Despite John Tavares scoring his first NHL goal, the Islanders still fell victim to the power of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Regardless of the loss, the game did show one thing: both the team and their fans are serious this year.
Playing to a sold out Coliseum crowd, the Islanders came out strong for the first two periods with goals by Tavares and Hunter. Unfortunately, the Penguins retaliated to take the lead. Mark Streit tied it up in the third leading the Islanders into overtime and, eventually, a shoot out... where the Islanders fell despite the efforts of Tambellini and Tavares.
More astounding than the excitement of the game was the reaction of the crowd when Tavares scored his first NHL goal. The 16,000 fans at Nassau Coliseum might've reacted the same if the Islanders had won the Stanley Cup that moment. With fulfilled anticipation and ecstasy, Islanders fans celebrated with the tenacity of lottery winners.
If this brand of tenacity and excitement continues amongst both the fans and team, this blogger knows that the season will only get better. A winning team is only half of what makes a sport fun to both attend and play, the other part is having a group of people to get behind the team, to support, to cheer, and, every now and again, erupt into an orgasmic outpour of energy for one single event.
Those single events are sure to be on the horizon as the season unfolds.
(photo courtesy of Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
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