The Skinny - Game 66: Islanders 4, Canucks 3 OT

Game 66Isles 4, Vancouver 3 (OT)
Andrew Ladd scored 1:33 into overtime as the Islanders improved to 5-2-1 on their franchise-record 9-game road trip with a 4-3 victory over Vancouver before a sellout crowd of 18,406 at Rogers Arena.
Josh Bailey assisted on the three regulation goals, giving him 299 career points, and matching a career high for assists in a game. Both of Bailey's linemates now have 25 goals as John Tavares tied Anders Lee for the club lead in goals.

Ladd's winning goal (his 5th career overtime tally, and first with the Islanders) was his 11th goal in the last 21 games; he has had the most goals on the team since Doug Weight replaced Jack Capuano seven weeks ago.
With the win, the Isles remain in the second wild card spot, one point ahead of Toronto.

The Scoring:1ST PERIOD
15:01 New York John Tavares (25) ASST: Josh Bailey (35), Anders Lee (16) 1-0
2ND PERIOD
01:35 Vancouver Reid Boucher (3) ASST: Bo Horvat (26), Troy Stecher (18) 1-1
03:31 Vancouver Sven Baertschi (16) 1-2
09:44 New York Anthony Beauvillier (7) ASST: Josh Bailey (36) 2-2
19:36 New York Brock Nelson (15) ASST: Nick Leddy (26), Josh Bailey (37) 3-2
3RD PERIOD
19:40 Vancouver Troy Stecher (3) ASST: Henrik Sedin (27), Markus Granlund (12) 3-3
OT PERIOD
01:33 New York Andrew Ladd (19) ASST: Calvin de Haan (15), Ryan Strome (17) 4-3
The Skinny:
The Isles are 15-6-3 (.688) under Interim Coach Doug Weight …Since opening the season 6-10-4, Isles are 26-13-7 in their last 46 games…The Isles are 6-2-1 in the last nine games…...The Isles are 24-0-5 when leading after 2 periods… The Isles' top line has 25 goals (and 40 assists) in 24 games under Weight…Thomas Greiss recorded his 23rd win, matching his career high (set last season) …The Isles have allowed six goals with a 6th attacker on the ice this season (5 in 5-on-6's, 1 in a 4-on-6); only Toronto (8) has allowed more…The Canucks have points in four straight games (2-0-2).
Moving On Up
Josh Bailey recorded three assists, matching a career high, to reach 299 career points. In the process, he passed Pierre Turgeon with 194 assists as an Isle for 18th place. Bailey played in his 623rd Isles game, passing Stefan Persson and tying Billy Harris for 10th place among skaters on the all-time club list.
The 300 Club
Josh Bailey is now just one point shy of becoming the 6th player from his draft class to reach 300 points:
(Stamkos, Karlsson, Eberle, Doughty, and Stepan have already done so.)
Winning in the West
This was the final game of the Western Canada portion of the trip. The Isles won consecutive games on the same trip to Western Canada (Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver) for the first time since December 4-6, 1983, when the still-Stanley Cup Champion Islanders won 4-2 in Edmonton and 5-2 in Vancouver.
Rewriting the Record Book
Interim coach Doug Weight made Islander history on Thursday night:
Most consecutive games without consecutive regulation losses - new coach
24 - DOUG WEIGHT (and counting)
23 - Brad Shaw
15 - Peter Laviolette
13- Steve Sterling
Overall, the Isles have gone 36 games without losing consecutive games in regulation; it's the longest streak by an Islander team in 35 years!
Most consecutive games without consecutive regulation losses (one season)
56 November 12, 1977 --March 18, 1978
48 October 12, 1978 -- January 27, 1979 (start of season)
43 January 2, 1982 -- April 4, 1982 (end of season)
36 CURRENT .
35 December 2, 1979 -- February 16, 1980
Fit to Be Tied
The Isles have allowed the final goal of regulation in 12 of their 16 games that have gone to overtime this season, including four in the final minute:
10/16 - Ana Ducks - Ryan Getzlaf (19:00); Isles won in OT
11/3 - Phi Flyers - Jakob Voracek (19:02/PP); Flyers won in SO
11/12 - Fla Panthers - Jonathan Marchessault (19:46); Panthers won in OT
3/10 - Van Canucks - Troy Stecher (19:40); Isles won in OT
Playoff Chase:
Playoff Chase:
The Isles Magic Number to clinch a playoff berth is 32 (over Toronto and Boston).
