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Locker Room Response After 1st Win in November |
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Between the PK and Rick DiPietro in net, the tide turned yesterday. It’s a start.
“You’re best penalty killer is your goaltender, and I thought Ricky was great.” Jack Capuano told reporters in his first NHL win post game chat. Jack is lucky that he knows so many of “the kids” as well as he does. He will have to use so many of them as the injuries mount. Yesterday, Trent Hunter is announced as out indefinitely.
Jack chose to recall Jon Sim from Bridgeport to fill the space. Jon does what Jon does and he does it well. On the other hand, Bruno Gervais was a bit of a fish out of water when he decided to engage Colin White after his boarding infraction on PA Parenteau. It was a foolish yet noble effort that I’m sure left Bruno with a headache today after Colin White dropped him to the ice with two punches to the jaw.
After his second NHL game, Travis Hamonic sat in his stall, smiling from ear to ear and laughing. He had a reason to: the Islanders won and he didn’t take a penalty. “It feels great! The music’s been pumping in here. Obviously, the last couple of games the guys have been working really hard towards this goal and now we’re out of this slump that’s the effort we really needed. I think we played a full 60 minutes here tonight . Obviously Ricky played unbelievably in net for us.”
When I asked him about Bruno dropping the gloves, he smiled “You know, that’s awesome. Bruno is the picture-perfect team mate. He’s one of those guys you always like to come to the rink because you know he’s going to have a big smile on his face and no matter what kind of mood he’s in, he’s going to greet you with open arms. No matter who that was that got hit out there, you know Bruno is going to step up for him and that’s what you need from everyone in this locker room.”
Even Rick praised Bruno, “The defense played great. That was huge for us. Bruno stepping in there and taking on White. Stuff like that gets guys fired up.”
The only one in the locker room that didn’t seem too happy about Bruno dropping the gloves was big man, Trevor Gillies. He watched from the bench and growled. I don’t think Jack ever unleashed him from the bench. Maybe he was afraid of what Trevor would do after watching Bruno get knocked temporarily unconscious.
Stan Fischler interrupted me when I was talking to Rob Schremp. I didn’t mind. He only stopped to tell him who his biggest fan was. I thought for sure he was going to say that I was considering how often I promote Robbie. To my surprise he pointed to himself. “Right here.” The Maven knows how to pick ’em. Even during the coach’s post game, Stan closed with a question regarding Rob. “Schremp is an interesting study. For him to be a star, what kind of potential does he bare?”
“Interesting” is a good term to use when talking about Rob Schremp. Capuano answered “Robbie has good offensive potential. Obviously he’s a skilled guy, but… (Oh there is always a “but!” ) “we’re still working with him away from the puck.”
The second goal of the game was Rob’s second goal of the season and came from the corner he likes to park himself in. When I asked, he was very nonchalant about it. “Yeah, I score a lot of my goals from junior there and all my goals from pro there.” Heading out to start the third period with a two goal lead, Rob said they were confident. They just had to make sure “we didn’t do anything stupid.” (You just have to love Rob Schremp’s honesty.) “We didn’t need any more goals to win the game, that was the key factor. We didn’t need to force anything. We had two unfortunate penalties, but the guys did a great job killing it.”
I thought for sure the five-on-three situation for the Devils would have put them not only on the board, but in a tie game. The Islanders penalty killers went above and beyond making sure that wasn’t the case.
John Tavares is using this losing streak as a learning experience in his young career. “It’s a great way to see how we respond. It’s a young group. Something like this can help us in the long run. I know it’s been a learning experience for me, and for all the other guys and we KNOW we have to be better. Tonight was a start.”
While Rick could have been celebrating his first shut-out win in more months than he’d like to count, he was reserved about it. “It’s only one win. We’ve dug ourselves a deep hole.” With the Rangers coming up back-to-back, Rick’s thoughts are “One step at a time. A couple of days off, some good practices. We’ve gotta play smart. That’s the key for us.”
Smart is only one key for the Islanders. Goaltending is the other. As Matt Martin told Stan Fischler, Rick has started to look like the Rick DiPietro of old these past three games. “He’s been great for us. It was just a matter of time before he got back to being the goaltender he was. I don’t think people give him enough credit for how far he’s come. He’s had a lot of ups-and-downs and a lot of injuries. A lesser man wouldn’t be playing in the net today. I think sometimes, people forget that.”
So many of those that were interviewed said the crowd being behind them was such a big help and so welcomed. They haven’t had that in the entire month of November. “We haven’t deserved it for awhile.” explained Martin who understands the severity of the situation and crowd reaction. Martin is used to playing in a much smaller rink with far less fans in the seats. Having a crowd of almost 11,000 in an afternoon game roaring with appreciation has to be a confidence booster for any player, rookie or vet.
The Islanders don’t play again until Thursday. Sometimes a break of that length is a bad thing for a team that has built up momentum. But when I asked Rob Schremp about it, he was relieved. “Oh, we need it. We need it! After coming off a stretch like that, a little extra time off is good. Clear your mind and get focused again.”
It’s a deep hole they’ve dug for themselves, but they can climb out one step at a time.
New York Islanders Blogger • 
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