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Perhaps to the chagrin of so-called housebound "agraphobes" everywhere, New York Islanders center John Tavares was named the NHL's First Star for the month of January.

It was a tremendous start to 2012 for Tavares, as the award wraps a 31-day stretch in which he notched a league-best nine goals and 13 assists, and earned his first trip to the All-Star game.

Tavares currently sits tied for fourth in the NHL points standings with 53, six behind league-leader Evgeni Malkin.

During a scrum with media members after a news conference announcing his six-year contract extension with the Islanders, John Tavares received a question he's already fielded plenty of times.

The reporter relayed an excerpt from a radio broadcast in his native Canada with an astonished host wondering why the 20-year-old center would ever commit to a team no one cares about. A team no one will ever watch.

"That's just very disappointing to me," Tavares said, candidly. "I think that's wrong judgement about our organization."

Tavares has been the subject of speculation almost as soon as he arrived on Long Island, with several skeptics doubting he'd ever stay.

Thursday's announcement of a $33 million extension that keeps him an Islander through 2018 ended all that talk.

"I don't know if it bothered me as much as I didn't quite understand it," Tavares said. "People might have a misperception about our hockey team, and I know we can get buried under the radar, but I know what it's about here."

Tavares said his signing wasn't meant to be symbolic. He didn't do so with the intent of sending a message. But it did.

"This is about me wanting to be here."

Enough said.

I’ll level with you: I’m pretty excited to see the Islanders get to training camp.

Most of it is professional curiosity. Of all three NY-area teams, it feels like the the Isles have the most pieces in motion that need to get set before the start of the season. The Rangers’ roster seems fairly settled and the Devils’ roster won’t be normalized until Travis Zajac rejoins the team. The Islanders have a lot of parts in motion ... and a lot of those parts still have that shiny newness to them.

Forget the situation surrounding the Nassau Coliseum (non)renovations. Forget that the Isles finished dead last in the Atlantic for the past four seasons. Forget that the rival Rangers inked the best free agent on the market while the Islanders couldn’t convince Christian Ehrhoff to stick around after trading for his negotiating rights. That’s all the past. The future is what the start of the season is all about and the Islanders have a ton of young players that could kindle notions of a playoff run in the next few seasons.

As Insider’s Summer Skate series jumps to the Island, Hockey Prospectus author Timo Seppa provides a projection that John Tavares will make a solid leap forward this season. Moreover, in a separate piece, Insider contributor Neil Greenberg claims that Tavares has a very good shot at

The Islanders play host to the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Coliseum tonight. Here are three keys to watch for when the puck drops.

Oops, He Did It Again

With Rick DiPietro still under contract until cars fly and several prospects eager to break through in the crease, Al Montoya was supposed to be a stopgap solution for a team that had cycled through six goalies this season. Instead, Montoya has been exceptional and might make the Isles' future decision making tough if he keeps playing like he has been: 1.93 GAA, .931 save percentage and a shutout. On one hand, the Islanders have to feel like they’re pretty deep at goalie and the money might be better spent elsewhere. On the other, could they really watch a potential Tim Thomas type -- a guy who took years to find his stellar form -- walk away? Fans will want to keep a close eye on his performances for the remainder of the season and see how management responds when it comes to be decision time.

Breakthrough Performer

With 55 points in 64 contests this season, John Tavares has surpassed his season total from 2009-10 in 18 fewer games. That’s nice progress. Particularly considering he doesn’t have the supporting cast that several other top rookies have had. He projects to score 12 more points this season, which would mark a nice upward trend. Heck, even Nicklas Backstrom only improved by 19 points from his first to second seasons, and that was with Alex Ovechkin on his wing. That said, Tavares has cooled from the torrid 16 points in 11 games from Feb. 1 – 21. He’s averaged a point per game against Toronto this season, so maybe he’s due Tuesday night.

Don’t Fear The Reimer

James Reimer has emerged as the Leafs’ top netminder, posting a .924 save percentage on the season. His last outing though? Less than stellar. He allowed five goals on 19 shots -- and 40 minutes -- to the Chicago Blackhawks. Should he get the nod, the Islanders will want to put some pressure on him early, but I also think they should be selective too. Just throwing pucks on net from bad angles or from distance is usually a low-percentage scoring threat and will just allow a shaken goalie to slowly rebuild his confidence. Obviously you want to shoot, but some discretion could help.

While most of the “hot team” talk has been devoted to the suddenly surging New Jersey Devils, the New York Islanders have made a similar push, winning five of their last six games en route to a 7-3-0 record in February. The Isles will look to continue that trend this afternoon against the visiting Florida Panthers. Here’s what to watch for when the puck drops.

A New Addition?