Friday's games:
Minnesota @ Florida 7:30
Buffalo @ Columbus 7:00
Pittsburgh @ Edmonton 9:00
The Isles' Magic Number will remain at 32 after Friday's games.
Saturday's games:Isles @ St. Louis 8:00
Philadelphia @ Boston 1:00
Ottawa @ Colorado 7:00
Columbus @ Buffalo 7:00
Florida @ Tampa Bay 7:00
Toronto @ Carolina 7:00
Pittsburgh @ Vancouver 10:00
Washington @ Los Angeles 10:30
Sunday's games:
Rangers @ Detroit 7:00
Montreal @ Edmonton 7:00
Washington @ Anaheim 9:30
Monday's games:Carolina @ Isles 7:30
Tampa Bay @ NY Rangers 7:00
Columbus @ Philadelphia 7:00
Pittsburgh @ Calgary 9:00
Boston @ Vancouver 10:00
Last 35
The Isles are now 21-9-5 in their last 35 games (since December 20th vs. Boston). In those games, the PP is 18-100 (18.0%) and the penalty kill is 13-81 (84.0%).
#1 is #1 (aka The Greiss is Right)
Thomas Greiss has started 26 of the last 31 games (15-8-4 with three shutouts) and 29 of the last 36 games (17-8-4 with three shutouts).
Weight Lifted
Isles leading scorers since Doug Weight became the Isles' interim coach:
End of the Road
Tonight marked the first time in Islander history that they have played eight consecutive road games and they still have one game remaining on this franchise-record road trip. The Isles are 5-2-1 in this stretch, despite being only even in goals (22-22) (and outscored 1-0 in the shootout):
2/21 at Red Wings (Won 3-1)
2/23 at Canadiens (Won 3-0)
2/25 at Blue Jackets (Lost 0-7)
3/2 at Stars (Won 5-4)
3/3 at Blackhawks (Lost 1-2 SO)
3/5 at Flames (Lost 2-5)
3/7 at Oilers (Won 4-1)
3/9 at Canucks (Won 4-3 OT)
3/11 at Blues
Following this stretch, the Isles will have 15 games left, including seven at home.
A Different Road
The Isles improved to 10-9-2 in their last 21 road games, after winning only 2 of their first 11 road games (2-6-3).
Four Games, Four Time Zones
This was the first of 4 games the Isles will play in 7 games in four different time zones:
Tuesday @Edm Oilers (Mountain Standard Time)
Thursday @Van Canucks (Pacific Standard Time)
Saturday @Stl Blues (Central Standard Time)
Monday Home vs Car Hurricanes (Eastern Daylight Time - clocks change at 2am Sunday)
Following Saturday's game, the Isles will have only one game remaining outside the Eastern Time Zone - in Nashville on April 4th.
Home is Where the Heart Is
The Isles have earned points in their last 11 home games (9-0-2). It's their longest point streak at home in the post-Cup era. The last time the Isles had a longer streak was in 1982; the Isles ended the 1981-82 season with a 23-game unbeaten streak (21-0-2). That streak began on January 2, 1982 and was extended to 30 games over two seasons (28-0-2).
The last time that the Isles had a point streak of at least ten home games in a single season was in 1989-90, when they also earned points in ten straight games (12/16/1989 - 1/28/1990).
Longest Point Streaks in Post -Cup Era
11 - CURRENT (9-0-2)
10 - 12/16/89-01/28/90 (9-0-1)
10 - 3/24/13-10/17/13 (7-0-3 - Multi-season Streak)
The Shots
Isles 4-10-13-1=28
Vancouver 14-16-7-2=39
The Isles are 15-7-5 when they outshoot their opponents and 3-2-0 when the shots are even but are 14-15-5 when they are outshot.
Home and Road
The Islanders are 32-23-11 overall; 20-8-6 at home and 12-15-5 on the road.
Vancouver is 28-30-9 overall; 18-10-6 at home and 10-20-3 on the road.
