Belated thoughts on Isles Day 1 of UFA

Once day one of Free Agency came and went, I had to hurry up and finish packing to head out to the beautiful state of Arizona. So, I never had the chance to give my thoughts on the Islanders day one signings aside from the thoughts on Twitter.

The Islanders signed three new players on July 1: Brad Boyes, Matt Carkner and Eric Boulton.

Let's start going through the signings in chronological order.

UFA: Potential Isles Targets?

Sunday the calendar changes to July 1st, a day which holds special meaning for NHL fans across North America. By the end of the day some fans will have shiny new toys they can talk about and analyze to their hearts content until training camps (hopefully) open up in September.

For Isles fans in particular, unfortunately the day never brings much excitement. Even Sean and myself have found ourselves getting our hopes up at times in past years only to be disappointed. Regardless of that, every team has holes and they try and fill them via free agency. The Islanders already filled one hole in their trade for Lubomir Visnovsky at the draft. But what about some of the other holes?

Isles Win on Secondary Scoring, Strong Goaltending

All season long one of the Islanders' biggest issues had been getting offensive support from players not named John Tavares, Matt Moulson or P.A. Parenteau. Over the last couple of weeks that's slowly gotten better. On Tuesday night in Pittsburgh, it was the best we had seen it in quite some time.

Devils Stun Islanders

Sometimes it only takes a couple of minutes for a game to go completely South, and a much needed two points can turn into walking away empty handed.

Or, it may only just take 14 seconds.

Isles Stop Skid in Boston; NYI FYI Show Sunday

The Islanders hadn't fared well against the Bruins this season, and haven't done particularly well on the road as of late. Set to return home for a Sunday matinee against the New Jersey Devils, the Islanders were looking for any positives they could take back to Long Island with them. They were able to get a few.

Isles Win Over Rangers; Rolston Waived; NYI FYI on Sunday

The Islanders latest test came from one of the NHL's top teams and their division rivals, the New York Rangers. On the surface, this game had the makings of a very tough match-up.

But the Islanders got some good news a day before the game when it was announced that both Travis Hamonic and Evgeni Nabokov would be returning to the lineup. Both were integral parts in helping the Islanders to a 4-3 shootout win over their rivals.

Isles Fall Short in Buffalo; Nabokov, Hamonic Return to Practice; Wallace Waived

The Buffalo Sabres have been playing some good hockey of late, and unfortunately it was the Islanders turn to go up against them.

While the Islanders played a much better game, and brought up the intensity a bit, they still were on the losing end in a tough 2-1 decision.

Isles Shutdown Jets

The Islanders couldn't quite get the job done Sunday afternoon, leaving everyone a bit subdued with the team embarking on a very difficult two game road trip in Winnipeg and St. Louis.

The Jets had a solid home record, and were eight games over .500 and one over on the season overall.

Eaton Scores Winner for Isles in Ottawa

The Islanders were successfully able to walk away with two points from a team that normally gives them headaches. After going to overtime, they got the winning goal from an unlikely source, however.

Mark Eaton put the puck past Craig Anderson, who was completely fooled by Eaton's spin-o-rama backhand shot (pass?) after a really nice pass by Milan Jurcina.

Tavares Picks Up Where He Left Off

I didn't get a chance to write over the weekend as it was happening, but John Tavares did a fantastic job of representing the Islanders in Ottawa during the All-Star break. He had some neat moves in the shootouts on Saturday during the Skills Competition, and was one of the final shooters in the last breakaway portion of the event.

Leafs Get Help to Defeat Isles in OT

As if things weren't already tough heading into Tuesday night's game for the New York Islanders, their opponents would end up getting help - and a lot of it.

To say that the officiating was a disgrace is putting it kindly. For those of you who have frequented this space over the years, you know it's not something we usually harp on, even in other games where it's been bad. I know for myself, I'm a staunch believer that these things even out, and that missed penalties are one of the adversities that good teams overcome.

Opportunity Missed

Coming off of the 2-1 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday night, the Islanders had a chance to do something special. Going on the road for the first part of a home-and-home series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Isles could have made up a ton of ground on the bottom half of the Eastern Conference playoff picture.

So much for that momentum.

Finally! A Win in Philadelphia

On Thursday night, the Islanders went into a building that hasn't been kind to them. But a funny thing happened, one that the Flyers have not been used to the last few years. That's right - the Islanders won a game in Philadelphia.

It was their first win at the Wachovia Center since April of 2007. Many Isles fans will remember that as the second to last game of the 2006-07 season, and the third of four straight wins to close out the season and clinch the final playoff spot.

Islanders not Intimidated on Road by Captials

Have you ever seen two Jekyll and Hyde performances in a row as much as we've seen with the New York Islanders? On Tuesday night, the Islanders tweaked some areas and came out in a completely different manner than they did in the game on Monday afternoon.

Isles Bend, Break but Escape with Win Over Canes

It's safe to say that the Islanders were hoping the start of 2012 would have gone much better than it did. But in a game that Scott Allen said had a few "peaks and valleys," the Islanders ended up getting the end result they wanted all along, even if it looked unlikely for a decent part of the game.

The Islanders were resilient, despite giving up a ton of shots, and were able to come back and win in a shootout.

Isles Finish 2011 on High Note

As we watched 2011 come to a close, we saw more of what had been good for the New York Islanders during the calendar year - strong play against opponents from the Western Conference.

On Saturday afternoon, the Islanders had one of their better games in the past couple of weeks. They provided offensive output for Evgeni Nabokov, and didn't let some weak defensive plays at the beginning of the game get to them.

Isles, Nabokov Snap Funk to End Calgary's Streak

The Calgary Flames entered Thursday night's game with a four game winning streak. Meanwhile, the Islanders went in on a three game losing streak, with two of those losses coming at the hands of their rivals from New York City. One thing that the Islanders did have going for them was the fact that this was a Western Conference opponent.

At this rate, the Islanders may want to petition the league to have them play in one of the Western conferences when relocation happens next season.

Isles Sleepwalk at MSG

The Islanders had a shot at redemption on Monday night against the New York Rangers, but ended up failing in their attempt.

Neither team got a lot of shots in early, but the Islanders looked disinterested and disoriented at various point of the game. They really could have done themselves a favor and taken advantage early on as the Rangers tried to find their game, but they didn't.

Isles Can't Sustain Momentum against Rangers

Any time the Islanders and Rangers get together, you sort of know what to expect. A good effort from both teams, with each alternating momentum and a close score.

Thursday night was already different right off the bat, however, as Henrik Lundqvist sat in favor of Martin Biron. It was the fist time in the past 16 contests against the Rangers that the Islanders would not face the star net minder.

Isles First Trip to New Winnipeg A Success

The Islanders made their first trip to Winnipeg since 1996, and it turned out well for them, and better than I actually expected it to.

Both teams came out pretty strong offensively for the beginning of the game, with neither looking too strong on defense.