On the Islanders Beat

Remember how the Islanders were booed out of the Coliseum in consecutive losses to Atlanta and Tampa Bay that ended their previous homestand more than two weeks ago? Contrast that with the reception they received in the past two home wins over defending Stanley Cup champion Carolina and Pittsburgh, which drew the top crowd of the season on Friday afternoon.

If you recall, coach Ted Nolan responded to the booing by saying he would have been booing louder than anyone if he had been in the stands for those terrible losses to the Thrashers and Lightning. He held his team accountable for its errors while, at the same time, maintaining faith in the ability of his players to fix it. The result is a 7-1-1 streak since then that began with a tough five-game stretch of road games.

Something else Nolan said recently stands out now: “Build it, and they will come.”

See, Nolan understands where Islanders fans are coming from, and he knows you can’t cheat them in terms of effort and entertainment and expect them to show up. From the very beginning of training camp, he promised to build a work ethic that would be his team’s No. 1 priority from captain Alexei Yashin on down, and that is what he has done.

Production might ebb and flow throughout the season from various players, but what you see is a team that is showing strong signs of developing the discipline to stick to a system, play hard every night and trust one another. If that formula takes hold, the Islanders just might prove capable of contending for first place in the Atlantic Division all season.

Earlier this week, several Islanders told the overflow media contingent in Toronto that Nolan sees things in simple, black-and-white terms in the sense that he is very direct with his criticism behind closed doors. But he also is very supportive publicly in the way that he recognizes the little things different players are doing well even when the numbers say they aren’t producing.

For instance, Trent Hunter has only three goals and five points, but Nolan praised Hunter for the leadership he has shown in dishing out hits and setting a physical tone every game. He praised Miro Satan’s decision-making even when the puck wasn’t going in the net. Lately, Nolan has made a point of saying how pleased he is with the play of scoreless Andy Hilbert. And it’s pretty hard to miss the hustle, smarts, toughness, speed and two-way ability embodied by fourth-liners Shawn Bates, Richard Park and Arron Asham, who seem to make an impact in their roles every game.

Nolan even has learned from his own mistake. He understandably was excited when the Isles overcame their 0-3 start to reach first place in the division with a win Nov. 2 at New Jersey and let it show. That game was followed by the losses to Atlanta and Tampa Bay. When the Isles regained a share of first with Friday’s win over Pittsburgh, Nolan said he wasn’t paying attention to the standings.

“We’ll be where we deserve to be,” Nolan said.

But Nolan did acknowledge the season-high crowd of 15,625 as a testament to the kind of effort his team has put forth lately. Filling the Coliseum is Nolan’s barometer for success. He’s building the foundation, and the Islanders are beginning to give their fans a reason to cheer again.