Islanders Notebook: Martin plays well, Tavares honored
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Matt Moulson’s words served a dual purpose.
He wanted to praise Matt Martin’s effort while condemning the Islanders’ lack thereof.
“I don’t think anybody played well except for Matt Martin,” Moulson said after the 7-0 loss to the Flyers Monday afternoon at the Coliseum. The fourth-line left wing was credited with a shot and four hits during his 10:56 of ice time. Martin also fought Wayne Simmonds in the second period and paired off with Braydon Coburn with 1:27 left in the game.
Martin and linemates Corey Cizikas and Colin McDonald had been praised by head coach Jack Capuano for their play in the Islanders wins over the Rangers [4-3 in the shootout at The Garden last Thursday] and the Devils [5-1 at the Coliseum Saturday night].
Philly hierarchy safe for now
Philadelphia is a demanding city, home of an underperforming franchise with high expectations and with a star player criticizing his team’s effort.
Normally, that is a formula for personnel changes. But for the moment, it appears as if Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren and head coach Peter Laviolette are safe.
Peter Luukko, the president of Comcast-Spectator, the corporate entity that owns the Flyers, told the Philadelphia Inquirer on Sunday the job statuses of Holmgren and Laviolette is “not an issue.”
“We just need to be patient,” Luukko said. “To even think the general manager or coach are in trouble [is false].”
Following a 103-point season in 2011-12, the Flyers entered the shortened season with Cup aspirations. However, the Flyers are just 7-9-1 and captain Claude Giroux told reporters after a dispiriting 4-1 loss to the Canadiens in Montreal Saturday night that “we’re just going through the motions.”
Tavares honored
The NHL named John Tavares the first star of the week before the game. He totaled seven points (five goals and two assists) in three games last week. Ducks goaltender Viktor Fasth and Hurricanes center Jiri Tlusty were the second and third stars, respectively. The Islanders left after the game for Ottawa. They will play the Senators tonight. Expect Rick DiPietro to make his third start of the season. He is 0-2-0 with a .842 save percentage and 4.60 goals against average.
Follow NHL beat writer Denis Gorman on Twitter @DenisGorman.
