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Burnt Buffalo: Isles Win 4-1

March 15, 2014, 10:44 PM ET [5 Comments]
Dee Karl
New York Islanders Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Ted Nolan and Zenon Konopka returned to the Island tonight, but it didn't go as they would have liked. The Isles, who have a terrible home record, gave the struggling Sabres hope for a win that just didn't materialize.

John Kreiser ‏@jkreiser77nhl · 16m
#Isles with solid 4-1 win against Sabres to open four-game homestand. Held NHL's lowest-scoring team to one goal.


The lowest scoring team in the NHL - at least the Isles have someone they can look down on. Hell, at least the fans who attended finally saw a win on home ice!

Dan Savarino ‏@DanSavarino · 29m
#Isles 1st regulation home win since a 7-3 victory vs Dallas on Jan 6th. Team is now 6-7-2 on the back ends of back-to-back games.


Anders Nilsson was in net, giving Nabokov the night off. Why? Because you don't play a 38-year-old goalie on back-to-back nights.

Andy Graziano ™ ‏@tazman19 · 5m
Good solid win by the #isles tonight. The kids performed brilliantly and Nilsson was a steady calming influence
.

With the hope of playoffs put back on the shelf for another season, the next month is simply a training ground for the future Islanders.

Ryan Strome had a goal, six shots, two hits and a 64% Face-off percentage. Lee had an assist, four shots and two hits. Nelson also had an assist and five shots, three blocked shots and 50% face-off percentage. Bridgeport call-up Mike Halmo had three shots and three hits and Johan Sundstrom had one shot and 8:28 of total ice time.


Rob Gatt ‏@r_gatt · 26m
That turned out to be a rather entertaining #Isles game. I'm still excited about the future of this team.


But it was Kyle Okposo that will be the headliner in all the reports. A goal, an assist, 78% Face-off percentage and the night's first star. He has taken over the leadership role on a team 'decimated' by injury.

Michael Mannucci ‏@MikeMannucci91 · 33m
Kyle Okposo is ranked 4th in the #NHL in scoring this year. Wake up people, he's doing it without his superstar center. #Isles


While some fans participated in the attempted protest, it seem to fizzle as the Isles were putting up goals on the board and the Sabres couldn't catch up. By the time the game was over, thoguhts of a protest seemed to evaporate.


Kevin Hartmann ‏@KevinH_NYI · 39m
They are chanting " protest the protest" in the halls #isles



But that doesn't mean all fans were happy.

Ed O. ‏@ed_o_malley · 42m
Wow, someone ripped my car flag off. Who the f*** does that? #isles



Not cool people... not cool.

While Kevin Czucman hasn't made his NHL debut yet, the Isles announced today prior to the game that Adam Pelech has agreed to terms on a three-year, entry-level contract.

Pelech, 19, ranks third among Ontario Hockey League defensemen with 54 points in 59 games with the Erie Otters. The fourth-year defenseman’s nine goals and 45 assists are each career highs, while his plus-45 rating leads the Otters and ranks fifth overall in the OHL.


More kids to watch out for.


Scoring Summary:

1st Period

03:31 NYI Frans Nielsen (22) Slapshot - ASST: Anders Lee (4), Kyle Okposo (42) 1 - 0 NYI
17:24 NYI PPG - Kyle Okposo (27) Snap shot - ASST: Brock Nelson (12), Lubomir Visnovsky (6) 2 - 0 NYI

2nd Period

NONE

3rd Period

00:56 BUF PPG - Tyler Ennis (18) Wrap-around - ASST: Drew Stafford (16), Christian Ehrhoff (24) 2 - 1 NYI
01:35 NYI Ryan Strome (4) Wrist shot - ASST: Matt Martin (5), Lubomir Visnovsky (7) 3 - 1 NYI
17:47 NYI EN - Cal Clutterbuck (9) Backhand shot - ASST: Lubomir Visnovsky (8) 4 - 1 NYI
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