. Stick to the blue space Rick, and you'll be fine.

On the offense, Alexei Yashin has been good. Real good. He leads the team with 13 pts, on 5 goals and 8 assists. He is playing hard, not taking any shifts off. This is the guy we had the first season, who has been missing since. I don't know if Nolan has found the switch, or if Wang told him to shape up of be bought out or what, but he is playing real well. Jason Blake is leading the team with 6 goals, but we cannot rely on him to be the scorer, Satan needs to pick it up, only 1 goal (though he does have 7 assists) as does Kozlov (3 goals, his 1 last night was the fist since the road trip). Mike Sillinger has been great, with 5 goals, picking up where he ended last season. He is turning out to be a nice signing. Good leader, and playing hard. This team has 7 guys who could score at least 20 goals, with three of them having the talent to top 30 at least.

The defense, as noted above, is adequate. Tom Poti has played well, to the surprise of everyone. Sean Hill on the other hand, cannot keep up with faster skaters. Once Chris Campoli is done with rehab in Bridgeport, he should be called up. Brendan Witt has done as advertised, taking a lot of penalties. He needs to be more of a legal physical presence in front of Rick. Zhitnick and Martinek have been steady, and Gervais has done fine for a rookie.

It is early fans, but there is a hint of a turnaround on the Isle. Keep watching. Hey, if they keep this up, maybe we can get some more fans in all those empty seats.