2006–07 New York Islanders season

The 2006–07 New York Islanders season was the 35th season in the franchise's history. They qualified for the playoffs in the last game of the regular season. They lost to the Buffalo Sabres in the first round, 4–1.

2006–07 New York Islanders
Division4th Atlantic
Conference8th Eastern
2006–07 record40–30–12
Home record22–13–6
Road record18–17–6
Goals for248
Goals against240
Team information
General managerGarth Snow
CoachTed Nolan
CaptainAlexei Yashin
Alternate captainsMike Sillinger
Brendan Witt
ArenaNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Average attendance12,886 (capacity 16,234)
Team leaders
GoalsJason Blake (40)
AssistsTom Poti (38)
PointsJason Blake (69)
Penalty minutesBrendan Witt (131)
Plus/minusRadek Martinek (+19)
WinsRick DiPietro (32)
Goals against averageWade Dubielewicz (2.06)

Regular season

After the Islanders' upper management cleaned out the team's front office during the 2005–06 season, owner Charles Wang needed to find a new coach and general manager (GM). Initially, he hired Ted Nolan as coach and Neil Smith as GM, but Smith was removed after a few weeks on the job. Wang envisioned team management making decisions by committee, and Smith was uncomfortable working without the large amount of control that NHL managers usually have. Wang hired Garth Snow, who was the team's backup goalie the prior year, to take over. Pat LaFontaine, who had intended to return to the team as senior advisor to the owner, resigned the post the same day that Smith was fired. Reports indicated that LaFontaine decided the fit was not right for him after Wang ignored his advice to wait a few days before making a final decision about Smith.[1]

Prior to Smith's firing, the Islanders made several free agent acquisitions, including defensemen Brendan Witt and Tom Poti and forwards Mike Sillinger and Chris Simon. Andy Hilbert, Sean Hill, Viktor Kozlov and Richard Park signed on after Smith was dismissed. Additionally, in a controversial move, the Islanders signed goaltender Rick DiPietro to a 15-year, $67.5 million contract, among the longest in professional sports history.[2]

The Islanders opened the season on a losing streak, but then began to play well enough to temporarily move into first place in the Atlantic Division by December. On December 16, 2006, the Islanders traded Alexei Zhitnik to the Philadelphia Flyers for defenseman Freddy Meyer and a conditional third round draft pick.[3] On December 20, they then traded forward Mike York to the Flyers for forward Randy Robitaille and a fifth-round pick in 2008.[4]

Starting at the end of December, the Islanders went on a seven-game losing streak, which ended with a victory over the Rangers. Since then, the Islanders hovered around the last playoff spot. In advance of the February NHL trade deadline, the Isles made a pair of deals with the Edmonton Oilers. On February 18, 2007, the Islanders traded defense prospect Denis Grebeshkov for defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron and a third-round pick in 2008.

Sitting in sixth place in the Eastern Conference at the trade deadline, the team sent a first-round draft pick and prospects Robert Nilsson and Ryan O'Marra to the Oilers for NHL All-Star Ryan Smyth and acquired Richard Zednik for a second-round pick.[5] However, the team suffered a series of losses down the stretch. Journalists cited two reasons for the team's apparent demise: Chris Simon's suspension for striking Ryan Hollweg with his stick, and Rick DiPietro's multiple concussions, which forced him to miss several crucial games. Backup goaltender Mike Dunham had several poor showings with DiPietro out, which prompted the team to call on third-stringer Wade Dubielewicz, who fared better.

Entering into the last four games of the season, the Islanders play had improved, but a playoff spot still appeared out of reach. However, the team won each game and received some help from the Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs, who failed to win enough games to edge the Isles out. The Isles clinched with a shootout win over the New Jersey Devils, in which Dubielewicz poke-checked Sergei Brylin to secure the victory.[6] The team expressed pride that they qualified because many NHL preview predictions had the Isles slated to finish at or near the bottom of the standings. They lost their first round matchup with the Buffalo Sabres, however, the NHL's best team during the regular season, in five games.

