Your woefully belated Isles-Flyers review

This one was a hard-fought contest at the Coliseum that ended in heartbreak for the Islanders, with the surging Flyers yanking this one out in the third period on Andreas Nodl's ricochet goal. Essentially, at this point, we know what the Isles are missing and why they're struggling (detailed below, but if you've been following along, this'll sound really familiar). Whether they play reasonably well like they did tonight or play like dog doo as they did the previous six games, these warts will always stick out until they're solved. Ultimately, I'm OK with it. Rome wasn't built in a day, and the team will still have growing pains and things of that nature.

Positives

The Islanders resembled an actual NHL team tonight. Against one of the NHL's top squads, they had prolonged possessions in the offensive zone (missing lately), good positioning on D (woefully absent), and consistent forechecking pressure (ditto). They hung right in there until the end, when a combination of a bad break and a missed assignment sunk the ship. Either way, this was an encouraging performance, all things considered.

The power play looked good again. It sagged a little bit recently, but Bobrovsky had to be borderline superhuman to keep the Isles out of the net all but one time. Good puck movement, good vision, good net front presence nearly every time. The PP had been keeping them afloat in the beginning, so it's good to see the beginnings of a resurgence in that area.

Negatives

The play at even strength wasn't much better. The stats don't lie here: the Isles are the worst even-strength team in hockey, and it's mainly because none of the players can really skate. The number of times a fast, skilled player totally burns an Islander defenseman is piling up by the game. My least favorite player (taking over for P.A. Parenteau), Mike Mottau, has been particularly guilty of this. Roasted by Claude Giroux to set up a gimme two-on-one that Jeff Carter shanked, Mottau was seen with smoke coming out of his ass after the game. His lapses are getting really, really old.

It's official, and I'll stop posting it unless it becomes particularly horrible: the Isles have nobody to clear the crease at all. The two Flyers goals came because nobody had the sense to knock anyone off the front of the net. Radek Martinek had to get physical on one shift to knock his man out of the danger zone, an uncharacteristic reaction we'll probably never see from him again. Mike Richards scored on a deflection by hanging out unmolested in front of Dwayne Roloson. On the second goal, Nodl had all day to knock the puck past a dazed Roloson when he skated into the low slot and nobody covered him.

The Isles' transition passing has been abominable. With Streit and MacDonald out, no one's able to start a rush out of the defensive zone anymore. Jack Hillen has tried his best, but he can't make up for the woes of the other five guys playing with him. Nobody can place a pass tape-to-tape, and it's been a nightmare. So many potential breakouts are stymied by a fumble or overshoot from the passer.

On the Flyers

Big, nasty, and skilled-- in other words, pretty much as advertised. As much as I like Carter, Richards, Giroux, and Timonen as players, though, the entire team's success is predicated on Pronger. Sure, Duncan Keith won the Norris last year. Sure, until he got hurt, Drew Doughty was on the rise and seemed poised to take the throne. I'm not buying either of them just yet; I'll go with the thoroughbred until he shows me that he's not the best defenseman alive and arguably the prototype for every defenseman to come after him.

In my young hockey-viewing career, Pronger is the best defenseman I've ever seen, hands down. He's materially changed the fates of four teams after they've acquired him, propelling once-underachieving squads to the Cup Finals three times (capturing jewelry once). If they genetically engineered a defenseman from scratch, Pronger would be the result.

As long as the Flyers keep trotting him out, they'll have a shot at taking the whole thing. The supporting players are definitely important, no question; but Pronger is the keystone as far as I see it. Bobrovsky also seems to be OK. If the goaltending comes through, they'll be the favorite to take the East again.

...And there's no end in sight

Six straight losses after another stinker in Ottawa tonight, and there's not much more to it than that. The team looks legitimately lethargic, and the only saving grace in this game was that they managed not to completely embarrass themselves by actually looking somewhat like an actual NHL hockey team. However, once they completed an abhorrent attempt at a five-minute major power play and allowed Sergei Gonchar to sneak into the back door for goal #1, it felt like it was over, and it was. More defensive lapses by the whole team, more bad goaltending (this time by Dwayne Roloson), more inability to bury any and all chances. Who can say when this stupor will finally end? I hope it's sometime this season.

Positives

My DVR has a fast-forward option, so I could spare myself a great deal of aggravation.

Negatives

I hate Mike Mottau again. This is probably the tenth time this season I've seen him make a pass directly to an opposing player in the danger area. How a guy could go from three games of near brilliance to ten games of ECHL-caliber defensive play is completely beyond me, but it's officially happened. His effectiveness on the PP has vanished into thin air, also.

P.A. Parenteau was the Islanders' best all-around forward. A true feat, even for this team.

