If ever William Shakespeare's line "Sweet Are The Uses Of Adversity" could be useful to the Islanders, the time is NOW.
If ever William Shakespeare's line "Sweet Are The Uses Of Adversity" could be useful to the New York Islanders, the time is NOW.
Or, to put it in another literary way, for coach Lane Lambert's skaters, "Looking Backward" -- as in the Edward Bellamy book of the same name -- means looking forward.
"Forward," as in tonight's game against Washington at UBS Arena.
Looking Backward means a serious focus on the dismaying 7-0 loss to the Penguins on Wednesday night in Elmont -- and learn from it.
After the defeat, Brock Nelson and Mathew Barzal separately uttered the same word to describe their club's failure -- "unacceptable."
And if questioned, I'm certain that a majority -- at least -- of teammates would agree. Here are some thoughts on the subject and Maven's reactions:
* FATIGUE: If any team could make that claim, it was the Visitors. Although we know that Penguins can't fly -- but they sure can skate -- Pitt's guys flew in from Pennsylvania. Relaxing at home, the Isles should have been the energetic ones.
* ATTITUDE: At least one reporter criticized the Blue and Orange for what appeared to be a lack of drive. This was especially true in the faded second period when not even a time-out (2-0) got the guys jumping. And this was a four-point divisional game, no less.
* DISCIPLINE: The Islanders have taken a penalty to interrupt their power play 11 times this season. That's -- if you don't mind my saying so -- nuts!
Some other factors worth noting:
1. Noah Dobson has been averaging 26:03 of playing time, carrying the defense since the injuries to Pelech-Pulock-Mayfield. The Dobber was minus-4 vs. Pitt. Should his playing time be trimmed? (Tough call for the coach.)
2. In a reversal of their image, the Isles' offense has been impressive, while the overall defense has been an uncharacteristic weakness.
3. A good 16 of the last 20 games have been decided by one goal. That should tell you that there's little margin for error.
4. As The Maven recently noted, both Sorokin and his comrade Semyon Varlamov have been a major asset. But they cannot win every game by themselves. Exhibit A was their teammates' performance -- or lack of it -- against Pitt.
5. There's plenty of veteran experience on the club and a solid captain in Anders Lee.
In the clash Tuesday night between "Inertia" vs. "Energy," the former beat the latter.
It simply cannot happen tonight at 7:30 on PBS, not with Alex Ovechkin and his Capitals coming to town.
Energy generated by the Locals won't guarantee two points, but it sure will be needed.
For sure, the last word the fans want to hear from Nelson, Barzal, or anyone for that matter, is "Unacceptable."
(Thanks, as always, to the monarch of stats, Eric Hornick, for his help; and his nom de plume, Forever1940!)