A ten game losing streak is a killer. That's 12% of the season. Cappy should already be gone.
- JimmyP

Very true. It's not ok this team is not ready to start the season. Cappy cannot wait for the wheels to fall off before playing the right system.

I don't think you'll find anyone here who thinks he should have held onto his job, or should hold onto it now. He's still not making adjustments, the team still starts slow and he's still making questionable roster decisions. The only difference right now is that we're winning rather than losing.

I don't think you'll find anyone here who thinks he should have held onto his job, or should hold onto it now. He's still not making adjustments, the team still starts slow and he's still making questionable roster decisions. The only difference right now is that we're winning rather than losing.
- Isles_since_6

and winning cures everything

XxNYIxX

and winning cures everything

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

Fire capuano, fire snow, and trade amac

Fire capuano, fire snow, and trade amac
- Cptmjl

if we get a good return I say yes trade him.....other teams broadcasts always have good things to say about him so we may do well if the teams feel same way. I still think with the minutes he puts in and the blocked shots he makes he has a place with the team....you put him on any other team with strong d-men as a 2nd 3rd pairing and he will excel. Guess it all comes down the dollars and/or the return as with everyone else. de Hann is our guy. If Viz could get back our PP would only get better.....cheers

if we get a good return I say yes trade him.....other teams broadcasts always have good things to say about him so we may do well if the teams feel same way. I still think with the minutes he puts in and the blocked shots he makes he has a place with the team....you put him on any other team with strong d-men as a 2nd 3rd pairing and he will excel. Guess it all comes down the dollars and/or the return as with everyone else. de Hann is our guy. If Viz could get back our PP would only get better.....cheers
- Nolanders

Amac blows no matter how many minutes he plays. If other teans love him so much then lets trade him for something. Anything, who cares? Ill believe all these other teams coveting amac when I see it in the form of a return on a trade until then ill say its BS. Hes not a good defenseman.

Florida game feels like a trap game. Have a bad feeling about it.
- Isles_since_6

Let's be positive...a win on Tuesday and then on to Tampa...

Amac blows no matter how many minutes he plays. If other teans love him so much then lets trade him for something. Anything, who cares? Ill believe all these other teams coveting amac when I see it in the form of a return on a trade until then ill say its BS. Hes not a good defenseman.
- Cptmjl

yeah I was saying if they give good return then trade him for sure.....and I'm not sold on the minutes he plays, I was saying as a 2nd 3rd he would be ok (less minutes) on any other team.....be happy bro, we are winning and he only had 2 turnovers last night

Let's be positive...a win on Tuesday and then on to Tampa...
- kear20

They get over 500 and I'll be positive, but right now we're still in a major hole and a couple losses would undo all of this.

yeah I was saying if they give good return then trade him for sure.....and I'm not sold on the minutes he plays, I was saying as a 2nd 3rd he would be ok (less minutes) on any other team.....be happy bro, we are winning and he only had 2 turnovers last night
- Nolanders

Oh, im happy but I don't forget about where and who the problems are once we start winning. A Mac is one of the problems. He shouldn't be resigned. Let him walk or trade him and get something back. I dont care as long as hes not wearing an islanders sweater next season. Guys gotta go.

They get over 500 and I'll be positive, but right now we're still in a major hole and a couple losses would undo all of this.
- Isles_since_6

Yep. Im happy with how they've been playing but this is a big hole and with other teams playing good in our division now they are going to have to stay at this pace for the rest of the season to have a chance. I believe a little more with each win but its a big hilll to have to climb.

Very true. It's not ok this team is not ready to start the season. Cappy cannot wait for the wheels to fall off before playing the right system.
- ses111

This is the problem- that other crap doesn't work, never has worked, never will work at the professional level, period. Why anyone would even experiment with that is just silly. I read Bobby Orr's book, and he repeatedly said how glad he was that his coaches let him do what he wanted with the puck instead of dumping it down the ice, and all I kept thinking the whole time was, "yes, but you're BOBBY ORR." NO ONE ELSE could play that way, before or since, because they simply aren't good enough.....and even Bobby Orr couldn't play that way nowadays, because he wouldn't be by far the fastest guy on the ice like he was back then. The idea of what an "athlete" amounts to has been ratcheted way up since the days when the players used to go work at the GM plant during the summer to make extra money.

This team still has flashes of that nonsense, as in the first period last night. I don't know who had the brilliant idea to pass that puck to Nelson along the boards in the first period, but they need to lose that thought, permanently. MacDonald (again) made a GLARING mistake that really should have ended up in his own net; he needs to send all of our goalies Christmas presents, because without them, he'd be -60, instead of -15, or whatever he is. Luckily, they remembered how to play hockey in the locker room between periods one and two.