The Isles are now finding new ways to lose. This time, it wasn't because they were slow, the main cause of the two straight shellackings at the hands of the Canadiens. This time, it wasn't because they weren't physical enough, the main cause of the two straight shellackings at the hands of the Flyers. This time, it wasn't because they were thoroughly outworked, the main cause of the shellacking in Raleigh. No, this time, it was because the Isles were simply watching the puck all night. What will they think of next?

There is no semblance of confidence or energy coming from any player on the roster, possibly excepting Matt Martin. The players look like they're skating in sand with a hopeless, defeatist attitude. It's highly alarming. I'm pretty sure we can no longer attribute this to Rick DiPietro being in net. This isn't the system, either; the skaters' style of play would lose them games if they were playing Lemaire Euthanasia. Is it the coach? They've played unrelentingly hard for Gordon up until now with far less talented rosters and far less hopeful situations. Is it the injuries? They seemed to deal with that fine against good teams in the first couple games of the year.

I don't know what the cause of this funk is, but it's making the Islanders pretty frustrating to watch. There's a feeling of resignation after the Isles can't convert in the first ten minutes and inevitably let up the first goal of the game to the other team, after which they seem to deflate like clockwork. Let's hope this trend discontinues before we all do insane things on IM and HF like call for the firing of the coach and GM less than 15 games into the year, declare the young core useless, and place blame on inconsequential players like Doug Weight and Trent Hunter. Wait, people have already started doing that?... I see.

On the Senators

For the most part, a perennially unimpressive team since that one time they dominated the League and got stomped in the Cup Finals. I love Dan Alfredsson, a guy who, like Eric Staal, is my type of player. However, their other headliner (Spezza) plays only one zone. Their defensive rock is good, and they added Gonchar, but those guys aren't buttressed by very much. The goalie is very good but not elite, and the supporting cast won't really blow your doors off.

Can they scratch out a playoff spot again? Sure, I guess. Are they a Cup contender? Not really. When your team is languishing in limbo like this, it's time for a drastic change. I might auction Alfredsson, Spezza, and Phillips to the highest bidder at the deadline, then take my several first-round picks and rebuild from the ground up by notching a top-three overall pick in 2012. But then again, this is the team run by the same GM who flipped a first rounder for Chris Campoli and Mike Comrie, then flipped another one for David Rundblad.

Another crack at Philly for the gang on Saturday. Cross your fingers.

Looks like I chose just the right time to come back

There aren't really any words to describe what kind of effort the Isles put together in Carolina last night. Their fifth straight loss now drops them to twelfth in the conference, and their once-strong +8 goal differential now sits at -11, third worst in the NHL. Tough to find any positives, so I'm frankly not including any. Some negatives are self-explanatory but nevertheless necessary to state for the record.

Negatives

If Rick DiPietro keeps handling the puck like this, we're all in a lot of trouble. The Isles clearly had the better of play in the first ten minutes, then DiPietro's goof with the puck-- again-- completely deflated the team. Once Corvo slapped that laser by DP, who was sorely out of position after his puckhandling gaffe, the game was over. Sergei Samsonov put the nail in the coffin with his beautiful stick work on the Hurricanes' second goal.

I understand that Ricky D's advantage is his above-average ability to play the puck, but his hesitation right now is inexcusable. There's no other way to put it. Rick has now let up three goals (by my count) simply due to giving the puck away when he wasn't even pressured. That is ludicrous. It's tangibly hurting the team.

The Isles still can't knock anyone out of the crease. Sound familiar? Bruno Gervais getting minutes again doesn't help this cause at all, but nevertheless, it's still a huge issue. It was an issue even when the team was semi-healthy at the start of the year. Wanna know why Eric Staal runs roughshod over the boys in blue and orange every time he plays them? The guy is a bull on his skates and owns his section of the ice with impunity. He's one of the top five all-around players in the NHL, and just in case you forgot, he had it all on display tonight.

Nobody's playing the body anymore. Nevermind that the team's body language in general is just horrific, the style of play has taken a serious turn for the worse. In the beginning of the season, the team was spirited for at least 45 minutes of every game, making sure they threw bodies into oncoming skaters and establishing at least some sort of physical presence. Now, the only guy doing that is Matt Martin, who really does not belong in the NHL to begin with at this stage of his career.

I really hope this isn't some sort of revolt against the coach. I'm a fan of Scott Gordon generally, but I really hope my worst fears aren't confirmed. The way the team isn't trying on D, isn't staying true to the system, and isn't playing with any sort of punch for this kind of extended stretch indicates that they're either (a) demoralized due to getting shut down four times in a row by two really good teams and the general bad luck with health, or (b) sick of Flash.

