Bad defense=bad goaltending

Half those weak goals wouldn't even have made it to the net with an average defense.
- Cptmjl

Very true but cant blame the D for Johnson going behind the net to stop the puck realizes he cant make and totally confuses everyone on the ice. OR a shot from the side boards that goes in because hes not hugging the post. OR a wrister that floats in over the glove hand of Halak.

Again I am not disagreeing that there are better coaches out there than Capuano but the goalies need to start stopping pucks.

Very true but cant blame the D for Johnson going behind the net to stop the puck realizes he cant make and totally confuses everyone on the ice. OR a shot from the side boards that goes in because hes not hugging the post. OR a wrister that floats in over the glove hand of Halak.

Again I am not disagreeing that there are better coaches out there than Capuano but the goalies need to start stopping pucks.
- urmyboyblu

I agree they haven't been good but there has been one consistent theme no matter who is in net. Our defense sucks. Not so much the players as much as the defensive strategy. Defense can be taught. Not happening here. Halak never faced what he is here while he was in St. Louis and you can bet Johnson didn't in Boston. These two goaltenders didn't suddenly become bad on their arrival to Long Island. They just came to a team with a terrible coach with a horrible defensive system

Goaltending has been below average but the system, ice time and overall in game management has been horrific

So Snow is responsible for the coaching of the team and Wang is responsible for all GM responsibilities? Something that should be Snow's fault this thread blames Wang and now Capuano is Snow's puppet? Are you guys facking kidding me? How about the possibility that Capuano is just that bad a coach and Snow is a bad enough GM to endorse him? As crazy as that sounds that's whats happening!
- Cptmjl

I agree Cappy IS that bad a coach but I believe Garth has a hand in players like Josh Bailey NOT being benched last season...Clutterbuck as a PK "Specialist" and Strait being a "legit top 4 defenseman" with the amount of icetime he is given. Like an appointed official, Cappy serves at Garth's pleasure.

I agree Cappy IS that bad a coach but I believe Garth has a hand in players like Josh Bailey NOT being benched last season...Clutterbuck as a PK "Specialist" and Strait being a "legit top 4 defenseman" with the amount of icetime he is given. Like an appointed official, Cappy serves at Garth's pleasure.
- jmo16

In all fairness when he was in Minnesota he was. Capuano never put him on the PK till the season was lost. I don't buy the whole Snow jamming players down Capuano's throat. I think there's some of that which probably happens with most teams/coaches/GM's but that's about it. I doubt even Snow would be stupid enough to be jamming an underperforming player down his throat for ice time and risk his own arse at this point.

Strait is an obvious waste of space. Snow isn't risking his job/this season on proving a point. It's funny how we all scream for accountability all the time and remove that very thing from someone when it's warranted?

Goaltending has been below average but the system, ice time and overall in game management has been horrific
- Dan Petriw

That PP should be scoring..we saw what they can do. Their best players are on the ice and they haven't been getting it done...can't blame the goalies and defensive game when your on the PP unless a shorty gets scored.....our top guys need to be our top guys...no real changes can be made IMO there....in the end this team fell apart when Bailey left!!!!!

That PP should be scoring..we saw what they can do. Their best players are on the ice and they haven't been getting it done...can't blame the goalies and defensive game when your on the PP unless a shorty gets scored.....our top guys need to be our top guys...no real changes can be made IMO there....in the end this team fell apart when Bailey left!!!!!
- Nolanders

Also can't give up 5 goals a game

#Isles lines at practice:
Nelson-Tavares-Okposo
Grabovski-Nielsen-Kulemin
Conacher-Cizikas-Clutterbuck
Martin-Boulton-Strome-Lee


Martin Conacher Clutterbuck play like poop, it's always the kids faults lmao

#Isles lines at practice:
Nelson-Tavares-Okposo
Grabovski-Nielsen-Kulemin
Conacher-Cizikas-Clutterbuck
Martin-Boulton-Strome-Lee


Martin Conacher Clutterbuck play like poop, it's always the kids faults lmao
- Dan Petriw

I almost had the top 6 right...