The positive, as I said before, is that IF they play defense properly, they will win more games than they lose, even with what mostly amounts to a sorry bunch on the back end- and de Haan has improved that considerably since he has gotten comfortable at the top level. He's definitely the most talented defenseman they have, which he should be, having been a first round pick. They'll have some more talent here in a couple of years, but for now, they're just going to have to over emphasize defense, and like it...as we can see from the last few games, it doesn't really hurt the offense- they get their chances anyway.

PS- I think Grabner's problem on breakaways is that he's too fast for himself- he gets the puck too far in front of him, and then fails to make any move until he's too close to the goalie to have it do any good. Someone needs to tell him to start the deke at the top of the slot- it might help.

This is the problem- that other crap doesn't work, never has worked, never will work at the professional level, period. Why anyone would even experiment with that is just silly. I read Bobby Orr's book, and he repeatedly said how glad he was that his coaches let him do what he wanted with the puck instead of dumping it down the ice, and all I kept thinking the whole time was, "yes, but you're BOBBY ORR." NO ONE ELSE could play that way, before or since, because they simply aren't good enough.....and even Bobby Orr couldn't play that way nowadays, because he wouldn't be by far the fastest guy on the ice like he was back then. The idea of what an "athlete" amounts to has been ratcheted way up since the days when the players used to go work at the GM plant during the summer to make extra money.

This team still has flashes of that nonsense, as in the first period last night. I don't know who had the brilliant idea to pass that puck to Nelson along the boards in the first period, but they need to lose that thought, permanently. MacDonald (again) made a GLARING mistake that really should have ended up in his own net; he needs to send all of our goalies Christmas presents, because without them, he'd be -60, instead of -15, or whatever he is. Luckily, they remembered how to play hockey in the locker room between periods one and two.

The positive, as I said before, is that IF they play defense properly, they will win more games than they lose, even with what mostly amounts to a sorry bunch on the back end- and de Haan has improved that considerably since he has gotten comfortable at the top level. He's definitely the most talented defenseman they have, which he should be, having been a first round pick. They'll have some more talent here in a couple of years, but for now, they're just going to have to over emphasize defense, and like it...as we can see from the last few games, it doesn't really hurt the offense- they get their chances anyway.

PS- I think Grabner's problem on breakaways is that he's too fast for himself- he gets the puck too far in front of him, and then fails to make any move until he's too close to the goalie to have it do any good. Someone needs to tell him to start the deke at the top of the slot- it might help.
- dcb1

Exactly Right! Bobby Orr was special and could play that style. There is no excuse for Cappy and these players to wake up and play the right way after they dug a whole for themselves. It should be playoffs or goodbye for Cappy. He needs to pay for these lousy starts. Garth has done a good job in adding good young talent, but he hurts the team by having this lousy coach. I agree as well about Grabner. You could see he was too close to the goalie when he made his move.

They get over 500 and I'll be positive, but right now we're still in a major hole and a couple losses would undo all of this.
- Isles_since_6

.500 won't do it. Because of the three point games playing .500 is below average. Currently there have been 2.24 points issued per NHL game. So a team would need to be .562 to be the NHL version of even. Detroit and Philly have the wild card spots and both teams have 4 more wins than loses. Extrapolating the current numbers, a team in the east will need at least 89 points to squeak in. That means the Isles would need 47 points in the next 35 games. They would have to win 21+ games to even have a shot. Does anyone believe this team will go 22-10-3?

Yep. Im happy with how they've been playing but this is a big hole and with other teams playing good in our division now they are going to have to stay at this pace for the rest of the season to have a chance. I believe a little more with each win but its a big hilll to have to climb.
- Cptmjl

As great as it is the team is playing soo well now, I'm pissed they got off to a brutal start. It's one thing if it never happens, but to happen all the time burns me.

Here's a pretty cool hockey moment for those who haven't seen it.

http://sports.yahoo.com/b...ceoff-142256840--nhl.html

.500 won't do it. Because of the three point games playing .500 is below average. Currently there have been 2.24 points issued per NHL game. So a team would need to be .562 to be the NHL version of even. Detroit and Philly have the wild card spots and both teams have 4 more wins than loses. Extrapolating the current numbers, a team in the east will need at least 89 points to squeak in. That means the Isles would need 47 points in the next 35 games. They would have to win 21+ games to even have a shot. Does anyone believe this team will go 22-10-3?
- JimmyP

Not totally out of the question if they can maintain their current play, but unlikely. I prefer to simplify it and simply say, can they finish 4 wins better than the teams in front of them. I'd say 'yes', but there are so many variables involved, like injuries etc..

