Open Season

For the second straight game, the Islanders offence exploded, as the hometown team beat the visitng Anaheim Ducks 7-1. Joe Sakic was the 1^st star of the game, recording a goal and 3 assists. The 4 point night moved him into the league lead, with 17 points in 9 games.

Stanislav Chistov was the 2^nd star of the night, with a pair of goals from the fourth line. Coach Lorne Henning was impressed with the youngsters dedication. “When Stani came here (acquired from the Minnesota Wild in a trade for Matt Jones and Lenoid Zvachkin), I made it clear to him that his ice time was going to drop dramatically from his previous seasons. He`s an up and coming forward, but is stuck behind some great talent. He has handled it well, and has been a source of energy for out 4<sup>th</sup> line.” Chistov himself is happy with his situatution. “Are you kidding me? This club has won 3 cups in 5 years. When I heard that I`d been traded to The Isles, I was very excited. To have a chance at winning the Stanley Cup, I`d play 2 minutes a night as GOALIE!”

Zdeno Chara was the 3^rd star of the game, as he had 3 assists and had 3 hits on the night.

There were several other Islanders who just as easily could have been named as stars, as Mike Peca had 3 assists, and rookie Timofei Shishkanov also registered 3 helpers.

Goalie David Aebischer looked sharp again, as he stopped 22 of 23 shots, and shut the Ducks out in the second period when they outshot New York 11-7. “The guys in front of me aren`t going to score 7 goals every night. The past few games, I`ve been a little shaky, however tonight I was seeing the puck well, and keeping control of rebounds. I`m going to need to continue to play like this to stay competitive in this conference.

Ice Chips

Up next for the Islanders, the Edmonton Oilers come to town. The Oilers come in unbeaten in 3 games, and goaltender Ty Conklin has played great in limited action. Tim Thomas is expected to start for the Islanders, as David Aebischer will get the following start against The Penguins. In his lone start this year, Thomas stopped 28 of 32 shots, earning the win against the L.A. Kings.