5 BOROUGH SPORTS

A great day to be an Islanders fan. During seasons like these, we have to celebrate each victory like it’s life or death. Last night, after Okposo scored the shoot out goal, I almost cried of happiness. In a sold out Bell Centre with our 12th string goaltender, I’m pretty sure everyone thought the Isles had no chance. Even better, the Isles quickly answered back every time the Habs scored. Never backed down. This team has an awful record, but this has been one of my favorite Islander teams in a while. It would be easy for the team to pack it in with all these injuries, but they’re giving us a reason to watch.

And how about Michael Grabner? I think it’s clear that this guy can do a lot more than just skate fast. Grabner has found the net in five of the last six games. He’s currently tied with Tavares with a team-high 19 goals. Let’s also congratulate 22 year-old goaltender Mikko Koskinen on his first NHL win. (The guy was born a day before I was…makes me feel great about my life). Fanstastic performance last night, especially in the shootout with four quality saves.

Tonight the Isles head back to Uniondale to face the Penguins. Now I have to admit, I’m beginning to really hate Pittsburgh. Matt Cooke is one of the dirtiest players in the league, Talbot’s hits on Comeau are still vivid in my mind, and of course the Johnson-DiPietro fight. Now Brent Johnson didn’t really piss me off in that fight- it was Marc-Andre Fleury laughing afterwards. Stop smiling you stupid French Canadian. Let’s hope the Isles can get off to a strong start tonight and wipe that smile off Fleury’s face. Puck drops at 7pm.

Here’s the entire shootout from last night:

This entry was posted on February 11, 2011 at 10:36 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.