Matt Martin and Bruno Gervais need to be exchanged for Jesse Joensuu/Rhett Rakhshani and Dylan Reese. Joensuu and Rakhshani at least have the hockey sense to play the bottom six effectively. I love what Matt Martin brings to the table, but that kid's game needs a lot of work. From what I've seen of him, first NHL goal aside, his game needs a ton of work before he comes back. Meanwhile, Joensuu is polished and might actually be a better skater than Martin at this point. Alternatively, Rakhshani is great on the PK and can at least be some sort of offensive threat on the fourth line while Martin gets much-needed minutes in the AHL. Reese is flat-out better than Bruno, and I think it's high time the Isles cut the cord.

On the Canes

Eric Staal is maybe my favorite non-Islander player in the NHL. Because he plays in Carolina, he gets constantly overlooked, but as I mentioned above, I have no problem calling him one of the top five all-around players in the NHL. The Isles seem to consistently have tons of trouble with Staal and the Canes; during the Tavheduch season, the team took their worst loss in franchise history in this very building. Cam Ward always performs well against the Isles, and that trend continued once again this evening.

Carolina's a write-off every season, and I was guilty of this sentiment as well, but management there puts together a pretty good roster on a budget all the time. Staal is the headliner, Gleason is the rock, and Ward is the stalwart goaltender, and the pieces around them seem to come together nicely. This year, it's the likes of Samsonov and impressive rookie Jeff Skinner holding it down. I'm on record at IslanderMania as a Skinner supporter, and I maintain that after watching this game. He's in the mold of John Tavares, a guy who may not have the greatest athletic ability but really knows his way around the ice.

The Isles head to Ottawa next, and I don't know if you can find anyone who isn't dreading this game.

Struggling again at the Bell Centre

The Islanders can't seem to catch a break in Montréal, where they managed to make a game of it tonight despite being thoroughly outplayed most of the game. The power play continued to click magically, but even-strength was a mess once again. Is it a team regressing to the mean, or a team weary from so much travel in a grueling road schedule? Either way, it didn't help that the Isles ran into the best defensive team in hockey, and it plays in front of a goaltender who can do no wrong this season.

Positives

The power play has mostly worked to perfection. James Wisniewski was a worthwhile addition on this front, adequately replacing Mark Streit's production and supplying a badly needed right-handed shot. He's been dead-accurate with it recently. Puck possession has been really good, and all five guys on the first unit have great vision (even P.A. Parenteau). It's been keeping the Isles in games, but it's anybody's guess as to how long the power play output continues at this blistering rate.

The set plays and chemistry look much better. The deflections and tap-in attempts are very well synchronized, one of which led to a goal tonight (Tavares's deflection). The Isles have undoubtedly been working on this throughout the last couple months. This is a natural byproduct of the continuity in personnel, an element of the team for which Garth Snow deserves a lot of credit. The clear evidence that these guys know each other well and enjoy playing on this team is a real credit to what the GM is putting together.

Negatives

The Islanders were dominated at even strength again. Not nearly as mortal a sin as the abysmal performance in Florida, mainly because Montréal is an excellent team that was playing absolutely airtight defense until halfway through the third period. Carey Price was also bulletproof from the opening bell on every variety of shot except a slapper from the point. Nevertheless, it's a concern that the Isles still spent tons of time in their own zone and looked completely outmatched by Montréal in every area. This time, the shot differential accurately reflected which team had the better of play.

The team still can't clear the crease or the zone. This is the one factor that will keep the Isles from stringing together several wins in a row. Even if Mark Streit were healthy, this would still be a huge concern. We knew Mark Eaton wouldn't be that guy. We were hoping James Wisniewski was that guy, but he's not. Milan Jurcina needs to get a little more physical if he wants to fill this role. No matter who it is, someone on the Isles' blue line has to step up and shoulder these responsibilities; preferably, it'd be at least one guy on each pairing. Mottau and Jurcina are certainly capable.

Dougie Weight needs to keep the puck in the zone on the PP. This time, the mistake was fatal. Weight had a problem with this against the Rangers, when Gaborik got past him. Weight hooked Gaborik from behind and the Ranger sniper missed the penalty shot. Here, the result was a two-on-one misplayed by Wisniewski that resulted in a Travis Moen shorthanded goal. This type of gaffe has to be inexcusable going forward.

The team is giving up too many odd-man rushes. Montréal had several throughout this game, most of which were the results of forced errors. Some of that is the Canadiens' doing, but some of it is due to mental mistakes from the Islanders. Dwayne Roloson had to be very good to keep the score manageable at the end of the contest. If not for his heroics, the score could've been 7-3.

The Isles can't handle speedy teams. When the other guys are faster, the Isles have no real solution. That's something that Scott Gordon will have to work out strategically, considering they're not getting another personnel overhaul anytime soon. Missing Grabner really hurt, and guys like P.A. Parenteau and Matt Martin were really exposed.

On the Habs

I have little doubt that this is the best defensive team in all of hockey, especially given Carey Price's performance. He was spectacular tonight. The Isles couldn't break the Canadiens' defensive formation if their very season depended on it. They're in first place in that division for a very good reason: they execute their system to total perfection. The speedy forwards, particularly Cammalleri and Plekanec, gave the Isles fits all evening.