Here is the article on Vanek...

http://www.startribune.co...orts/blogs/281081872.html

#Isles lines at practice:
Nelson-Tavares-Okposo
Grabovski-Nielsen-Kulemin
Conacher-Cizikas-Clutterbuck
Martin-Boulton-Strome-Lee


Martin Conacher Clutterbuck play like poop, it's always the kids faults lmao
- Dan Petriw

Strome has more points than the fourth line combined. This makes perfect sense to no one besides capuano. Clutterbuck ? Strome or lee as the thirteenth fwd? You break up the second line which was great prior to grabovskis injury and Nelson is no longer a center. None of it and I mean none of it makes sense. I should be used to this by now but you're making someone our second line center again that stated himself he's a third Lin. You're demoting two kids who obviously shouldn't be and moving up a player in clutter buck who has been just a little north of a plug. Our secondary scoring will take a hit mark my words. He's doing everything in his power to get fired. Cant make this shat up.

Here is the article on Vanek...

http://www.startribune.co...orts/blogs/281081872.html
- kear20

couldn't happen to a nicer guy - I was happy he didn't sign with us. Still am - even more so, now. Didn't like his vibe and he was a playoff no-show. Now we find out he's a degenerate gambler who signed over his paychek from the Isles towards a $1 million debt? Wow. Moron. Must be nice to be able to lose that kind of scratch.

#Isles lines at practice:
Nelson-Tavares-Okposo
Grabovski-Nielsen-Kulemin
Conacher-Cizikas-Clutterbuck
Martin-Boulton-Strome-Lee


Martin Conacher Clutterbuck play like poop, it's always the kids faults lmao
- Dan Petriw

Martin really has dropped off as a player. He's actually had a half-dozen point blank opportunities but shot it into the goalies chest or missed the net entirely. It also looks like his only mission is to go out and hit players. He missed a few errant pucks last night because he was "bailing-hay"with his stick off the ice, looking to hit a player when the puck suddenly was redirected in his direction. I'd much rather see him score 10-15 goals a season vs. leading the league in hits.

#Isles lines at practice:
Nelson-Tavares-Okposo
Grabovski-Nielsen-Kulemin
Conacher-Cizikas-Clutterbuck
Martin-Boulton-Strome-Lee


Martin Conacher Clutterbuck play like poop, it's always the kids faults lmao
- Dan Petriw

if strome or lee are scratched or on the fourth line and crappy moves 2/3 of the fourth line to the third line I'm gonna lose my mind.

Martin really has dropped off as a player. He's actually had a half-dozen point blank opportunities but shot it into the goalies chest or missed the net entirely. It also looks like his only mission is to go out and hit players. He missed a few errant pucks last night because he was "bailing-hay"with his stick off the ice, looking to hit a player when the puck suddenly was redirected in his direction. I'd much rather see him score 10-15 goals a season vs. leading the league in hits.
- jmo16

he also let the puck go by him without even trying to get it several times only focusing on the hit. The goal of the hit should be to separate the player from the puck and cause a turnover, so repeatedly ignoring the puck and hitting the man after it's long gone is a waste of time. Martin has really made himself all about his hit count and it's hurting the team, especially with the fourth line getting so much icetime.

couldn't happen to a nicer guy - I was happy he didn't sign with us. Still am - even more so, now. Didn't like his vibe and he was a playoff no-show. Now we find out he's a degenerate gambler who signed over his paychek from the Isles towards a $1 million debt? Wow. Moron. Must be nice to be able to lose that kind of scratch.
- jmo16

Happy we traded our first rounder this year and Moulson for him.

if strome or lee are scratched or on the fourth line and crappy moves 2/3 of the fourth line to the third line I'm gonna lose my mind.
- Isles_since_6

Staple's tweet had Strome/Lee Martin/Boulton listed as 3rd pairing. Not that it matters what you call the lines when the LEAST talented group gets nearly equal time to the BEST line.