By Division & Conference
The Isles are 9-8-4 in Division games and 23-15-7 in games versus other divisions (9-9-3 vs. Atlantic, 6-2-2 vs. Central and 8-4-2 vs. Pacific). The Isles are 18-17-7 against the East and 14-6-4 against the West.
In the Nets
Thomas Greiss made 36 saves to improve to 23-13-4 on the season and 2-2-0 in his career against Vancouver.
Ryan Miller made 24 saves; he is 17-19-6 on the season and 18-10-3 in his career against the Isles.
Power Plays
The Isles went 0-3 on the power play, while Vancouver was 0-3.
The Isles are 14-6-6 when they score at least one power play goal and 18-17-5 when they do not. The Isles are 12-11-5 when they allow at least one power play goal and 20-12-6 when they do not.
Three is a Magic Number
The Isles are 31-5-3 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 1-18-8 when they do not.
One Goal Games
The Isles are 10-8-11 in games decided by a single goal including 5-8-0 in regulation. They are 4-7 in games decided in overtime and are 1-4 in shootouts. The Isles are 4-1 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1 goal game into a 2-goal game (including one game that they allowed a goal after scoring an empty-netter).
First Goal
The Isles are 22-6-7 when they score first and are 10-17-4 when they allow the opening goal.
Back-to-Backs
The Isles are 5-6-1 on the front-end of back-to-backs and 4-3-5 on the back-end.
The Isles will play 16 sets of back-to-backs this season. The next back-to-back set is a home-and-home series with Carolina on March 13th in Brooklyn and March 14th in Raleigh.
Tired vs. Rested
The Isles are 3-1-3 when both teams played the night before.
The Isles are 5-3-2 when they are rested and their opponents are not.
The Isles are 1-2-2 when their opponents are rested and the Isles are not.
The Isles are 23-17-4 when both teams are rested.
Ice-time Leaders
Isles: Travis Hamonic (23:53); Vancouver: Alexander Edler (25:22)
Isles record by ice-time leaders: Travis Hamonic (6-0-0), Nick Leddy (13-17-8), John Tavares (2-1-0), Johnny Boychuk (7-4-1), Dennis Seidenberg (1-1-1), Calvin de Haan (2-0-1), Tied (1-0-0).
John Tavares led the Isles forwards with 22:07 of ice-time. Isles record by Forward ice-time leaders: John Tavares (25-15-9), Josh Bailey (4-5-2), Casey Cizikas (1-0-0), Cal Clutterbuck (0-1-0), Brock Nelson (1-2-0), Shane Prince (1-0-0).
Face-offs
Isles 22, Vancouver 37 (37%).
No Islander who took multiple draws won more than he lost: Bo Horvat won 14 of 21 for Vancouver.
Face-offs by period: 1st period- 4/13; 2nd period 11/23; 3rd period 6/21; Overtime 1/2
Face-offs by strength: Even strength: 15/44; Power play 5/10; Penalty kill 2/5.
Hit Count
Isles 32, Vancouver 26. Anders Lee led the Isles with six hits; Alex Biega had five for Vancouver.
Fights
There were no fights. Season total - 11: (Hamonic 3, Mayfield 2, Strome 2, Boychuk 1, Chimera 1, deHaan 1, Hickey 1).
Blocked Shots
The Isles were credited with 11 blocked shots; three players each had two.
For the Corsi Crowd
All situations: Isles 45, Vancouver 58
5-on-5 Isles 32, Vancouver 41
5-on-5 leaders:
Isles: Anders Lee +5; Anders Lee 60%
Vancouver: Henrik Sedin +13
Ironmen
Jason Chimera - 172 (including 106 for the Capitals); Josh Bailey 133, Brock Nelson 80, Calvin deHaan 69, John Tavares 66
Scratches
Scott Mayfield, Johnny Boychuk (injured), Alan Quine (injured), Shane Prince (injured)
Injured Reserve: Casey Cizikas
Total games lost: 136
All-time Islander Leader Boards:
Games Played (skaters)
Bryan Trottier 1123 \\* 2. Denis Potvin 1060 \\* 3. Bob Nystrom 900
….
