Last night I thought the Isles were heading for a loss. Despite completely outplaying Tampa the Islanders were unable to solve rookie goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy who was doing his best Dominik Hasek impression for fifty seven minutes. The Islanders never got frustrated and they never stopped working and they were rewarded for that effort as they popped in three goals in the final three minutes and defeated Tampa by a score of 3-1.

We all know the Islanders are going to lose games this season but if they come up short with the type of effort that they played with this weekend, I think we can all live with the results. At one point last night I blurted out loud, “I can’t even be mad if they lose this game they are throwing the kitchen sink at this kid.” This where we are with this team. This team has something that past teams were in desperate need of, character. They do no quit or panic when they fall behind. The veteran leadership of this team has settled everyone in the locker room and now bumps in the road like a three game losing streak are quickly flipped into three consecutive wins.

The return of Johnny Boychuk and Travis Hamonic have meant the world to this team, you can just see it on the ice. The defense has been solid since they returned Friday night in Detroit. Everyone on the blue line has returned to their roles and the unit as a whole looks fantastic.
I was also pleased with the play of the top line last night. The line moved their feet, simplified their game and worked hard in the corners and on the forecheck. That hard work led to the game tying goal by John Tavares as it seems like a piano was lifted off his shoulders after tying the game with 3 minutes left.

It’s funny because we all keep saying, “the schedule is getting tougher,” but that isn’t phasing this team one bit as they continue to shine against the best teams in the league. Tuesday night will be another tough test against the Montreal Canadiens. The game is at the Coliseum which once again has become a clear advantage to this team. The barn was rocking last night and every game has a playoff feel to it. The fan base has responded and the result is a team that is fueled by you. The Isles are feeding off of each and every one of you and it really has the feel of the old Fort Neverlose of the dynasty years.

It has been a long and hard road during this rebuild. At times I know most of us wondering if we would ever see days like this again. It took a while but the kids have grown up and the organization brought in the right veteran presence to help balance out this roster. I don’t know where this road is going to take us but after all the years of being the league’s punching bag, it is nice to do the punching for once. Enjoy what you are watching right now, this team has character, works its butt off and is fueling off of you. If the barn is this loud now I can’t even imagine what it will sound like come this spring. As always for more on all things hockey please follow me on twitter at @DanDanNoodles78.

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