No one would have blamed Pete DeBoer if he had made a change or two, or rearranged some of his forward lines after Game 3. Tavares is now an established star within our city limits, a star that only rises more with a wondrous, team-carrying performance to put the once-storied Islanders back on the National Hockey League map and put them into the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 1993.
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Luongo made 49 saves for the Panthers, who now inherit the Islanders’ mantle as the longest-suffering team in the National Hockey League.
It felt like it pretty much had to be John Tavares who brought the Islanders their first victory in a playoff series since 1993.
Florida had a good team this season for the first time in years. Sure, the first round hasn’t quite concluded yet – at least, not in the Western Conference – but it’s still as good of a time as ever to reflect on some of the shockers coming out of games over the last week and a half.
After 8,381 days, the New York Islanders are headed to the second round of the playoffs.
NEW YORK – John Tavares tied it in the final minute of regulation and got the victor at 10:41 of the second overtime, leading the New York Islanders past the Florida Panthers 2-1 Sunday night and into the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 1993.
“We want to enjoy tonight, but we want to keep this thing going”, Tavares said. I thought this was Florida’s year to go deep into the playoffs.
At 10:41 into the second OT, Tavares grabbed yet another missed shot from a Lungo save, took the puck, wrapped around the goal and snuck in a game winning shot.
John Tavares said get on my back and I will lead you to Tampa. The Islanders will face the Tampa Bay Lightning in the second round. His unwavering consistency and stoic leadership have gotten the Islanders through many storms, and it’s the reason why they’re now eight wins away from playing for the Stanley Cup.
This was the third straight time in the series that the game went into overtime. The Islanders won all three overtime games. Jared Spurgeon scored two of Minnesota’s four third-period goals. and the Wild came within a fraction of an inch of tying it with 34 seconds remaining when Nino Niederreiter whacked at a loose puck in the crease. But the puck trickled out from underneath him to his right, and Tavares swooped in to bury it.
“You can’t even really process it”, said Tavares.
“And I don’t think the hockey gods were with us at all”, he added. “Lucky enough, it just squirted under Luongo and it doesn’t get any easier than that”.
Jonathan Huberdeau scored the lone goal for the Florida Panthers on a feed from Jussi Jokinen and Vincent Trocheck.
Hedman, picked second by the Lightning that year and having advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals last year, might have restored the luster, too.
“Sure it’s frustrating that I didn’t score, but I will always fight to the end”, Jagr said. But Dallas coach Lindy Ruff wasn’t concerned about his team’s goalie play, saying he liked how his goaltenders gave the Stars a chance to win.
Tavares scored his fourth and fifth goals of the series, finishing the first round with nine points. He dominated the matchup, finishing with a 1.79 goals against average and.944 save percentage.
“The Islanders were stacked”, read an article from The Hockey News, “led by one of the greatest two-way players in league history, the calming Bryan Trottier; the super-confident Mike Bossy, who seemed able to score at will; team captain and three-time Norris Trophy victor Potvin, a man who oozed confidence; all-time grinder Clark Gilllies; and goaltender Billy Smith, seemingly able to will himself to victory. You never know when it’s going to come”. “And the pace of our game wasn’t where it needed to be and Thomas made some big saves and kept us in it”.
Luongo stopped shots by Matt Martin and Kulemin, but he was sprawled face-down on the ice as the puck skittered to his right. Clutterbuck also had a backhand attempt denied by the goalie about 5 minutes in.
The Islanders controlled the play for most of the opening period, but the Panthers took the lead just before the closing minute of the period after NY turned it over in its own zone.
Without the key power-play goals in Game 3 and Game 5, the Islanders would not be winning this series; Tavares and Greiss’ efforts would be all for not. He returned for the start of the second period. Bjugstad was hurt in the first overtime of Friday’s 2-1 loss was listed as day-to-day.
Since then, New York’s made the Cup Finals once.
Life sprang up in Barclays Center and the players left to prepare for first overtime.
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Be Civil – It’s OK to have a difference in opinion but there’s no need to be a jerk. “We knew what we had to do”.
