FLORIDA 1, ISLANDERS 0
New York Islanders
Isles take season-high 53 shots, but can't figure out Anderson
The Islanders took 53 shots, but none got past goaltender Craig Anderson. On Allstate "Core of the Four" day at the Nassau Coliseum, the Islanders fell in frustrating fashion, 1-0 to the Florida Panthers.
"We had at least 25 to 30 good opportunities," said head coach Ted Nolan. "They worked hard. They threw everything at the kid, especially in the second period. The way the team worked, you couldn't ask for anything more. You have to give their goaltender credit. He made some real big saves. He didn't give us too much on the second and third shots."
David Booth's goal at 9:57 of the first period held up for the only score of the game. Booth used a wrist shot from the slot to beat Wade Dubielewicz, who stopped 29 shots in his first start since January 31. Rick DiPietro was away from the team to attend his grandmother's wake.
"Dubie was really good," said Nolan. "He gave everything that we asked of him."
Following a first period, which saw the shots favor the Islanders 14-11, the second period was dominated completely by the home team. The Islanders took a franchise high 29 shots in the period and allowed only eight.
Despite the onslaught, Anderson never cracked to record his fourth win of the season.
In the third period, Florida out-shot the Islanders 11-10. But it was more of the same, with the Islanders pressuring. However, their shots were either stopped or blocked by diving forwards or defensemen. Florida blocked 28 shots in the game.
Prior to the game, the Islanders celebrated the men that made up the four Stanley Cup championship teams. The day began with the "Walk of Champions" from the Marriott to the Coliseum and concluded with an on-ice ceremony.
Check out the stories from today's events.
Five Stars of the Game:
1. Craig Anderson: Played the game of his life turning aside 53 shots
2. Karlis Skratins: Blocked a team-high 9 shots
3. Wade Dubielewicz: Did all he could do, stopping 29 shots
4. Jay Bouwmeester: Played a team-high 28:48, 6 blocked shots
5. David Booth: Scored the lone goal
Stat of the Game: Every Islanders skater took at least one shot. Trent Hunter led the team with seven.
Slapshots: Bruno Gervais left the game in the first period and did not return after a big collision at center ice. He suffered a thigh contusion and concussion...The Islanders were three shots off of the NHL season high this season for one game (Toronto - 56).
Game Operations: The Islanders sported vintage 1980 jerseys with names and numbers of the Core of the Four members during the practice. Bill Guerin dressed as #5 Denis Potvin, Brendan Witt was #91 Butch Goring and Mike Comrie wore #19 in honor of Bryan Trottier...Following the contest, the Coliseum ice was flooded with kids, who had the opportunity to take shots on goal for the second day in a row.
Islanders Business Club Event: Prior to the "Walk of Champions" the Islanders Business Club organized an intimate gathering for its members in the atrium of the RexCorp Plaza. In attendance were the Core of the Four members and the Stanley Cup. Following a delicious lunch, Mike Bossy hosted a short ceremony that included the presentation of commemorative rings to each Core of the Four member.
Click here f
or more photos from the IBC event.
Fans reactions to the Allstate Core of the Four celebration:
Steve Christie from Bellmore has been an Islander fan since 1975 and attended today's IBC luncheon with the Core of the Four members. "The ceremony today was great," said Steve, talking about the on-ice celebrations. "It brought back a lot of great memories. With Jiggs emceeing and Al Arbour and Bill Torrey back it was a great experience.
Tom Masone from East Northport has been an Islanders fan since the franchise began. He remembers vividly when the Islanders won their first Stanley Cup. "It was great seeing the guys," said Tom. "They were one heck of a team."
Scott Walters from Port Washington really enjoyed seeing the current players trade in their jerseys for the throwbacks during warm-ups. "I liked the fact that they brought back guys like Tonelli who don't get same recognition as some of the others," said Scott.
This weekend's Allstate Core of the Four celebration included:
ISLANDERS
Goaltenders
34 Wade Dubielewicz
35 Joey McDonald
Defensemen
32 Brendan Witt - 24 Radek Martinek
44 Freddy Meyer - 8 Bruno Gervais
4 Bryan Berard – 3 Rob Davison
Forwards
11 Andy Hilbert - 89 Mike Comrie - 13 Bill Guerin
26 Ruslan Fedotenko - 63 Josef Vasicek – 7 Trent Hunter
20 Sean Bergenheim – 10 Richard Park – 81 Miroslav Satan
15 Jeff Tambellini – 72 Jeremy Colliton – 57 Blake Comeau
FLORIDA
Goaltenders
31 Craig Anderson
29 Tomas Vokoun
Defensemen
4 Jay Bouwmeester – 3 Karlis Skrastins
2 Branislav Mezei – 21 Cory Murphy
22 Jassen Cullimore – 6 Magnus Johansson
Forwards
53 Brett McLean - 12 Olli Jokinen - 85 Rostislav Olesz
10 David Booth - 9 Stephen Weiss - 16 Nathan Horton
18 Ville Peltonen - 11 Gregory Campbell – 7 Steve Montador
37 Tanner Glass - 54 Kamil Kreps – 33 Wade Belak
Check out the Islanders TV Game Day tab for complete coverage tonight’s game.
| Three star selections |
| 1st: |
CRAIG ANDERSON |
| 2nd: |
DAVID BOOTH |
| 3rd: |
WADE DUBIELEWICZ |
Winning Goaltender
Craig Anderson
|
Losing Goaltender
Wade Dubielewicz
|
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