Their defense is excellent 1-6; after dropping Marc-Andre Bergeron, they imported sensational rookie P.K. Subban. Subban is such an incredible player at such a young age that it's simply astounding-- he could be the best defenseman in all of hockey by the time he hits his prime, even with Doughty, Hedman, and Larsson in the League. Hal Gill and Josh Gorges are underrated but nevertheless extremely effective. Finally, note that Montréal played suffocating D without Andrei Markov in the lineup (he's scheduled to return Friday, when these two teams play in the Coliseum).

I'll have a brief post tomorrow on Nino Niederreiter and Matt Martin before heading northwest for the weekend.

Taking their talents to South Beach... and forgetting to use them

I hope tonight isn't a reflection of the Isles possibly getting complacent with their modicum of success to begin the season. As encouraging as their start has been, this game might've been equally discouraging. Keep in mind for a second that Florida is the consensus pick to finish last in the League, and they have by far the least talent of any team in the NHL. No disrespect to David Booth, who is good, but he's their headliner. He's complementary top six on any other team. Tonight, though, he and the Panthers outworked the Islanders so badly that it was legitimately appalling. The game ended 4-3 because John Tavares has unbelievable hockey sense.

Positives

John Tavares had a hat trick.

Negatives

The Islanders were badly, badly outworked at even strength. Two heads-up power play goals from Tavares disguised what was a horrible effort 5-on-5. The Panthers spent long stretches in the Isles' zone, and their trap was excellently game-planned to totally frustrate the visiting team. They screened with impunity, absolutely owned the crease area, and peppered DiPietro with shots at every turn.

I hope you're sitting down for this bombshell: The Islanders were abjectly unable to clear the zone all night. Twice, this led to goals. The Panthers' cycling looked like Philly's during last year's playoffs. The likes of Steve Reinprecht, Rostislav Olesz, and Stephen Weiss-- all respectable players, sure, but come on-- cranked up the pressure in the Isles' zone and never let up on the gas pedal. DiPietro obviously didn't have a wonderful night, but regardless of his bad pass and squeaker on a deflection that should've been called a high-stick, he made some pretty damn good saves. The Islanders let up 30 shots to the worst offensive team in hockey, and they paid for it, plain and simple.

Somebody needs to clear the crease when the opposing team decides to screen. Nobody stepped up to the plate tonight. Granted, I'm not a coach, but why Jack Hillen is on the PK while Mike Mottau plays the PP is completely beyond me. Hillen was absolutely dominated in the crease all night-- to be expected considering his size-- and Mottau struggled to run PP2 (overshadowed by the success of PP1). Mottau, the vet with the mean streak, makes a lot more sense in the role of punishing Reinprecht when he tries to get cute in front of Ricky D; the shifty, creative Hillen makes a lot more sense in the quarterback slot on the second unit. Or maybe I'm delusional.

Rick DiPietro has to lay back with the puck. His turnover led to the first goal of the night, which made the difference. A total brain fart. He had Wisniewski unmolested right next to him, and he instead chose to try to clear it himself. A totally boneheaded decision, and I'm sure he knows it. The Rick needs to understand that he doesn't have to be a hero anymore. He's not trying to singlehandedly generate offense for the likes of Ruslan Fedotenko and Josef Vasicek; the team in front of him is more than capable of handling things by itself. Just how DP settled in with his technique and awareness, so too will he settle in with this puck decisions. Frustrating as tonight was, it's worth the wait long-term.

On the Panthers

Give the Panthers a ton of props for game-planning correctly. Tomas Vokoun came up huge tonight as well in spite of being conquered by Tavares three times. His play in the last 60 seconds was phenomenal. The Panther forwards were money, and with the support of Weaver and Wideman, they were able to generate enough offense to topple the Isles. That's a team pretty devoid of any talent whatsoever outside Booth and Weiss; DeBoer is just trying to do whatever he can to score some goals while hoping Vokoun steals a few.

I'm a little leery of Tallon's 2010 draft; I think he could've done a lot more with the picks he had. I'm not very high on Gudbranson, and though I do like Bjugstad, I'm unsure of how the rest of the picks will turn out. Florida will be able to leverage Vokoun for a king's ransom come the deadline, considering they have both Jakob Markstrom and Marc Cheverie primed to take over. That should get them a headstart with regard to talent importation and securing the #1 pick in the upcoming draft, which will end up being Adam Larsson unless either Sean Couturier or Ryan Nugent-Hopkins can cure testicular cancer, genital herpes, and the common cold.

The Isles needed this one going into the home-and-home with Montréal. They'll very certainly welcome the return of Josh Bailey when that one comes around.