Not totally out of the question if they can maintain their current play, but unlikely. I prefer to simplify it and simply say, can they finish 4 wins better than the teams in front of them. I'd say 'yes', but there are so many variables involved, like injuries etc..
- keaner17

I'm not saying it couldn't happen, but it's a long shot. About 91 points has been the cut off for the last playoff spot since they changed the scoring system. If they do go on a tear and make it in they will have played as well as any team this year. I don't think anyone would want to face them if they came into the playoffs that hot.

To go back to ses111's point if they didn't drop the 10 in a row and instead went 5-5 they would have 10 more points. That puts them at 53 points and in the playoff race. They would likely only need 37 more points over 35 games to stay in the race. They can't afford to have these big losing streaks every year.

what i find very interesting is that knowing that the islanders have recently shown their comeback ability, some of the posts here are so negative without letting the game play out.

good times.

fwiw, its still going to be incredibly difficult to get into the playoffs. as hot as they have been, they havent gained much ground...still 7 points back and need to play BETTER or at least this level of play. gonna be real difficult.

also the pass by dehaan was obviously ridiculous but whats getting forgotten is the entry from vanek to dehaan, also a ridiculous pass.

what i find very interesting is that knowing that the islanders have recently shown their comeback ability, some of the posts here are so negative without letting the game play out.

good times.

fwiw, its still going to be incredibly difficult to get into the playoffs. as hot as they have been, they havent gained much ground...still 7 points back and need to play BETTER or at least this level of play. gonna be real difficult.

also the pass by dehaan was obviously ridiculous but whats getting forgotten is the entry from vanek to dehaan, also a ridiculous pass.
- LetsGoIsles

This, to me was the profound difference between having a one dimensional guy like Moulson on that wing and a multi faceted elite player like a Vanek. The amount of space it provides to JT creates an absolute nightmare for other teams. Furthermore, it also allows Okposo to get off clean shots without having players in his face regularly.
Even if we don't manage to resign Vanek, the Isles know they have to replace him with a guy who can do a little bit of everything rather than one who put that pressure on JT and his RW.

I'm not saying it couldn't happen, but it's a long shot. About 91 points has been the cut off for the last playoff spot since they changed the scoring system. If they do go on a tear and make it in they will have played as well as any team this year. I don't think anyone would want to face them if they came into the playoffs that hot.

To go back to ses111's point if they didn't drop the 10 in a row and instead went 5-5 they would have 10 more points. That puts them at 53 points and in the playoff race. They would likely only need 37 more points over 35 games to stay in the race. They can't afford to have these big losing streaks every year.
- JimmyP

Agreed. We've seen this happen a few times now, where it's too much too late. It's a hell of a deep hole and we can only hope a few of the teams ahead of us are in for a losing streak.

.500 won't do it. Because of the three point games playing .500 is below average. Currently there have been 2.24 points issued per NHL game. So a team would need to be .562 to be the NHL version of even. Detroit and Philly have the wild card spots and both teams have 4 more wins than loses. Extrapolating the current numbers, a team in the east will need at least 89 points to squeak in. That means the Isles would need 47 points in the next 35 games. They would have to win 21+ games to even have a shot. Does anyone believe this team will go 22-10-3?
- JimmyP

Yes, absolutely.

I'm not saying it couldn't happen, but it's a long shot. About 91 points has been the cut off for the last playoff spot since they changed the scoring system. If they do go on a tear and make it in they will have played as well as any team this year. I don't think anyone would want to face them if they came into the playoffs that hot.

To go back to ses111's point if they didn't drop the 10 in a row and instead went 5-5 they would have 10 more points. That puts them at 53 points and in the playoff race. They would likely only need 37 more points over 35 games to stay in the race. They can't afford to have these big losing streaks every year.
- JimmyP

Wonder if the Penguins are keeping an eye on us?

Wonder if the Penguins are keeping an eye on us?
- Cptmjl

i'm sure they're licking their chops at the chance to potentially play against red light nabby again

Wonder if the Penguins are keeping an eye on us?
- Cptmjl

One easy way to tell is to start talking about the brawl game. That always brings their fans out of the wood work.

No one should be keeping an eye on them at this point. They need to play at least .671 hockey to have a chance and even that may not be enough. To put it in perspective:

Anaheim . 781
St. Louis .761
Chicago .729
Pittsburg .723
Colorado .678
San Jose .673
Boston .667
Tampa Bay .644