Lee Leads Isles Over Leafs

photo by zimbio

Tonight, on the back of Anders Lee, our Islanders defeated the Maple Leafs by a score of 3-2.  Here are some of my notes from the game:

-Tonight was arguably Anders Lee's best game in an Islander uniform.  He was credited with 2 goals but he could've easily had one or two more if not for great stops by Bernier.  He also created a few chances as well as drew a penalty.  Lastly, he was shooting everything at the net tonight.  His pair of goals tonight put him in a tie with Mike Hoffman of the Senators for second in the NHL in goals among rookies, 1 behind Filip Forsberg of the Predators for the league lead.  Also, 1/3 of Lees goals this season have been game winners with tonight being his sixth.  The other rookies better watch out because Lee might be making a late push into the rookie of the year conversation.

-While Halak was solid tonight, his attempted play of the puck in the third period was the definition of unnecessary.  With the struggles he has suffered through playing the puck behind the net, for him to go out of the net like he did in the third period of a one goal game deserves a sit down from Mike Dunham and the other coaches to try and get inside his head.  Given that, congrats to him also on getting 30 wins in a season for the first time in his NHL career.

-The power play was pretty solid tonight, especially in the first period.  They generated chances and had pretty good zone time.  It was a nice change from what we had seen in the last few games.

-Good timeout call by Capuano in the second period after the Leafs tied the game.  In the past, even this season he usually didn't do that, so he deserves some credit for doing that tonight.

This game was much better than Tuesdays debacle against the Oilers.  While the team did struggle a bit for a part of the second period, they pulled it together and ultimately put forth a solid effort tonight.  They need to build on this performance and bring the effort, specifically the first period effort game in and game out.

Next Game: Saturday vs Columbus