yave1964 Posted April 21, 2014 Share Posted April 21, 2014 PRESEASON EXPECTATIONS The Islanders had made the playoffs in the strike shortened season and lost in a spirited post season battle against the Penguins. Hope among the fan base was that they would prove the appearance was not a fluke. FINAL RECORD: 34-37-11 79 points last in division 14th in conference. STRANGE STAT OF THE YEARTravis Hamonic had a 2 percent shooting percentage with 3 goals on 140 shots. Youch. HIGH POINT OF THE SEASONThe club got off to a nice start getting 5 out of 6 points and starting 2-0-1. LOW POINT OF THE SEASON Octoboer 27th the team traded fan favorite Matt Moulson along with a first and a second round pick for Thomas Vanek, who announced he was not resigning with the club and instead would become a free agent. When the Islanders slipped out of contention they were forced to trade Vanek for pennies on the dollar, getting a D level prospect and a 2nd round pick from the Canadiens. WHAT WENT RIGHTKyle Okposo (27-42-69) had a solid season. Franz Nielson (25-33-58) was fantastic. Thomas Hickey began to shake off the rep as a bust and was solid on the blue line. Ryan STrome showed flashes as did Anders Lee. WHAT WENT WRONG John Tavares (24-42-66) was over a point a game at the Olympic break, and suffered a knee injury in the Olympics and was lost for the rest of the season. Josh Bailey (8 goals) continued to underwhelm. Michael Grabner (12-14-26) continued his regression. Lubomir Visnovsky was injured and ineffective. The goaltending, Nabokov, Poulin and Nilsson were downright awful. Dreadful might be a better word. MVP Frans Nielson played way above expectations and was brilliant in all on ice situations and deserves the nod here. UFAsNabokov OFFSEASON QUESTION MARKS Can you find a free agent to make a splash big enough with to recover from the Moulson/Vanek fiasco? Can you find a goalie willing to lay in front of the F troop known as the Isles defense? Can you sign a defenseman who can be a difference maker? Lots of holes, a new home to play in and a desperate need to atone to the fan base for the lost season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hf101 Posted April 21, 2014 Share Posted April 21, 2014 Isles first need a goalie, I can see them overpaying for one of the free agents this next year. Hiller would be a great option. I can't think of any reason why he would stay in Anaheim as Andersen has the #1 nod. Once they get a quality goalie attracting FA d-men will be much easier. Niskanen could be a quality target for them. Hopefully Wang sells the team soon, a new owner could be the start of a new direction for the Islanders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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