Snap Shots: Islanders @ Redwings

Dec 23, 2013; Detroit, MI, USA; New York Islanders right wing Kyle Okposo (21) receives congratulations from teammates after scoring in the first period against the Detroit Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Welcome to Snap Shots, our condensed post-game recap of the New York Islanders latest NHL matchup

New York Islanders (11-20-7) at Detroit Red Wings (17-13-90)

Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan

7:30 PM EST

Islanders (3) – Red Wings (0)

Starting Lineup

26 Thomas Vanek – 91 John Tavares – 21 Kyle Okposo
40 Michael Grabner – 51 Frans Nielsen – 12 Josh Bailey
29 Brock Nelson – 18 Ryan Strome – 15 Cal Clutterbuck
13 Colin McDonald – 53 Casey Cizikas– 17 Matt Martin

44 Calvin de Haan – 3 Travis Hamonic
47 Andrew MacDonald – 14 Thomas Hickey
37 Brian Strait – 55 Aaron Ness

20 Evgeni Nabokov
60 Kevin Poulin

Notable Scratches: Peter Regin

Game Summary

First Period: The best two words that summarize the first period: Total Dominance. The Islanders simply outplayed their opponents on all fronts. The Islanders opened up the scoring via Kyle Okposo 10:57 into the period off a brilliant 2-0n-1 pass from John Tavares. Minutes later, Michael Grabner scored his third goal in as many plays in a somewhat typical fashion, creating his own plays. Grabner’s scoring touch is slowly rekindling, something that the Islanders of course will warmly welcome. Casey Cizikas scored what proved to be the final goal of the game 16:55 in off a nice forecheck by the Islanders.

Second Period: The play in the second took a turn as the Islanders were outplayed by Detroit, as shown by the 11-2 shot differential in favor of Detroit. However, goaltender Evgeni Nabokov stood tall and made a few sharp saves to keep the Wings scoreless. No goals were scored by either team, as play, despite the solid shot total by Detroit, wasn’t terribly action-packed.

Third Period: After a second period in which the Red Wings had the stronger play, the Islanders rebounded nicely, only giving up 6 shots in the final 20 minutes of play. Detorit did come out early pushing hard to make a come-back, but the defensive core proved strong enough (of course, Evgeni Nabokov made the job easier) to keep Detroit off the scoreboard and give the Islanders an impressive road win.

Statistics

Penalties

Shots On Goal

Detroit 23, New York 19

Turning Point

Amidst the height of Detroit’s push to get back into the game, Evgeni Nabokov sprawls out in front of a crowd and makes a pad save. Detroit couldn’t seem to find a quality scoring chance after their best of the game had been robbed.

What’s Ahead

The Islanders have a nice Christmas break off, as they will not play another game until a Saturday Night home game on December 28th against the New Jersey Devils. The Islanders haven’t seen their division rival since Opening Night, a game that saw the Islanders win 4-3 in a shootout.