Consistently Inconcistent

Forgive me, but there is nothing going on in Jets land, and precious little going on with the Mets that I haven't already spoken about (though, in the interests of, well, me, I will state that based on what a couple of people have written here and elsewhere, the Sierra signing may be OK, so long as he stays in New Orleans and is able to mentor Lastings. Sierra has apparently been noted as a good mentor. That being said, I still don't want him on the Mets bench), so I am going to write about the Islanders today.

After an good start, led by Alexei Yashin, who appeared to be getting whatever monkey was climbing all over him off, the Isles went into a typical slump, once Yashin hurt his knee. Now, this was not a slump of 13 straight losses or anything, but they basically treaded water for the time he was out, and fell from first place(!) to out of the playoffs. Once he returned, Yashin still looked out of sorts for the most part. He could not get a good step due to lingering issues with the knee, and then he tweaked it again.

Following a 2-0 win over the Rangers on Dec 26, they proceeded to lose 6 in a row. They then won 2 in a row, and lost 3, followed by a win just before the All Star Break. These guys bounce around more than Jose Lima's wife doing aerobics. After the break, their schedule looked daunting. Atlanta, Buffalo, Detroit, Atlanta again (last night). So how would they respond facing the top teams in the NHL? Well, thanks to Rick DiPietro apparently thinking he was still on break, they fell behind 3-0 in the first five minutes against Atlanta in the first game after the break. However, they were able to come back to force OT, eventually losing, but gaining a point. The next night, they faced Buffalo and Ryan Miller, whom many people feel should have been Team USA's goalie in the Olympics last year (despite the fact he was coming off a hand injury, and despite the fact the team scored less frequently than a leper at a porn convention). Rick bounced back from his awful start the night before, and the Isles lit up Miller in a 5-3 win. A couple of nights later, the Isles faced the Red Wings, and Dominek Hasek, who is credited with forcing Ted Nolan out of Buffalo (LOTS of rumors on that one). Well, 22 second in, the Isles scored, and jumped out to a 3-0 lead after two periods. However, they went into a shell in the third, and Detroit pounced, tying the game to force OT, where they eventually won. Still, the Isles got a point. Now last night. They travelled to Atlanta, to face the Thrasher again. Kari Lehtonen, who is viewed as a top goalie by many, got lit like Tara Conner at a party, as the Isles won 5-2 behind very solid goaltending from Mike Dunham (former Thrasher) and goals by Blake (who is on fire again thankfully), Satan, Hunter (also heating up nicely, now has 12 on the year), and two from Kozlov (the poster child for this inconsistent team, along with Yashin). Youngster Jeff Tambellini (son of Steve for you longtime fans) was called up as Yashin sat out, and played on the second line with Satan and Kozlov, and added 3 assists. How long will he stay up, who knows, but it was a nice game for the lad.

So, where do they stand? They are 4 points out of the playoffs, tied with the Rangers and behind Toronto. They have a captain that is injured. They have a goalie who is stellar most nights, but then has nights where he reminds you of Tommy Salo. But they also have some guys who some thought were mistakes, like Brendan Witt, who are playing their asses off, and helping out the younger guys. The defense is playing well, including youngsters Chris Campoli and Bruno Gervais. Radek Martinek is solid, if unspectacular. Tom Poti, who I personally was not happy about signing, has played quite well (though he is suffering from back spasms and has missed the last couple of games.) The problem is that the team is too up and down to get a good read on them. Some nights, they can beat anyone in the NHL. Others, they play like crap. Win two, lose 3 and so forth is not going to get you to the playoffs. The NHL Trade Deadline is February 27. Garth Snow has freed up some cap space. Now he has to make a decision. Should he trade for another scorer, knowing that he has to resign 33 year old Jason Blake to what will surely be a large deal in the offseason? Or does he trade Blake to a contender, along with a few others (I'm talking to you Shawn (oh my aching groin, again) Bates), clearing more cap space, opening slots for younger guys like Tambellini and Robert Nilsson to play this year, and Blake Comeau, Kyle Okposo next? It's an interesting position for Garth, in his first year as GM. I'm sure he will be relying heavily on Ted Nolan to see where Ted thinks the team should be. Of course, Wang may see the dollar signs from playoff games (2 at least), and may push for a trade. I'm not sure. Part of me wants the playoffs, thinking they could do some damage if Ricky gets hot like Glen Healy in 1993. But part of me wants them to trade to clear space, then buy out Yashin in the offseason, and make a run at the myriad of young Free Agents that will be available. I'm going to be like Garth and wait till the last minute and see where they are. The tease of the last week gives fans reason to hope though. Now if they could do the same against the dregs (besides the Rangers, who they have OWNED this year), maybe they can make the push. No one thinks they can, no one thought they would at the start of the season. It would be nice to show all the experts up.

I have one other note. Following their game on Wednesday, Brendan Shannahan of the Rangers complained about the ref's and their treatment of Jaromir Jagr. Channy claims that the refs don't make calls when Jagr is hooked, prodded, slashed and so forth. Now, one thing we have all learned in watching the NHL is that you do not want to piss off the refs, lest they make even fewer calls in your favor, and more against you. Also, the league usually takes a dim view on these types of comments. Well, for the latter part, the NHL announced there would be no fine forthcoming, which in a way I am OK with, since I feel the refs are as consistent as the Isles in calling penalties. I do wonder how much the fact that Shanny is a well respected vet playing for the Rangers came into play in that decision. I wonder how the league would respond if an Islander said Yashin was not getting calls? Or if someone on the Blue Jackets made the same claim. Anyway, for the former, we will have to see how it plays out during the next Ranger game. If they get calls, well, expect every team to bitch. Then lets see how the league reacts. Something tells me charities will be getting an infusion of cash.

Have a nice weekend everyone.