The New York Islanders will look to overcome internal drama and end a poor run at home when the team faces off against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night.
The Islanders started off a seven game homestand with two poor losses against the Carolina Hurricanes and Boston Bruins. The first saw the team blow a 2-0 lead that Coach Jack Capuano claimed the team did not deserve. The second saw the team out played by a superior Bruins squad on national television. "We competed hard," Capuano said after the loss. "That's one of the best teams that we're going to play and I give our guys credit. We did a lot of good things. A couple breakdowns cost us some goals. We were in the penalty box for a while in the second period."
The losses have not been the only sore point for the squad however. Former goalkeeper Rick DiPIetro spoke to the media on Thursday for the first time since being demoted to the AHL and had a few controversial comments to make. DiPietro told Kevin Maher of News 12 that he "admitted injuries, losing and fan hatred over the past 3 years made him think about killing himself at one point." He also stated that when he heard about being waived he felt like, "they ripped my heart out, stabbed it, set it on fire and flushed it down the toilet." Follow up reports indicated that the keeper was joking and the Islanders website issued a report on the incident and stated that the team would deal with the issue internally.
The Maple Leafs are coming off a tough 5-2 loss in they gave up three third period goals after holding Montreal to a 2-2 draw. "We were flat, flat, flat, flat," Maple Leafs coach Randy Carlyle said after the loss. "At times it looked like we were in boots and they were on skates."
This is the second meeting of the two teams. The Islanders took the first meeting 7-4 in the Air Canada Centre.
Predictions: New York wins this game 4-2.
Start Time: 7 PM EST
TV: SNET-O, MSG PLUS
Watch Live Stream HERE.
Follow Live Score HERE.