Prospect Game Review: Massachusetts at Minnesota

Slow day in DC today, so I fired up the DVR and knocked this one out. I might get to another one before the day's over. The Golden Gophers barely scraped out a victory over UMass, 5-4, at home. The Isles' Aaron Ness figured prominently into this one, and I also got a chance to catch Michael Marcou again. Minnesota also sports a roster of several NHL draft picks. It was my first time seeing them since the end of last season.

Isles Prospects (2 players)

Aaron Ness (2nd round, 2008): Let me use this forum to say that Ness made the wrong decision (hockey-wise) in returning to Minnesota for his junior year. I ranked Ness #23 in the organization, partly because he hasn't done much at Minnesota to develop. He has made some substantial strides, but nothing like his college counterparts Jason Gregoire and Shane Sims. He has a world of talent, with several superior attributes: top-notch, wonderfully fluid skating; excellent decision-making in both ends; the ability to make a tape-to-tape pass; very intelligent stick work; and a good knowledge of positioning. He plays in all situations for Minnesota because he's their best defenseman by a pretty long margin-- he's on PP1, PK1, and the first pairing even-strength.

Though he's getting his minutes, Ness hasn't progressed very much because he needs to be challenged. Don't be fooled by the stats-- fire up Fox College Sports and watch him play a couple games. It doesn't look like he belongs anymore. Here's an example: Ness jumps deep into the play (as he usually does) to create a scoring chance, which ends with his teammate shooting the puck wide of the net. Normally speaking, in the pro game, Ness would be screwed; this is a situation analogous to what led to Sean Bergenheim's goal-scoring breakaway in Tampa last night. Not at the college level, though-- Ness is fast enough to skate right back into position, even as the opponent's forwards begin the rush. A two-on-one for UMass turns into a two-on-two, and Ness sticks away the cross-ice pass into the corner. Crisis averted. That play is subtle, but it signifies total domination regardless. That's just a microcosm of what he can do at this level now.

Ness has been ready for the pros since his freshman season. Garth Snow knows this, too; he's tried to sign Ness the past two off-seasons to no avail. I don't blame Ness for thinking that there's unfinished business in Gopher Land, considering they've had a ton of talent but Don Lucia's foibles behind the bench have probably been the primary reason why they haven't played in the Frozen Four. That's what drew Rhett Rakhshani back for one more year, also. Thing is, I'm not sure how badly Ness will hurt his development by hanging out in college far longer than he needs to.

Why is that? Because Ness needs to undertake a pro training program to get stronger. He gets knocked off the puck without much effort in the college ranks, and that's a problem. He can make up for it through pure skill here, but in the pros, it won't fly. When I met him at prospect camp, I'd peg him at about 165 pounds. He needs to pack on 25-35 over the next 2-3 years to hack it in the NHL. Time will tell. His bulk is the last impediment to what could be a very fruitful NHL career.

Michael Marcou (Prospect camp invite, 2009-2010): A local kid from Kings Park, Mike was invited to prospect camp this year, where I met him. His brother James, now with the San Jose Sharks' AHL team, was a standout at UMass and an Isles prospect camp regular. Jimmy earned a pro contract through stringing together a couple great seasons in Amherst, including an All-American nod. While he had an uninspiring start to his college career, Mike has improved to the point where I think he'll merit a pro deal also.

Mike is in his junior season, and he looks a lot better than he did as a scrawny freshman. He's only 5'11" but has probably put on some weight because he looks heavier than 158 nowadays. He plays a strong two-way game, and he notched a goal and an assist against a way more talented Minnesota squad. He gets primo minutes and wears the A for the Minutemen, who rely on him in every situation. He did really well on both the PP and PK, showing great positioning and stickhandling. His awareness is exceptional; he intercepted several passes, one of which led to a slapshot goal. He assisted on the goal with his own net empty to bring UMass to within one, and he triple-shifted to generate several scoring chances for the game-tying tally. Unfortunately for UMass, it wasn't to be.

Nevertheless, I walked away very, very impressed with this kid. Look for him to come back to Isles prospect camp in the summer, where I think he's gonna get a second look. Pro contract? Way too tough to say, especially if he's still less than 180 pounds, which simply won't cut it. But he's got the solid two-way game to make it in the AHL if he bulks up. He's one to keep an eye on.

Other Players

Cade Fairchild (4th round, 2007, St. Louis): Fairchild's another typical St. Louis draft pick as far as defensemen go, very strong in the offensive zone and simply adequate in his own. He follows in the footsteps of Pietrangelo, Rundblad, Cundari, Warsofsky, and others of that ilk. He's a senior now, and I see him getting signed once the smoke clears. He runs a PP particularly well.

