With the trade deadline in their rearview mirror, Zenon Konopka, Radek Martinek and the rest of the New York Islanders can finally play distraction-free hockey.
Pressure situations do not bode well for a young and inexperienced team, and as rumors continued to swirl, the Isles' style of play became more and more tentative.
In the past three games, the Islanders have come away with three losses, and aside from the heartbreaker in Philadelphia, those losses came as a result of the team shying away from aggressive play on both ends of the ice.
In contrast, when the Isles didn't have much to worry about, they played some of their best hockey of the season, particularly in a 3-0 shutout of the Los Angeles Kings at Nassau Coliseum.
After that game, Kings head coach Terry Murray explained the logic behind New York's resurgence:
“The Islanders, right now, are in a very relaxed state. Their players are just playing. They’re stretching guys out. They’re leaving the zone early, to look for those long opportunities. There’s no pressure, there’s no consequence for anything that’s happening out the ...
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Article written by Daniel Friedman
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March 1st, 2011 by Daniel Friedman Leave a reply »
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