Derek King 638 \\* 10.Billy Harris and Josh Bailey 623
…
15 Garry Howatt 596 \\* 16. John Tonelli 594 \\* 17. John Tavares 576
Goals
Mike Bossy 573 \\* 2. Bryan Trottier 500 \\* 3. Denis Potvin 310
…
7. Bob Bourne 238 \\* 8. Bob Nystrom 235 \\\\ 9. John Tavares 232
…
25. Ray Ferraro 116 \\* 26.Ed Westfall, Benoit Hogue and Josh Bailey 105
Assists
Bryan Trottier 853 \\* 2. Denis Potvin 742 \\* 3. Mike Bossy 553
…
8. Stefan Persson 317 \\* 9. Bob Bourne 304 \\\10. John Tavares 296
…
16. Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo 230 \\\18. Josh Bailey 194
Points
Bryan Trottier 1353 \\* 2. Mike Bossy 1126 \\* 3. Denis Potvin 1052
…
6. Pat LaFontaine 566 \\* 7. John Tonelli 544 \\* 8. Bob Bourne 542 \\* 9. John Tavares 527
…
19. Ziggy Palffy 331 \\* 20. Josh Bailey 299
Late Heroes
The Isles have scored three times in the final two minutes of regulation to either tie or win a game:
11/25 - SJ Sharks -- Nick Leddy (19:02); tied game, but Isles lost in regulation
11/30 - Pit Penguins - Anders Lee (19:33); Game Winning goal
2/6 - Tor Maple Leafs - Andrew Ladd (18:31); Isles won in overtime
Late Losses
The Isles have been tied in the third period in 12 of their 23 regulation losses (and 23 of their 34 overall losses) but have allowed the lead goal in the final 3 minutes of regulation seven times (including one game they rallied to win):
10/18 - SJ Sharks - Joe Pavelski (17:49)
10/26 - Mtl Canadiens - Shea Weber (17:03)
10/27 - Pit Penguins - Sidney Crosby (17:35)
11/23 - LA Kings - Dwight King (17:07)
11/25 - SJ Sharks - Patrick Marleau (19:37)
2/3 - Det Red Wings - Danny DeKeyser (19:32)
2/6 - Tor Maple Leafs - Michael Nylander (17:59) (Isles won game in OT)
Better at Night
The Isles are 1-3-0 in day games (0-0-0 at home and 1-3-0 on the road) this season with two games to play:
11/25 - at SJ Sharks (lost 2-3)
1/16 - at Bos Bruins (won 4-0)
2/11 - at Ott Senators (lost 0-3)
3/5 - at Cal Flames (lost 2-5)
3/18 - vs Col Blue Jackets
4/2 - at Buf Sabres
The Isles went 3-4-2 in day games last season (3-1-1 at home and 0-3-1 on the road).
Season Series Stats
The Isles swept the season series two games to none (The Isles earned four points to Vancouver's one).
The Isles have won consecutive games in Vancouver for the first time since February 6, 1992-March 20, 1993 and have won three straight from the Canucks for the first time since they won five straight between October 1987 and October 1988.
On The Farm
Bridgeport is 36-19-2-1 on the season (and 18-4-1-0 in their last 23) as they head to Utica on Friday. Bridgeport is in 4th place in their division, even though they hold the 8th best record in the AHL.
Bracken Kearns leads Bridgeport in goals (19) and points (19-22-41). Rookie Devon Toews leads the team in assists with 30. Ryan Pulock leads the defense with 12 goals (12-21-33 in only 37 games) while Jaroslav Halak leads the team in wins (15-3-3).
Bridgeport returns home to face Albany on Saturday and Hartford at 3pm on Sunday.
Up NextSATURDAY, MARCH 11th - ISLANDERS AT ST. LOUIS-8:00PM[MSG+ (Isles Game Night begins at 7:30), WNYM 970AM, 88.7 WRHU-FM, 103.9 WRCN]
The longest road trip in Islander history finally comes to an end as the Isles visit the Blues in St. Louis. The Isles have won three straight vs. the Blues (1 in regulation, 1 in overtime and 1 in a shootout) and will look to sweep the season series from the Blues for the second straight year.
The Isles won early last season on a Mikhail Grabovski overtime goal but they have not won in regulation in St. Louis since December 6, 2005 (6-3), having gone 1-4-0 in the five games since.