Dan and Mike (and little Emmy Lou) celebrate a solid win over Toronto with new episodes of both Master Leaf Theatre and Ranger Piece Theater. After a disastrous and disappointing shutout loss in Carolina on Tuesday, hopes were low going into Saturday's Hockey Night in Canada tilt against Gord's favored sons. But with a healthy, balanced lineup, some hard work and a first NHL goal by a local product, Islanders fans enjoyed a rare feel good win and maybe the most pure joy they've had all season. The night couldn't have gone better, which makes Monday night's game against a Sabres team that's winless in 13 straight all the more terrifying. But a win over them and the Penguins this weekend might give us a taste of how the second half the season will go. We spend the second half presenting new entries into the Master Leaf Theatre and Ranger Piece Theater canon, including a penalized (and now suspended) player helping their team win even when he's not there, a player enjoying family time being treated like he walked on the moon and another shot at Islanders fans who dare not like someone. It’s a super-duper-sized and slightly early holiday treat from us to you.

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Our theme is "Morning Haze" by Family Dinner. Hear more of their music on Spotify, including their new album "God Looks Out for Fools."

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A sample of our Monthly Mail Bag podcast for December of 2024 covers accountability, trade deadline boosts and possible replacement GMs.

To hear the full version, visit Patreon.com/IslandersAnxiety and sign up for our Country Club tier. There, you can hear another hour-plus of questions about potential trade options, both expected and not, the ongoing mystery of the NHL's phantom TV network and whether rooting for another team is the answer (and which teams to root for). We also find time to laugh at Stan Fischler's "Iggy Piggy" tweets and that time the 1979 Islanders let their hearts and mouths sing Christmas classics.

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Mike and Dan have a lot to say after the Islanders' loss to Chicago on Sunday, little of it good. Do these guys even want to win games? After a "normal" loss to the Kings and a "feel bad" win over the same Blackhawks on Thursday, the Islanders faced a bad team they had already seen that was on a back-to-back. So, of course, they lost in brutal fashion, throwing away a power play, needlessly icing the puck, then giving up the game-winning goal with 45 seconds left. It was an inexcusable loss that, somehow, we've seen happen multiple times. Coupled with the post-game comments from captain and coach, it makes us feel like we're being lied to or gaslighted when we can see with our own eyes what's happening. It's not a pretty situation, and if you choose to bail, we don't blame you. In the second half, we look ahead at the tough games coming up, plus we examine the waiving of Oliver "One Shift" Wahlstrom, the role the Islanders media played in it, and the tough messages posted this weekend by former Islander Robin Lehner.

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Our theme is "Morning Haze" by Family Dinner. Hear more of their music on Spotify, including their new album "God Looks Out for Fools."

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Along with LHH's Steven Smith, we remember Viktor Kozlov, the big center who had a big season and an enormous game at a famous arena in his one season as an Islander. Going from draft bust to valuable player after a trade from the Sharks to the Panthers, Kovlov eventually joined the mercenary 2006-07 Islanders and immediately became one of their most reliable scoring threats. But it was a game in December of that season at Madison Square Garden that he cemented his legacy, scoring four goals in a back-and-forth contest that showed that while they may have been put together in haste, that Islanders team had a lot of pride and a drive to win that took them all the way to one of the most astonishing playoff clinchings ever - which Kozlov, of course, played a part in. Steve tells us about how that four-goal game will forever be tattooed into his memory, even if the season and the rest of Kozlov's career is pretty fuzzy. Thanks again to Steve for coming on and for everything he does at Lighthouse Hockey.

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Mike and Dan recap a half good/half bad week for the Islanders and how back-to-back wins shouldn't distract from the very real problems they still have. In losses to the Canadiens and Kraken, the Islanders looked like a team that was ready to punt the season. Listless and ineffective, they seemed to be crying out for help, even as their general manager stood stone-faced watching over them. But wins over Carolina and Ottawa put them (misleadingly) closer to the playoffs, even though many of their usual problems persist. There already seems to be an air of toxic positivity surrounding the Islanders. Let's hope the short winning streak doesn't prevent them from making the changes they need to. In the second half, we once again turn towards Manhattan and the end of the Jacob Trouba Saga. As they ship their now former captain out to yet another team bending over backwards to do them a favor, we present another Ranger Piece Theater about the man who most immediately benefitted from Trouba's absence and the newest richest goalie in NHL history.

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Our theme is "Morning Haze" by Family Dinner. Hear more of their music on Spotify, including their new album "God Looks Out for Fools."

