Tuesday October 22 Vancouver Canucks 5 - New York Islanders 4 (OT)
The New York Islanders play in the oldest rink in the NHL. On Tuesday night, the Vancouver Canucks came from behind twice to capture the win in a wide-open game that looked, at times, like it was straight out of the '70s.
Rather than the usual recap, let's look at the Studs and Duds from last night's game.
John Tortorella - STUD
In his first game back in the New York market since his firing from the Rangers last summer, Torts kept things warm and fuzzy. First, he
took the high road when he met with the local media after the morning skate.
After the game, he brought two young fans to the podium with him. Watch this:
This is a far cry from the Torts who screamed at Edmonton's Keith Acton across the benches at the home opener. Has he been taking media training? Or yoga? Is this softer approach here to stay?
David Booth - DUD
With only twelve healthy forwards available, Tortorella made a bold statement when he chose to scratch Booth from the lineup against the Islanders—in favour of Andrew Alberts.
"He's not doing enough to play," said Torts simply after the game.
In 10 games, Booth has one goal, three points and just 12 shots. He has been invisible, but I still bristled at the announcement—how could Alberts possibly be an improvement?
I was proved right when the big defender stood helplessly in front of the net just 37 seconds into his first shift as rookie Brock Nelson opened the scoring for the Isles. Torts seemed to agree. Alberts spent the rest of the night stapled to the bench and didn't see another shift.
But maybe it'll be worth it. Does getting scratched for a guy who plays just one shift send an even louder message to Booth?
Daniel Sedin - STUD
As concern has mounted that Daniel Sedin won't ever get his scoring touch back, the slick Swede potted a goal and an assist and was named first star on Tuesday. Daniel needs to keep scoring, but he now has 10 points in 11 games, which isn't too bad.
Before the game, I was thinking about the twins' performance at the World Championships last spring, when they joined a downtrodden Swedish team and turned them around to win the gold medal. Yes, Henrik has been more consistent so far this season, but I'll give Daniel the benefit of the doubt for now.
Ryan Kesler - Embellisher - DUD
The Canucks have a hard time getting penalty calls to go their way. On Tuesday, the three calls against Henrik Sedin were pretty baffling. But things won't change if players like Ryan Kesler keep embellishing in an effort to try to draw more power plays.
Frans Nielsen elbowed Kesler in the third period. He deserved a penalty and he got one. But Kesler draws ire when he stays down like he's seriously injured, then pops back up to start the power play. The fans booed him mercilessly—and he deserved it.
We hadn't seen that move from Kesler this year. I was hoping it had gone with the old coaching staff. Kes, when you make the refs look bad, the whole team pays in the long run.
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On balance, I'm not sure the Canucks deserved this win, but they sure need the two points in the strong Pacific Division. They did lock it down defensively for most of the third period although, for the second straight game, they allowed a late goal. This time, they had the chance to turn on the juice in OT, where they outshot the Islanders 4-0, eventually leading to Brad Richardson's game-winner.
It's a win against a playoff team and seven points in five games on the road trip. Not bad.
One final note—I am reading your comments and appreciate the passion and enthusiasm. In one of my many other lives, I work as a DJ. Reading all your ideas is a lot like taking requests—I can't play every song next, but I do my best to give the people what they want. Thank you for reading and sharing your thoughts.
We have 71 games to go—plus playoffs. I'll be adding more new wrinkles going forward—stay tuned.
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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