LIVEBLOG: Caps at Islanders

We're doing something a little different and a little more fun in the Blog Box -- hey, we gotta jazz things up somehow -- with a multi-blogger live blog from the Coliseum.

Check it out and chime in: (Sorry about the window size - we're working on it!)



OK, so Dee ended the live blog (by accident) early just as things got interesting - so it's 4-3 Caps, 6 1/2 minutes left, 4 on 4.

So we'll do it the old-fashioned way.

Park breaks in, tries to deke - nothing. But then Weight gets pulled down and the Isles are on the PP with 4:19 left, trailing by one.

Isles working the zone - PP runs out ... but then STREIT with the wrister from the point and it's a TIE GAME! Streit shoots it between the legs of a defender with Sim in front, and Sim deflects it into the net. Giggedy Giggedy indeed!

Last two minutes ... Nice work by Bergy keeping it in - blast by Guerin stopped by Johnson with 1:01. A frenzy!

Hilbert with a blocked shot and we're going to OVERtime!

BTW, I'm the only blogger in the Box still online. And I'll stay here til the very end, be it sweet or bitter. That's how I roll.

Pretty even so far in the OT but the Isles need to make sure someone is on Ovetchkin like a blazer.

Great shot by Hunter, snared by Johnson with 1:10 left.

OHHHHH - Alex off the POST! Walks in -- WHAT??

And 10.7 seconds left, Isles don't clear - Alex O buries it in the top left corner. Isles LOSE.

Oh, the pain. JUST CLEAR THE PUCK!!!!!!

No more words.

Game recap: Islanders 3, Capitals 2 (OT)

OK, so they only scored three again, and they lost the lead with less than a minute to play in regulation, but the Islanders still prevailed and sent the home crowd to the Christmas break happy with a 3-2 overtime win.

What you have to like about this team is that there are so many players that you want to root for. Take Richard Park. He never takes a shift off and he does pretty much whatever Ted Nolan asks him to. And with every shift he's taken on more responsibility, and is now much more than a fourth-liner and penalty killer. He played up with Mike Comrie and Bill Guerin tonight, and the line put in two of the Isles' three goals.

Park's game-winner came off a faceoff win -- again, the little things -- and was aided by the fact that Caps defenseman Mike Green accidentally got hit in the face by teammate Jeff Schultz as Park worked the puck. With Green down behind the net, Park took a wrister from the left circle and found the five-hole, igniting the pandemonium.

Miro Satan, as he did the night before, got the Isles up 1-0 with a second-period wrister. The Caps evened the score and it was 1-1 late in the third when Chris Campoli fired a blast at Olaf Kolzig. Bill Guerin was there for the rebound -- he's coming around again -- with what looked to be the game-winner. But Washington stunned the house when, with Kolzig pulled, the dangerous Alex Ovetchkin beat Rick DiPietro, forcing OT.

Credit Radek Martinek and the Islanders' defense for not only limiting Ovetchkin all night, the way they did against Sidney Crosby the night before, but for holding the Caps to just 14 shots on goal. Kudos also to Chris Botta, who was honored for 20 years with the team. Nice work, Chris -- you've been great to us bloggers and the Isles are lucky to have you.

In other news, an interesting take on the Kyle Okposo situation in the New York Times. I couldn't agree more.

And Nolan had extra reason to smile Saturday night when son Brandon made his NHL debut for the Carolina Hurricanes, where of course he plays for ex-Isles coach Peter Laviolette. Brandon got an assist on Carolina's first goal in its 4-1 victory.

So with no games until after Christmas Day, allow Still Drivin' to wish a Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night.

Game recap: Isles 5, Caps 2

Now THAT was a nice win.

On the road, facing adversity in the third period in the guise of an overturned goal that preceded the loss of a two-goal lead, the Islanders buckled down and rallied with three goals while holding the Capitals without a shot over the final nine minutes of play. Bill Guerin scored a hat trick for his first three goals as an Islander, and the Isles scored three times on the power play. Like Schoolhouse Rock taught us: Three is a magic number.

How many times do you see something like a video replay go against a team, and then the momentum swings the other way? Well, this time the Islanders were able to regain that momentum after the Caps tied the score at 2-2, thanks to Bryan Berard's shot from the point. That's two goals for Berard - both of the game-winning variety. That's a move that's paying dividends.

Guerin also showed what kind of scorer he could be, adding to his six assists with his trio of tallies. His slapper made it 3-2 and then he took a nice pass from Comrie and flicked a wrister from the left circle to clinch it.

So many good things tonight -- Campoli continues to impress, particularly with his offensive instincts, with four (count em - four!) assists. Bergenheim also scored with assists from Vasicek and Satan -- that line has looked good so far, and the added scoring depth is crucial if this team is to succeed. And DiPietro was solid once again, making several big stops, including one on Ovechkin after the Caps drew within one.

Who? Ovechkin? Was he even on the ice? Exactly. VERY nice win.

Game recap: Caps 2, Islanders 1

Ted Nolan said it best after the game, noting that while the Islanders outshot the Capitals Monday, 31-12, they didn't have nearly that many quality chances. "Sometimes the shots aren't indicative of the play," Nolan said. "We really only had five or six good chances. The effort was there, but we had a couple of costly turnovers that went in."

Consider it a lesson learned on Kid's Opening Day, which brought with it much pomp, circumstance and energy. This was an eminently winnable game. Had the Islanders taken some more chances and taken it to the Capitals, and played smarter in the offensive zone, they could easily be 3-0. But they let Olaf Kolzig off easy. This was one of those games where you look at the scoreboard and realize, "This game is tied?" Because it felt as if the Islanders had the game in hand from the get-go.

That all changed midway through the third when Brooks Laich scored to give the Caps a 2-1 lead. The Islanders had some good changes in the final minutes but couldn't get the equalizer. New York was also 0-for-4 on the power play and failed to score on a 5-on-3 in the second period. On the plus side of the special teams ledger, the penalty kill was a perfect 6-for-6, continuing its outstanding start.

Richard Park scored the only goal for the Isles, marking the signing of his two-year contract extension in style.

So maybe this was a good loss, if there is such a thing. There will be no room for complacency Wednesday night when the Rangers come to Uniondale. Remarkably, tickets are still available. That link should only be used by Islanders fans, by the way.

Sadly, Sean Avery will not play as he is out 4-6 weeks with a separated shoulder, suffered in the loss to Ottawa on a hit by Chris Neil. And yes, the hit was clean.

Finally, best wishes go out to Jason Blake, who is reported to have a rare but treatable form of leukemia. The outlook is good, however, so here's hoping he has many more years in the NHL.