Islanders-Senators: Ottawa the Cure for What Plagues New York

"You can't beat us!" The chant cascading down from Section 317 Saturday night at the Coliseum was ironic, but true. The Islanders were on their way to their third-straight victory over the Ottawa Senators this season, a win that snapped a two-game losing streak that had knocked the Isles off their five-wins-in-six roll. Yes, the Senators, a team that has positively owned the Islanders in recent years, have now become the Islanders' whipping boys. The Sens are having a bad season, just a point ahead of the awful Thrashers for fewest in the NHL as of Tuesday night. The Islanders aren't that far ahead point-wise, but considering the talent differential between the clubs, the Senators' standing is surprising. I was at the game, sitting in Section 218 thanks to my friends Tom and Mike, who invited me to enjoy a game from a vantage point even better than the one I enjoy in the Blog Box (thanks, guys). Midway through the Islanders' awful second period, I commented that the Isles have a bunch of good, ... (link)