Zach Budish (2nd round, 2009, Nashville): Our very own Anders Lee's teammate from Edina High School. One of my favorite players from the '09 Draft before it even happened, and he's done nothing to change that impression. He's a champ in front of the net, helping out on two Minnesota goals by eating up the crease area. He's a conscientious backchecker and makes it a point to hit people. He's a bit of a slow skater, but I think he'll be just fine once he hits the pros.

Jay Barriball (7th round, 2006, San Jose): Scored a natural hat trick in this game that was mostly created through the work of his teammates. Nice finisher, though. He's captain of the team, playing his fifth season because he got hurt last year. Probably in line for an ELC.

Nick Bjugstad (1st round, 2010, Florida): Good player. Noticeably large and fast. Very creative offensively. Only a freshman, so he's got a lot more in store for him. Let's hope his development doesn't go along the same trajectory as, say, that of Jordan Schroeder. Remarkably similar to fellow Minnesota first-rounder Brock Nelson (Isles' property).

Jacob Cepis (Undrafted senior): Nobody has his rights, probably because he's very undersized. Good spark plug, though. He might not ever make it because he's only 5'7", but after two USHL seasons, two years at Bowling Green, and another year at Minnesota, he enters his senior year a smart and accomplished player who makes sure he distinguishes himself every time out there. Might get a deal somewhere if he has another good season.

Prospect Game Review: Manitoba at North Dakota

Any of you who know my posts from Islander Mania should already be familiar with my game reviews, which I've been writing up for a couple years now. This will be the one that kicks off the reviews for the blog, which will see a lot of these over its lifetime. Tonight, it's a contest that involves not one, but two Isles prospects: Jason Gregoire and Brock Nelson, both of North Dakota. The two players are at different points in their college careers; Nelson's a freshman trying to find his niche, whereas Gregoire is a returning junior who led the team in scoring last season and figures to be the leader of the team.

North Dakota took this one 5-2, an easy win for them in their own building as they tune up for a difficult conference schedule. Manitoba found themselves outclassed, mainly because North Dakota had the superior talent on the ice.

Isles Prospects (2 players)

Jason Gregoire (3rd round, 2007): I went so long without seeing him play that I forgot how damn good he actually is. My ranking of #15 was simply far too low for him, even in a system with this kind of depth; by the end of this season, he could crack the top five. Gregoire factored into the first three Sioux goals, scoring the second on a beautiful setup from Derek Forbort (more on him later). He had two assists as well, and his domination was not limited to statistics. He was tenacious on the forecheck, great on the PK, and making the smart play every time he had the opportunity. With and without the puck, he had a tremendous game. He was awesome last season, and he's only getting better. He was named Player of the Game by the Sioux's broadcasting network afterward, and for good reason.

As for Gregoire's future, I originally had him pegged as third line type. I think I underestimated him by a pretty long margin. Forward-looking as this may be, I think Gregoire can become the perfect complement to a guy like Tavares: he's defensively responsible, his improved skating makes him a pretty speedy player, and he has goal-scorer's hands. He's always in the right place at the right time, and he's willing to both (a) go to the dirty areas and (b) take the hit to get a quality shot on net. Keep an eye on him moving forward-- he's the real thing. He's been a cinch for an ELC since his freshman year, but the only question now is when.

Brock Nelson (1st round, 2010): This is my first full-game viewing experience of Brocko, the Isles' second first-round pick this past draft who I ranked #23 overall in the organization. I got a glimpse of his repertoire at prospect camp in July, and we had a pretty interesting conversation about his upcoming start at UND. Brock had a few good moments this game, but he's a freshman getting 4th line minutes, so there's not much to judge on right now. He had an assist in this one, a secondary helper on a power-play goal. He's already great on the forecheck, a product of his really good skating for his size. He's noticeably larger than everyone else on the ice, even Forbort. Considering he gets minimal time on special teams, it was tough to get a feel for his ability to do anything other than forecheck and backcheck. I'll have an eye on his development as the season moves forward.

Other Players

Brad Malone (4th round, 2007, Colorado): He's improved slowly but steadily for all three years I've seen him play at UND. He's a senior now, and he'll probably get signed by Colorado. He's Ryan Malone's cousin and plays with a pretty similar style. He had a very good-looking goal on a beautiful feed from Matt Frattin (more on him later).

Derek Forbort (1st round, 2010, Los Angeles): A total beast. Forbort was my second-favorite defenseman from this past draft behind the incomparable Cam Fowler, and he confirmed why this evening. He was all over the place, factoring into three UND goals while dominating in his own end against Manitoba. He has incredible skating skills for his size, and his puckhandling and vision are off the charts. Keep in mind that he's only a freshman, and he'll be playing on the same blue line with Drew Doughty within two years. Scary thought.

Ben Blood (4th round, 2007, Ottawa): OK player, but I'm not sure if he's NHL material. Contributes in all situations as far as I saw, but not particularly noticeable. Ottawa may or may not sign him to an ELC depending on their organizational depth. This is my third year viewing Blood, who's now a senior, and he's only made a little bit of progression since the first time I saw him. It's possible that he could make the jump to the AHL successfully, but that'll be for the Senators to judge.