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Dan and dad again Mike recap the Islanders' week of infuriating losses and one must-win before turning their attention towards Manhattan and the first Ranger Piece Theater of the season. In the run-up to American Thanksgiving and the day immediately following it, the Islanders did what they do best: blow third periods against beatable teams. They had one point to show for the week before a home shutout over Buffalo on Saturday put everyone at ease. But despite hanging around the Eastern Conference playoff picture, there's not a ton of confidence that this group can start turning the season around (or is there...?). Maybe another week of... you guessed it... winnable games against some wild card rivals can yield some much-needed points. Finally, we focus on those scrappy New York Rangers, who were on the brink of a full blown crisis with almost the entire team on the trade block before a win over the last place Habs changed everything (for now). This edition of Ranger Piece Theater highlights three selections that offer great insight into the mind of a fanbase that is only finding out now how the NHL works.

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Joined by NY Sirens goalie and die hard Islanders fan Abbey Levy, we remember Joey MacDonald, a back-up turned starter who had the game of his life for an undermanned and lottery-bound squad. After spending years in the AHL for the Red Wings organization, MacDonald came to Long Island to play the same role in Bridgeport. But an injury to Rick DiPietro (!!) and a stalemate with Wade Dubielewicz suddenly made MacDonald the starter for the 2008-09 Islanders, who had low expectations and a roster full of rookies and journeymen. For a month, they looked like a Cinderella story, and MacDonald was named the NHL's Third Star for November. But then a prolonged slump and his own injuries helped derail the already shaky Islanders. His season's high point was an incredible and unexpected shutout of the defending Stanley Cup champions back where it all began for him. Abbey tells us about the gravity of the PWHL's first season and what's in store for Year 2, her very deep Islanders fandom and the idols that got her to go down the goalie path and how getting away from the game (and getting your nails done) can be a huge help during both good and bad times.

We can't thank Abbey enough for giving us a huge chunk of her time. She's an insightful athlete and a dedicated Islanders fan and we wish her and the Sirens the best of luck this season, which starts on Sunday, Dec. 1 at Prudential Center, where they will be playing all of their home games.

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Mike and Dan recap a needed win and two more blown-lead losses as the inconsistent Islanders reach (yet another) pivotal week in the season. A regulation win over St. Louis at home on Saturday felt good (except for now ex-Blues coach Drew Bannister) but it came after a disappointing shootout loss in Calgary and a disastrous regulation loss in Detroit in which the Islanders could only muster one goal apiece and gave it away in the third period. The team remains an unknowable entity, losing games for a rotating assortment of reasons. Through all of that, Brock Nelson remains a constant, and the newest member of the Islanders' Top 10 in scoring will be a sought-after trade target unless the rest of the team can figure it all out. In the second half, we look at a packed week of (allegedly) winnable games and the coaching carousel that kicked into high gear on Sunday morning.

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Our theme is "Morning Haze" by Family Dinner. Hear more of their music on Spotify, including their new album "God Looks Out for Fools."

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Mike and Dan reflect on the Islanders' Western Canada road trip so far, which has included one good game, one bad game and one unfortunate game. They were lucky to escape Edmonton with a point (and without giving up Connor McDavid's 1000th) thanks to great performances by Ilya Sorokin and Anders Lee, but followed it up with an inexplicably great performance in Vancouver and a convincing win over the Canucks. They carried those vibes into a Saturday matinee in Seattle that was fun for 55 minutes before breakdowns and bad luck ruined the afternoon. The "Make or Break" trip hasn't broken them, but they continue losing important points and living on the playoff bubble as they have for the last few seasons. Meanwhile 30 miles west, Rangers watchers create problems that aren't there and across the continent, Canucks Nation wrestles with one bad game the likes of which we have seen repeatedly over here. We also look ahead at the road trip's final two games and surprisingly important home contest that follows.

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Our theme is "Morning Haze" by Family Dinner. Hear more of their music on Spotify, including their new album "God Looks Out for Fools."

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Joined by Islanders commenter (and new podcaster) Isles Den, we remember Marc-Andre Bergeron, a surprisingly important short-time player for a number of NHL teams. Anyone who watched Bergeron play, either before or after his season-plus stint on Long Island will no doubt immediately picture a very small man skating up and down the ice scoring power play goals at the mere mention of his name. But there was a reason he was so sought after to the point that he became something of a human internet meme - he was really good on the power play. And if you were a playoff hopeful - as the Islanders surprisingly were in the spring of 2007 - he could be the perfect addition to your lineup (until he was eventually traded someplace else). We talk with Isles Den about how Bergeron was integral to his attachment to the Islanders as a young fan, his unique and energetic style of play and the joy we all felt when he just kept popping up on random teams for years to come. Thanks again to Isles Den for coming on. Be sure to follow him on Twitter and listen to his podcast Isles House.

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Our theme is "Knuckles" by Björn Falk. Hear more of his music on Spotify and at Bandcamp.

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