...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.

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.