Top Shelf – Islanders Daily 10/29/13

Oct 25, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; New York Islanders center Pierre-Marc Bouchard (96) and goalie Evgeni Nabokov (20) react after defeating the Pittsburgh Penguins at the CONSOL Energy Center. The Islanders won 4-3. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The dust has finally begun to settle after the Islanders acquired 29-year-old winger Thomas Vanek from the Buffalo Sabres.

The sting many fans continue to feel with the departure of Matt Moulson only got worse, as Moulson scored twice in his debut with his new club, just a short 24 hours after the news first broke. It’s still far too early to jump to conclusions regarding the deal, and one solid showing isn’t nearly enough to base the move off of.

The focus now shifts to the first and only meeting the New York Rangers and New York Islanders will play at the Coliseum this season. Due to the Coors Light Stadium Series, the January 29th meeting will be considered an Islanders home game. Let the fact that this may be one of three games left the two teams will play at the Old Barn.

The Islanders will have to go into tonight’s game firing on all cylinders. With Thomas Vanek making his debut and this being a huge rivalry game, a lot of eyes will be on this matchup. The Isles can’t let the Rangers 3-7-0 record fool them. The Rangers have had a lot of difficulty finding the back of the net and exploiting a weak Islanders defense may be just what they need to break their funk.

In Case You Missed It

Thomas Vanek Laces Up For First Practice As A New York Islander (Eyes on Isles)

Garth Snow Reiterates: “You Need To Give Something To Get Something” (Eyes on Isles)

Analysis Of A Blockbuster : Islanders Deal Moulson To Buffalo (Eyes on Isles)

The Day After: Thomas Vanek, And Why The Islanders Came Out A Winner (Islanders Op-Timism)

Trade For Sniper Vanek Shows Islanders Finally Mean Business (WFAN)

Two Minutes for Tweeting

• This is a great angle to take when looking at this trade. Not only is this the most notable trade in about six years, but it’s a trade that proves the team is looking to win, and win now. The rebuild is truly over.

• No matter how each of these teams are playing, big time rivalry games are never easy. As they Isles have seen twice already this season, a record only says so much. Have to play a strong game in order to come out with the win.

• This is far too logical of an idea. Moulson scores two goals for the Sabres and many Isles fans are looking for a hat trick from Vanek tomorrow. Let them both get 10+ games under their belts on their new teams and we can circle back to the value of this trade.

Around the NHL

• Dallas Stars 4, Buffalo Sabres 3 – DAL (Fiddler, Goligoski, Seguin, Benn); BUF (Moulson (2), Ott)
• Pittsburgh Penguins 3, Carolina Hurricanes 1 – PIT (Glass, Kunitz, Megna); CAR (Gerbe)
• Montreal Canadiens 2, New York Rangers 0 – MON (Plekanec, Galchenyuk)
• Chicago Blackhawks 5, Minnesota Wild 1 – CHI (Sharp, Brookbank, Leddy, Kane, Saad); MIN (Pominville)
• Vancouver Canucks 3, Washington Capitals 2 – VAN (Kassian, Kesler, D. Sedin); WSH (Chimera, Grabovski)

Across the Sound

On Sunday, the Sound Tigers were shutout 5-0 against the Syracuse Crunch. Anders Nilsson got the start in net, but was replaced by Kenny Reiter after two periods. Nilsson faced 30 shots, allowing all 5 of Syracuse’s goals, ending the night with a .833 SV%. Reiter stopped 9 shots he faced.

Next up, the Sounds Tigers take on the Wolf Pack in Hartford tomorrow night at 7PM.