5 BOROUGH SPORTS

So just one night after we all witnessed the Knicks have their worst performance of the year, the Islanders had their best. This was one of those games where everything clicked. The Tavares-Paranteau-Moloson line was unbelievable. Tavares had the hat trick but this line put pressure on Buffalo all game. Nothing was better than seeing DiPietro back in goal. Every time he gets injured, I always have a feeling he’s done for the year. So whenever he returns to the net, I breathe a sigh of relief.

Tavares has 19 points in the last 15 games

It was easy to think that the Isles were going to head back into one of their slumps after weak performances against the Blackhawks and the woeful Senators. But this team is fighting. It’s awesome seeing Tavares show so much emotion out there. He’s proving to us that he’s one tough hockey player. If he had a couple more breaks, he would’ve had five goals this game. He has 19 points (10 goals, 9 assists) in the past 15 games. Any chance he could get a last-minute roster spot for the All-Star Game? Great defensive effort as well. Travis Hamonic, Andy McDonald, and Radek Martinek played fantastic hockey. Hamonic and McDonald are proving to us that they can someday be all-pro defensemen.

It also looks like Nathan Lawson will be sent back to Bridgeport, given DiPietro is back in goal. Not sure if anyone disagrees with me, but I think Lawson needs some more time in the minors. For the second Martin Luther King Day in a row, the Islanders will take on the Devils at home Monday afternoon.

This entry was posted on January 16, 2011 at 2:32 am and is filed under Islanders. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.