Staple's tweet had Strome/Lee Martin/Boulton listed as 3rd pairing. Not that it matters what you call the lines when the LEAST talented group gets nearly equal time to the BEST line.
- jmo16

Capuano says Nelson-Tavares-Okposo will play together tomorrow, other two jumbled lines TBD. De Haan-Hamonic likely with Strait sitting.

from staple ^

about time they moved conacher off that top line, but the obvious solution to me would be to move grabovski between strome and lee, and move conacher onto the line with nielson and kulemin if we have to keep him in the lineup. none of the fourth line deserve to move up.

and it's nice to see strait sitting, even if it's come far too late.

from staple ^

about time they moved conacher off that top line, but the obvious solution to me would be to move grabovski between strome and lee, and move conacher onto the line with nielson and kulemin if we have to keep him in the lineup. none of the fourth line deserve to move up.
- Isles_since_6

Agreed. Though I like one of strome, lee, or grabovski on the first line. Nelson as our second center spread the scoring out. We were a much harder team to play against. Especially with nielsen providing some scoring. To me its a no brainer.

You can't put this on goaltending... I had played goal for years. The way the Isles are playing defense is completely messing with their heads. As a goalie, you can't worry about the pass AND the shooter every time they enter your zone. That's why teams are scoring from bad angles because the goalie does not trust his defense and is trying to cheat to get the pass across crease.
Any goalie you put in net at this point with this defense structure WILL struggle.
- brodydog29

Exactly- this is my argument about this subject. The goalies HAVE given up some stinkers....but a lot of those rebounds have to be cleared. A lot of times, they're screened by players who are both in the wrong spot AND wouldn't know how to block a shot if they got a bonus every time it happened. The entire team skates backwards and towards the net, as if there's a player magnet inside it, and yet it's a rare occasion that anyone picks up their man and does anything resembling proper defensive play. It's just a mess, and the goalies are only a small part of that, in my opinion.

I agree not with Brooklyn next year and the Sabres owning the pick and the new owners. Garth will have no answers for keeping Cappy.
- ses111

There's no way Garth is going to let this team finish anywhere near that lottery pick, because that will be his a$$, too. That's another reason they'll do SOMETHING, even if it's just Weight or Cronin.

its the bigger picture that im worried about...had the islanders been down 5-0 and scored 6 goals in the last 6:20 of the game, it would have been a fabulous comeback and a movie would be made of it and WOW we are rolling.

but the defense still sucks!!! and the system isnt right.

there is some cliche about a pig with lipstick which i dont remember...but it applies here.

when your team gives up 3.6 goals a game, something is wrong...regardless of how many posts tavares hits
- LetsGoIsles

This is what I've been saying all year....the "but, we're winning" crap wasn't flying at my airport. We were winning the same way we won last year, and losing the same way we lost last year. If personnel was going to make this team better all by itself, then they'd have been great last year until everyone got hurt, and then they'd have sucked for the rest of the year. The polar opposite of that is what actually took place. It's like with this coach, we have to have so little talent that he doesn't have any confidence in them, before he'll coach them properly.

short term pain for long term gain??? like i said...sign me up. sooner rather than later.

every day that this guy isnt fired is just another day that this team wont reach their potential. every day he isnt fired is another day of bad coaching and digging the hole deeper for the next coach. get him out!!!

i want to seem maximum returns and i WONT with this coaching staff.

i will resume being an islanders fan a week from tuesday when the avs come to town; until then, lets go sharks/ducks/kings/coyotes
- LetsGoIsles

Bingo.....this team is a lot better than this. A LOT better. They deserve better, as well.

10 games.

It's 3.60 GA/G

http://www.nhl.com/ice/te...ame&viewName=goalsAgainst
- eichiefs9

why doesn't this emoticon spew vomit? That's how bad this is at the NHL level. 3.60 is nearly TWICE as many goals as they should be giving up per game.

Why would that be the case? Why do some always want to blame someone else besides the person directly responsible when it comes to this team?
- Cptmjl

My thought process is this: why did they play a simple defensive system when they had sh*t players, won hockey games, and then went immediately back to the pond hockey once this season started? You'd think that if this system was ALL on Capuano, what happened at the end of last season would have resigned him to the fact.

We're also 10 games in at this point, and they have been horrible- it's clearly not working. Again, you'd have to think that one day, he'd wake up and say to himself, "I guess I'm going to have to run a defensive system, similar to what everyone else does, if I want to keep my job," but that doesn't seem to happen. It's like he's either an utter moron in general, not just about hockey, or someone else is insisting on this nonsense.