Season standings
Atlantic Division
No. CR GP W L OTL GF GA Pts
12New Jersey Devils8249249216201107
25Pittsburgh Penguins82472411277246105
36New York Rangers8242301024221694
48New York Islanders8240301224824092
515Philadelphia Flyers8222481221430356

[7]

Note: No. = Division rank, CR = Conference rank, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points
       Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Eastern Conference[8]
R Div GP W L OTL GF GA Pts
1 P - Buffalo SabresNE8253227308242113
2 Y - New Jersey DevilsAT8249249216201107
3 Y - Atlanta ThrashersSE8243281124624597
4 X - Ottawa SenatorsNE8248259288222105
5 X - Pittsburgh PenguinsAT82472411277246105
6 X - New York RangersAT8242301024221694
7 X - Tampa Bay LightningSE824433525326193
8 X - New York IslandersAT8240301224824092
8.5
9 Toronto Maple LeafsNE8240311125826991
10 Montreal CanadiensNE824234624525690
11 Carolina HurricanesSE824034824125388
12 Florida PanthersSE8235311624725786
13 Boston BruinsNE823541621928976
14 Washington CapitalsSE8228401423528670
15 Philadelphia FlyersAT8222481221430356
Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast

P – Clinched Presidents Trophy; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot

Schedule and results

October
#DateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPts
1October 5NY Islanders3 – 6PhoenixDiPietro15,3010–1–00
2October 7NY Islanders0 – 2San JoseDiPietro17,4960–2–00
3October 10NY Islanders2 – 4Los AngelesDiPietro14,3940–3–00
4October 11NY Islanders5 – 4AnaheimSODunham12,3941–3–02
5October 14Boston1 – 4NY IslandersDunham14,7322–3–04
6October 16Nashville2 – 1NY IslandersSODunham9,4312–3–15
7October 19Pittsburgh4 – 3NY IslandersOTDunham10,2582–3–26
8October 21Carolina3 – 4NY IslandersOTDiPietro12,3493–3–28
9October 26Buffalo3 – 0NY IslandersDiPietro8,8613–4–28
10October 28Florida3 – 4NY IslandersSODiPietro10,4554–4–210
11October 31Chicago2 – 5NY IslandersDiPietro8,7395–4–212

November
#DateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPts
12November 2NY Islanders5 – 2New JerseyDiPietro8,2696–4–214
13November 4Atlanta4 – 1NY IslandersDiPietro12,3946–5–214
14November 6Tampa Bay5 – 1NY IslandersDunham9,6936–6–214
15November 9NY Islanders3 – 1PhiladelphiaDiPietro18,6567–6–216
16November 15NY Islanders3 – 0DallasDiPietro17,6437–7–216
17November 17NY Islanders2 – 3Tampa BaySODiPietro19,9197–7–317
18November 18NY Islanders4 – 1FloridaDunham16,8338–7–319
19November 20NY Islanders2 – 4TorontoDiPietro19,3928–8–319
20November 22Carolina2 – 4NY IslandersDiPietro12,4199–8–321
21November 24Pittsburgh1 – 3NY IslandersDiPietro15,62510–8–323
22November 25Washington1 – 4NY IslandersDiPietro13,21411–8–325
23November 28NY Islanders2 – 3PittsburghDiPietro17,08212–8–327
24November 30Philadelphia3 – 2NY IslandersDunham10,28012–9–327

December
#DateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPts
25December 2NY Islanders5 – 3PittsburghDiPietro17,02513–9–329
26December 3NY Islanders7 – 4NY RangersDiPietro18,20014–9–331
27December 5Ottawa4 – 2NY IslandersDunham8,74114–10–331
28December 7Montreal4 – 2NY IslandersDiPietro9,55114–11–331
29December 9Florida4 – 5NY IslandersSODiPietro12,82515–11–333
30December 15NY Islanders4 – 7PittsburghDiPietro17,02815–12–333
31December 16Atlanta0 – 6NY IslandersDiPietro10,45216–12–335
32December 19NY Islanders4 – 3NY RangersDiPietro18,20017–12–337
33December 22NY Islanders1 – 5CarolinaDiPietro18,25217–13–337
34December 23Columbus0 – 4NY IslandersDiPietro11,79718–13–339
35December 26NY Rangers0 – 2NY IslandersDiPietro16,23419–13–341
36December 27NY Islanders0 – 2OttawaDiPietro20,19219–14–341
37December 30New Jersey2 – 0NY IslandersDiPietro16,23419–15–341

