Islanders Season Review

[angryjay93]

Islander fans having reason to hope again these playoffs, as the GDL 4 edition of the Isles produced a most impressive performance with lowered expectations. After trading away top pick Tomas Sandstrom, the Isles looked extremely bare on offense, but they managed enough offense to finish as the number 2 ranked offense in the league behind only the vaunted St. Louis Blues attack.

The Isles finished 47-7-1-1 this season, and despite the continued offensive production, it was the defense that made the difference this season by cutting more than a goal off their GAA this season and by acquiring Curtis Joseph in the Sandstrom deal, the SV% also went up by nearly 10 points providing the Isles a legitimate back bone to their defense this season as opposed to the herky jerky play of the long departed Mike Richter.

Team MVP, Andrei Kovalenko led a vicious Isles attack that looked to capatilize on mistakes, he lead the team with 146 goals and 208 points, his defense was also just as impressive as he laid out countless players over the course of the season. The key to the offence though was rookie hot shot, Joe Juneau, his 99 goals and 64 assists balanced out the Islanders offense by providing a set up man and deft goal scorer. Ted Donato rounded out the line, his defensive prowress helped keep other teams at bay, his 59 goals and 55 assists in 45 games also displayed his offensive abilities.

On defense, the Isles were most impressive, Petr Svoboda is a main reason why, he kept himself out of the penalty box this season and stayed responsible in his own end, even though he only potted 5 goals, he managed to rack up a team leading 72 assists to spark the rush from the back end. Brian Leetch was nearly as impressive, his 65 points displays his ability to also back start the offense from his defensive position, his solid passing and puck handeling helped bring a calming presence to tough situations in the defensive zone.

Curtis Joseph has really changed the feel of this team. Last year the Isles tried to run and gun and out score every team in every game. Joseph allowed the Isles to play a bit more defensively and patient this season and was able to hold the fort down on many occasions, his .709 sv% is among the lead leaders, and his GAA is just as impressive. He also contributed 41 assists, giving the Isles even more offence.

As for the reserves, Nikolai Borshevsky's 29 points in spot starting duty helped aide the offense as well, Neil Wilkinson and Jim Johnson had their moments as well on the back line when they were called into duty.

While past GDL champions have not been built in the mold of the Islanders, they will do their best to try and buck the trend by bringing the GDL 4 championship to Long Island.