Last night the Islanders defeated the high scoring Pittsburgh Penquins 4-1. The Penguins were without hall of famer Mario Lemieux, who did not make the trip, and might as well have been without Jaromir Jagr much of the game since the Islander defense did of great job of making him a non-factor.
Champ:
Chris Terreri who made 35 saves on 36 shots. The lone goal followed a nice save off the left post, and some strange bounces, deflections, etc. of the puck following the save.
Chump:
Mario Lemieux for not making the trip. While it is understandable that he wants to rest before entering the playoffs, it would have been great to see arguably the best player in hockey in action.
Who lit the fire under ......?
For starters, there is
Oleg Kvasha
who has been playing like the player Milbury must have fallen in love with during Kvasha's time in Florida. He's been using his size, speed and stick handling ability to create havoc and scoring chances. It's finally becoming a pleasure to watch him play.Then there is
Eric Cairns
, who after not having a fight all season (which is surprising, even with all the injuries he's had to endure), has been involved in fights in both of the last two games.Let us not forget
Mariusz Czerkawski
who dropped the gloves the other day, almost getting in another altercation last night. Is this frustration, or is it something more?
Check back next week, when we offer our end of the year awards.