January
#DateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPts
38January 1NY Islanders1 – 3BuffaloDiPietro18,69019–16–341
39January 2Philadelphia3 – 2NY IslandersDunham10,46119–17–341
40January 4NY Islanders3 – 4New JerseyDiPietro12,52919–18–341
41January 6NY Islanders2 – 4CarolinaDiPietro18,63919–19–341
42January 9NY Islanders5 – 3NY RangersDiPietro18,20020–19–343
43January 11NY Islanders5 – 4BostonSODiPietro13,52921–19–345
44January 13New Jersey2 – 1NY IslandersOTDiPietro16,23421–19–446
45January 15Tampa Bay4 – 3NY IslandersDiPietro15,42621–20–446
46January 16NY Islanders2 – 5PittsburghDunham16,95821–21–446
47January 18NY Islanders4 – 2PhiladelphiaDiPietro19,11822–21–448
48January 26NY Islanders4 – 5AtlantaOTDunham18,08922–21–549
49January 27Buffalo3 – 5NY IslandersDiPietro15,21823–21–551
50January 30Detroit3 – 4NY IslandersOTDiPietro12,32223–21–652

February
#DateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPts
51February 1NY Islanders5 – 2AtlantaDunham13,54324–21–654
52February 3NY Islanders4 – 2MontrealDiPietro21,27325–21–656
53February 4NY Islanders1 – 2WashingtonSODiPietro12,50825–21–757
54February 7Philadelphia0 – 2NY IslandersDiPietro10,22926–21–759
55February 8NY Islanders0 – 2New JerseyDiPietro10,11026–22–759
56February 10NY Islanders3 – 4BostonSODiPietro16,85426–21–860
57February 13NY Islanders3 – 2TorontoSODiPietro19,60027–21–862
58February 15Boston1 – 4NY IslandersDiPietro10,07928–22–864
59February 17New Jersey2 – 0NY IslandersDiPietro15,22328–23–864
60February 19Pittsburgh5 – 6NY IslandersDiPietro15,47229–23–866
61February 22Toronto2 – 3NY IslandersSODiPietro11,75930–23–868
62February 24Montreal2 – 3NY IslandersDiPietro16,23431–23–870
63February 27Philadelphia5 – 6NY IslandersDiPietro11,44332–23–872

March
#DateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPts
64March 1St. Louis3 – 2NY IslandersOTDiPietro12,26332–23–973
65March 3NY Islanders6 – 2WashingtonDiPietro16,45333–23–975
66March 5NY Islanders1 – 2NY RangersSODiPietro18,20033–23–1076
67March 8NY Rangers2 – 1NY IslandersDiPietro16,23433–24–1076
68March 10Washington2 – 5NY IslandersDiPietro15,76434–24–1078
69March 13NY Islanders3 – 5MontrealDunham21,27334–25–1078
70March 15NY Islanders1 – 5OttawaDunham19,98934–26–1078
71March 17NY Islanders5 – 8FloridaDunham17,07834–27–1078
72March 20NY Islanders3 – 4Tampa BayOTDiPietro19,91634–27–1179
73March 22Pittsburgh1 – 3NY IslandersDiPietro14,57435–27–1181
74March 24NY Islanders4 – 3PhiladelphiaDiPietro19,42236–27–1183
75March 25NY Islanders1 – 2NY RangersOTDiPietro16,23436–27–1284
76March 27New Jersey2 – 3NY IslandersDunham13,33736–28–1284
77March 30NY Islanders4 – 6BuffaloDunham18,69036–29–1284
78March 31Ottawa5 – 2NY IslandersDubielewicz15,59836–30–1284

April
#DateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPts
79April 3NY Rangers2 – 3NY IslandersSODubielewicz15,59137–30–1286
80April 5Toronto2 – 5NY IslandersDubielewicz14,35238–30–1288
81April 7NY Islanders4 – 2PhiladelphiaDubielewicz19,41239–30–1290
82April 8NY Islanders3 – 2New JerseySODubielewicz18,11140–30–1292
  • Green background indicates win.
  • Red background indicates regulation loss.
  • White background indicates overtime/shootout loss.

