Hello everyone, my name is Ryan Seibert, and I currently reside in Nashville, TN. I’m a huge Islanders fan, as my Father has been an Islanders fan all his life being from Long Island. This segment on Drive 4 Five will give a monthly report on how the isles are doing. So, for all the fans who lost track of how the team is doing, or to the fans who watch every minute of every game, this will give everyone a feel for what’s going on with the organization as a whole.
The 17-18 season got off to an awful start for the Islanders. Remember when they completely embarrassed themselves against the Columbus Blue Jackets to start the season? Seems like a long time ago compared to where they are now with their most recent win against the Vegas Golden Knights.
The Islanders are currently 7-4-1, and maintain the first wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. Though they aren’t one of the hottest teams right now, the team is off to a much better start than they were last year. Led by John Tavares, who recently escaped an early season slump, the Isles have knocked off two of the leagues more challenging teams with six goals in both games.
Now my question is, what is the team doing different? At first, like most fans, I thought the team’s power play was atrocious, and Weight’s line up decisions were just as bad as Capuano’s used to be. Somehow, the team is still winning, even if Ho-Sang was sent to the AHL and Pulock hasn’t gotten near enough playing time. So where is the recent success coming from? For starters, the former first line from last year (Lee-Tavares-Bailey) has been put back together, and they have had great success in the last few games. Another contribution is the play of Jaroslav Halak. While Greiss has struggled, Halak has had the hot hand (The only time I take Greiss over Halak is when Halak tries to play the puck…). Another reason for the Islanders success is the newfound success of the power play. The Islanders scored three power-play goals against the Nashville Predators and also scored twice with man advantage against Vegas, even though they did concede a shorthanded goal.
While the Isles had a successful October, they have to keep the momentum going. Their first matchup in November is against the Washington Capitals, who haven’t had the best of starts other than Alex Ovechkin’s goal column. The Islanders will need to keep the high level of play up. Hopefully Ho-Sang can still find his way back into the lineup and Pulock will continue to show that he deserves more playing time.
If anyone agrees or disagrees or has any questions, please feel free to contact me about anything I can add or subtract to this new segment on Drive 4 Five.  @ryanseibert

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