Matt Frattin (4th round, 2007, Toronto): I have to admit that Toronto has done a good job in the later rounds recently. Jerry D'Amigo was a money pickup for them in the sixth round, and this kid Frattin looks like a find as well. He plays the point on PP1 for UND, where he thrives, and he also does really well as a playmaking winger in other situations. He's very speedy, and he's always a threat to create something on offense when he enters the zone. He's come a long way since his sophomore year, and I think Toronto will be happy to add him to the system after the year is up.

So let's talk about how good Josh Bailey is.

In spite of the warts all over this game, you have to be satisfied with the pair of balls on this Isles team. Two rousing comebacks in the third, overcoming some serious mistake-filled hockey in the first couple periods. It could've been way better, but this is as satisfying a win as I could remember. Despite the result, there are probably more negative things to take away from this game than positive things, but as you all know, I like focusing on the upside first.

Josh Bailey has become an unbelievable player almost overnight. The mitigating arguments: yes, this is one game; yes, the opponents are a little below par; yes, he's only 21; yes, he has not peaked. Fine. We've been watching his upward trajectory since he was an overmatched, fresh-faced teenager skating around on the third line for a last-place team. He made progress during that lost season, but it was subtle and slow. The next season saw him have a bit of a coming-out party in the middle of the year, stringing together multi-point games for awhile to give us a glimpse of what was to come. By the end of the year, he was noticeably affecting games, but sometimes missing the scoresheet.

These first two games of this season were entirely different, though. It's not just that Bailey has four points so far. If anything, his all-zone contributions and play without the puck have been even better than some of the spectacular plays he's made to score those points. He's forechecking and backchecking with great tenacity, he's throwing hits and winning battles in the corners, and his stick work is better than ever. Top all that off with a great sense of what to do in front of the net, and you've got yourself a pretty good NHL player.

For the record, this is all coming at the center position, where I didn't expect to see him again until two years from now. His faceoffs are still below average, but with the work this guy is putting in, I'm sure that'll eventually change. In the meantime, he's carried the team to three points almost by himself.

Is Blake Comeau really going to spell Kyle Okposo until December? Other than a few minor miscues, Comeau did everything Okposo normally does today. His forechecking is really on point, plus he's making some great defensive plays. It seems like things have officially clicked for him; he knows exactly how to translate his skill set to high-level production.

Comeau is a great example of the type of patience we need to show when young guys clearly have something to offer but aren't quite putting it together. For every Sean Bergenheim, who can't get it together mentally in time to salvage his career, there will be a Blake Comeau. At one time, I was laughed at for calling Comeau a referendum on Todd Bertuzzi. Though Comeau will probably never see 70 points in a season, it's looking more and more like Comeau can mature into a top six all-around power forward. Keep your eyes on this kid, because as I mentioned before, he's the most important forward until Okposo returns.

Andy MacDonald is officially the #1 defenseman until Mark Streit returns. This guy just continues to be steady-as-she-goes in his own end, nullifying oncoming attackers in all sorts of situations. This is my official campaign to get this guy more minutes, considering I'm most comfortable when MacDonald and (begrudgingly) Mike Mottau are on the ice (more on him later). He's showing great stick work and body positioning, and he seems to have no problem taking on the opponent's best players.

My hate for Mike Mottau wanes by the day. A couple minor goofs from him, but other than that, he was sensational. As a last-minute pickup, he's been a godsend so far. Not only is he tough as nails, but he looks right at home in this system in all three zones. He's been sneaky-good on the power play, and he picked up two assists this afternoon.

We're seeing a new and improved Radek Martinek. My pre-season observations told me that Radek was putting a different emphasis on being physical and being offensively-minded this year. So far, he's shown exactly that. He's put a couple good-looking wrist shots on goal, and he was even trying his best to bring the nasty today. When he was faced with a physical challenge, he'd normally back down; these past two games, he's snarled back at the antagonist and answered in kind. Very pleasant to see that this guy's finally playing with a chip on his shoulder. He doesn't look nearly as scared or tentative anymore.

There were, of course, big negatives from this game.

The sloppiness must cease! The own-zone turnovers were horrific, and the neutral-zone turnovers were equally cringe-worthy. There are a lot of new players trying to learn the system, which probably accounts for some of this stuff, but a large portion of these gaffes have come unforced. James Wisniewski and P.A. Parenteau were the big culprits tonight. I'm giving them a couple more games to get it together, but the two of them have now put together two consecutive really bad games in the defensive and neutral zones. A lot of their screw-ups were just inexcusable.

On a team level, a second bench minor in as many games proved extremely costly. Those types of mental mistakes can't continue happening. Last year, the Isles were among the most disciplined teams in the NHL. That needs to continue if they want to stay afloat until Okposo comes back into the fold.