Playoffs
Main article: 2007 Stanley Cup Playoffs

The New York Islanders earned the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.

Eastern Conference Quarter-finals: vs. (1) Buffalo Sabres

Buffalo wins series 4–1

#DateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceSeries
1April 12NY Islanders1 – 4BuffaloDubielewicz18,6900 – 1
2April 14NY Islanders3 – 2BuffaloDiPietro18,6901 – 1
3April 16Buffalo3 – 2NY IslandersDiPietro16,2341 – 2
4April 18Buffalo4 – 2NY IslandersDiPietro16,2341 – 3
5April 20NY Islanders3 – 4BuffaloDiPietro18,6901 – 4

Player stats

Regular season
Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Jason BlakeC824029693411407
Miroslav SatanLW8127325946-12712
Mike SillingerC822633594651123
Viktor KozlovC812526512812504
Alexei YashinC58183250446503
Tom PotiD786384474-1601
Trent HunterRW77201535225512
Andy HilbertC/LW81820283410001
Chris SimonLW671017277517200
Richard ParkRW82101626334022
Sean HillD81124251106000
Arron AshamRW80111223633002
Randy RobitailleC506172322-2101
Marc-Andre BergeronD2361521105401
Radek MartinekD43215174019000
Ryan SmythLW1851015140100
Chris CampoliD511131423-3000
Brendan WittD811131413114000
Mike YorkLW32671314-9201
Alexei ZhitnikD3029114013001
Shawn BatesC4846103413010
Jeff TambelliniLW2327966000
Bruno GervaisD5106628-10000
Richard ZednikRW101232-2000
Freddy MeyerD35033240000
Frans NielsenC151120-2001
Rick DiPietroG62022240000
Drew FataD31015-2000
Mike DunhamG1901100000
Allan RourkeD1101140000
Eric BogunieckiC1100080000
Jeremy CollitonC10000-1000
Blake ComeauRW300000000
Wade DubielewiczG800000000
Deron QuintD500000000
Steve RegierLW100000000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T/OT GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Rick DiPietro362762321991562.58519171761.919
Wade Dubielewicz3798410132.060198185.934
Mike Dunham979194103613.740552491.889
Team:4985824030122302.77526672437.914

Playoffs
Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Ryan SmythLW513441000
Trent HunterRW530301000
Jason BlakeC51232-2000
Miroslav SatanLW512300000
Tom PotiD503360000
Marc-Andre BergeronD511261101
Chris CampoliD51122-1000
Bruno GervaisD51122-2000
Mike SillingerC51122-1100
Viktor KozlovC50222-2000
Randy RobitailleC50228-5000
Arron AshamRW51010-3000
Richard ParkRW501120000
Brendan WittD50116-3000
Rick DiPietroG400000000
Wade DubielewiczG100000000
Drew FataD10000-2000
Andy HilbertC/LW50002-1000
Sean HillD40000-1000
Alexei YashinC500000000
Richard ZednikRW50008-1000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Rick DiPietro236413133.310127114.898
Wade Dubielewicz5910144.0703531.886
Team:295514173.460162145.895

[9]

Note:
Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

Transactions

Trades
October 25, 2006 To New York Islanders
Eric Boguniecki		 To Columbus Blue Jackets
Ryan Caldwell
December 16, 2006 To New York Islanders
Freddy Meyer
conditional 3rd round pick in 2007		 To Philadelphia Flyers
Alexei Zhitnik
December 20, 2006 To New York Islanders
Randy Robitaille
5th round pick in 2008		 To Philadelphia Flyers
Mike York
January 5, 2007 To New York Islanders
Tomas Malec		 To Ottawa Senators
Matt Koalska
February 18, 2007 To New York Islanders
Marc-Andre Bergeron
3rd round pick in 2008		 To Edmonton Oilers
Denis Grebeshkov
February 26, 2007 To New York Islanders
Richard Zednik		 To Washington Capitals
2nd round pick in 2007
February 27, 2007 To New York Islanders
Ryan Smyth		 To Edmonton Oilers
Ryan O'Marra
Robert Nilsson
1st round pick in 2007

