Forever1940's Stat Trick

1. The first place Isles have now won consecutive games that they trailed after
two periods (both in regulation time). They are now 2-3-0 when trailing after
40 minutes and, going back to last January, are 7-11-1 in the last nineteen
games that they've trailed after two periods.

2. Miro Satan now has 26 career goals against the Rangers in his career -- more
than any other NHLer against the Rangers since Satan entered the league.

3. The Isles are now 8-1-2 in their last 11 games against the Rangers, matching
the best 11-game stretches in club history (done most recently during the
dynasty days).

and some more...

4. Chris Drury's pp goal was only the fourth goal of any kind that the Rangers
have scored in the second period this season.

5. Is it the return of Fort Neverlose? The Isles are 6-2 at home, and have
earned 12 points in their first eight home games. This equals their best home
start since opening 7-1 at home in 1986.

6. The Rangers are 0-5-1 on the road. It's the first time in 55 years that the
Rangers have only one point in their first six road games.

This ridiculously strange schedule has had the Isles playing so infrequently
that it almost seems like they are not in the NHL. In fact, when the Isles take
to the ice on Saturday, it will be 5 weeks and 1 day (36 days) after they opened
the season in Buffalo.

Only once before have the Isles taken that long to reach game 13. In 1999, the
Isles took 39 games between the opener and game 13-- but that season featured
eight days between games 1 and 2.

How does this compare to recent seasons? The inactivity is not an illusion.
Last year, game 13 was 30 days after the opener and the season before it was 29
days. Thus, the Isles will have had six extra days off compared to last season
at this point.

The days off come with a price though --they will play the final 70 games in 147
days --the shortest time to play the final 70 since the season switched to 82
games.

Put another way--the Isles season starts and end on the first Friday of October
and April respectively. That's 183 days. The Isles will play on 82 of those
dates and be off on 101 of them.

In the first 36 days of the season, the Isles played on 12 days and had 24 days
off.

In the final 147 days, they will play on 70 days and have 77 days off. Four of
those off days come during the All-Star Break, another three come around
Christmas. Other than that, it's basically every other day for the next 21
weeks, beginning Saturday.