Ricky D must continue adjusting. He gave up two very soft goals today. I understand he's getting back in the groove when it comes to fighting through screens and moving laterally, but as I mentioned two days ago, he can't be weighing down the team while working out the kinks. He made some great, great saves, but the day when he's fully re-adjusted to the NHL game and playing close to how he used to can't come soon enough.

I think El Niño can hold his own, but he needs to show more if he's gonna stay. Niederreiter's been treading water so far and having some nice moments here and there, but we knew he'd be able to grind at this level already. The question is whether he can do something more. Otherwise, the Isles have a guy (Joensuu) who can do all these things in his place while Nino logs key development time in Portland and at the WJC.

In other news, I'm gonna try to get to some college games this week. I have Minnesota and North Dakota on DVR. Comcast sucks, so I missed UNH and Blake Kessel. On a final note, I'm sticking to what I said about Stepan: good player, but he's up too early. I think he'll definitely be a long-term second-line center, but expect the rest of the year for him to continue sort of like Bailey's first season on the Isles.

Josh Bailey is a Man's Man (and Other Observations)

In typical Islanders fashion, game one was an absolute heartbreaker, with the Isles clawing back from being down two goals in the third period only to lose in the shootout. Fun game to watch, though the mental mistakes were very ugly. Turnovers led to two goals, DiPietro leaked another, and Jurcina's failure to clear Morrow from the front of the net surrendered the third. On the positive side, the team was flying all night and overcame the early loss of John Tavares to a mild concussion. Couple key points to take from this game.

Josh Bailey is a man's man. The kid had his best game as an Islander, registering two assists and the only positive rating (+1) on the whole team. He was a man possessed, possibly the best player on the ice for either side. When Tavares went down, he slid into the #1 center role seamlessly. That's something I didn't expect out of him for another two years, but he's well on his way to assuming the role without an issue. I've always felt he'd be capable of 70 point seasons down the road, and he showed why tonight.

James Wisniewski is up to the task. A couple pylon moments from him, but those were far overshadowed by the gorgeous slapshot goal and thunderous hit on Jamie Benn in retaliation for the Tavares cheap shot from Burish. Really good showing from this guy tonight. I have faith that he can spell Streit offensively.

Blake Comeau is ready to take the next step over a full year. A crucial thing, as I have detailed previously, since Comeau will be relied on for everything Okposo used to do at the wing position. He filled in pretty admirably tonight, chipping in a key goal and throwing his weight around with abandon. He also did very well on the penalty kill.

Andy MacDonald looks like he's for real. Did pretty well for himself tonight, logging 23-and-a-half rock-solid minutes. Let's watch his progress over the next few games and see if he solidifies the notion that he'll be taking over for Streit on the defensive side of things.

I don't hate Mike Mottau... as much. When Mottau laid out Frans Nielsen two years ago, "seething hatred" was the best phrase I could use to describe my feelings towards him. Now that he's in an Isles uni, I guess I'll have to get used to seeing him out there every night. He did well in this game, logging a healthy amount of minutes in a system he's had about two weeks to learn.

And now for the negative...

P.A. Parenteau doesn't look like an NHL player. He'll need to be way, way better than this if he wants to stick, especially on the power play. Ugly game from him tonight.

Mark Eaton needs to cut down on the pylon moments. Pens fans were talking about how he wasn't very physical, and they weren't kidding. I hope he gets steadier as the season progresses, because he didn't look like a very good fit out there tonight.

Nino Niederreiter shouldn't be doing this over a full season. I'd rather have Jesse Joensuu do what he's assigned to be doing right now. I've been saying that from jump street. Niederreiter's holding his own, but he frankly doesn't look like he belongs. Juniors is the best route for him.

Rick DiPietro needs to get back in the swing of things. Had his ups and downs tonight. Two goals weren't his fault, two were. If he's gonna stay healthy and get into games, Ricky needs to sharpen up his lateral movement and his reflexes. I think the guy deserves 10 or so games to get his legs back under him before we all call for his head, but the Isles can't afford to deal with him shaking off the rust when they're going to be jockeying for position in this division quite early.

One more thing, before we all freak out...

Derek Stepan still has a long way to go. Rangers fans will undoubtedly proclaim the kid to be the next Guy Carbonneau or something, but it's an 82-game season, and he's still only 18. An auspicious start to his career for sure, but I don't see him being a goal scorer by trade. I wrote on IslanderMania quite awhile ago that I thought Stepan was a no-doubter for a top six role. That obviously hasn't changed. However, I also wrote that he doesn't have the hands to score 30 in the NHL. I still believe that, hat trick be damned. Stepan comes off to me more like a mini-Brad Richards. Good player for sure, but let's not get ourselves carried away over one performance.