Acquisitions
PlayerFormer Team
F Mike SillingerNashville Predators
D Brendan WittNashville Predators
F Andy HilbertPittsburgh Penguins
D Tom PotiNew York Rangers
F Chris SimonCalgary Flames
D Rick BerryNashville Predators
D Sean HillFlorida Panthers
F Viktor KozlovNew Jersey Devils
G Mike DunhamAtlanta Thrashers
D Richard ParkVancouver Canucks

Departures
PlayerNew Team
F Wyatt SmithMinnesota Wild
F Eric GodardCalgary Flames
D John ErskineWashington Capitals
F Jeff HamiltonChicago Blackhawks

Draft picks

The Islanders' picks at the 2006 NHL Entry Draft in Vancouver, British Columbia.[10]

Round # Player Position Nationality College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1 7 Kyle Okposo Right Wing  United States Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL)
2 60 Jesse Joensuu Wing  Finland Assat (SM-liiga)
3 70 Robin Figren Wing  Sweden Frolunda HC (Elitserien)
4 100 Rhett Rakhshani Right Wing  United States University of Denver (NCAA) /US National Team Development Program (NAHL)
4 108 Jase Weslosky Goalie  Canada Sherwood Park Crusaders (AJHL)
4 115 Tomas Marcinko Center  Slovakia HC Kosice (Slovak Extraliga)
4 119 Doug Rogers Center  United States Saint Sebastian's School (Independent School League)
5 141 Kim Johansson Wing  Sweden Malmo Redhawks Jr.
6 160 Andrew MacDonald Defenceman  Canada Moncton Wildcats (QMJHL)
6 171 Brian Day Right Wing  United States Governor Dummer (Independent School League)
6 173 Stefan Ridderwall Goalie  Sweden Djurgardens IF Jr. (J20)
7 190 Troy Mattila Left Wing  United States Springfield Jr. Blues (NAHL)

See also

References
  1. "Lafontaine leaves post as senior advisor" Mark Hermann, Newsday, July 19, 2006
  2. "DiPietro Signed to Fifteen Year Deal". Newyorkislanders.com. Archived from the original on October 4, 2006. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
  3. http://www.newyorkislanders.com/pressbox/archive.asp?id=1247%5B%5D
  4. TSN : NHL - Canada's Sports Leader
  5. "Oilers trade forward Smyth to Islanders". tsn.ca. Archived from the original on March 2, 2007. Retrieved February 27, 2007.
  6. New York Islanders - News: ISLANDERS 3, NEW JERSEY 2, SO - 04/08/2007
  7. Standings: NHL Public Relations Department (2008). Dave McCarthy; et al. (eds.). THE NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE Official Guide & Record Book/2009. National Hockey League. p. 157. ISBN 978-1-894801-14-0.
  8. "2006–2007 Standings by Conference". National Hockey League. Retrieved March 26, 2012.
  9. "2006-07 New York Islanders Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved 2009-06-15.
  10. 2006 NHL Entry Draft Results nhl.com - accessed December 9, 2006
2006–07 New York Islanders Roster

Goaltenders:

1 – Dunham • 34 – Dubielewicz • 39 – DiPietro 

Defensemen

3 – Poti • 4 – Bouchard • 6 – Hill • 8 – Gervais • 14 – Campoli • 21 – Quint • 24 – Martínek • 32 – Witt • 38 – Rourke • 44 – Meyer • 47 – Bergeron • 49 – Fata 

Forwards

7 – Hunter • 10 – Park • 11 – Hilbert • 12 – Simon • 15 – Tambellini • 17 – Bates • 18 – Sillinger • 20 – Zednik • 25 – Kozlov • 27 – Robitaille • 45 – Asham • 48 – Regier • 51 – Nielsen • 55 – Blake • 79 – Yashin • 81 – Satan • 94 – Smyth 

General Manager: Garth Snow •  Coach: Ted Nolan

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