On Friday, the Edmonton Oilers placed blueliner Sheldon Souray on re-entry waivers from the AHL. At noon Monday we’ll hear if anyone has claimed him. Could the Islanders tap the waiver wire again?

Earlier this season New York unsuccessfully tried to wrangle G Evgeni Nabokov to the island, but the goalie refused to honor his contract. They would likely have more luck with Souray who is looking to escape the minors and show NHL teams he has plenty left to offer. Not to mention the Islanders could use a defenseman with a booming slap shot to help run their power play. Add in that Souray’s $4.5 million salary over the remainder of this season and the next is now halved due to the re-entry waivers process and he could make a very appealing target for GM Garth Snow. Time will tell.

Getting Offensive

Look, Isles fans. It’s the future! The offense has been red hot lately for the Islanders, with New York putting up three or more goals in all but one game this month (a 3-0 loss at Pittsburgh on Feb. 2). During those 10 games the tandem of Michael Grabner (formerly of the Panthers) and John Tavares have combined for 15 goals, 10 by Grabner. The recently re-signed Matt Moulson has chipped in with 6. Seeing the team’s young talent playing to their potential has got to be encouraging.

Who Is That Masked Man?

Al Montoya recorded just his second career NHL shutout when he blanked the Los Angeles Kings Saturday, his second strong outing for the Islanders since coming to the team. (His first was a 37-minute relief effort in a 6-3 loss to the Boston Bruins.) Montoya now flaunts a .954 save percentage in NHL action this season and should get the nod this afternoon, though I haven’t seen a starter reported yet.

It just wouldn’t be a Monday holiday without an afternoon game at Nassau Coliseum, now would it? Here are four things to watch for when the Devils visit the Isles.

Turning the Corner?

Not much has gone right for the Devils this season, but with five points in their last three games, a win Monday would give the team its most successful stretch to date. The Devs are coming off a trio of solid meetings with the Sunshine State teams, beating the Lightning twice before falling to the Panthers in OT. Part of that success is due to the improved play of Martin Brodeur. Since entering in his team’s 2-1 loss at Philadelphia Jan. 8, the goalie has stopped 101 of the 109 shots he’s faced, a .927 save percentage.
That figure is roughly 40 points better than his substandard season mark of .889.

Killed on the PK

The Devils have allowed at least one power-play goal in each of their last four games and a total of eight in their previous seven contests. That will almost certainly be problematic against and Islanders team that’s notched nine PP goals in their last eight games. The Isles have been converting their man-advantage chances at a 39 percent clip over that stretch. If the Devils take a penalty this afternoon, they do so at their own peril.

Shots

Who will have the edge: The team incapable of generating shots or the team incapable of preventing them? The Devils have produced an average of 24.8 shots per game over their last eight, while the Islanders have allowed an average or 41 shots against in their past 10 games. Recent history shows the Devils will get the puck to the net tonight though. In the last meeting between these teams the Devils outshot the Islanders 35-14. Of course, the Devs ended up losing that game 5-1, which is almost incomprehensible. In case you were wondering, the Islanders enjoyed a shooting percentage of 35.7 that night.

Tavares Time

The Islanders star has been hot over the past month, notching 19 points in his last 15 games, including a hat trick against the Sabres Saturday. It’s probably not a coincidence that the Islanders are 9-4-2 over that span. Simply put, the 2009 No. 1 pick is the most talented player on the team and he needs to produce when he’s on the ice. He’s done so lately, and against a team that’s allowed an average of 3.11 goals per game, there’s a solid chance he can continue that production Monday

Morning Links

Two quick hits to set the table for today’s matinee.

With James Wisniewski and Dwayne Roloson shipped out of town already, Pierre LeBrun writes that attention now shifts to Matt Moulson, who will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. The plan according to LeBrun though is for the team to try to sign him and trade him only if they can’t lock him down.

Tom Gulitti posts that D Anton Volchenkov will return to the lineup after missing time following the death of his father, Alexei. According to head coach Jacques Lemaire, D Matt Corrente is a little “banged up” and won’t accompany the team to Long Island this afternoon.

The NHL released the full rosters for the upcoming All-Star game in Raleigh, N.C. on Jan. 30, with the New York Rangers' Marc Staal and Henrik Lundqvist both included on the list.

It's the first selection for Staal, the Rangers' first-round pick in the 2005 entry draft. The blueliner has truly blossomed this season, contributing six goals and 11 assists while tasked with shutting down the opposition's top offensive threat night in and night out. Lundqvist (.923 save percentage and tied for the league high with five shutouts this season) returns to the game for the second time after being selected in 2009.

Meanwhile, the New Jersey Devils' Patrik Elias will make his third appearance in the game and first since 2002. The Czech winger has scored nine goals to go with 21 assists, leading the foundering Devils in points.

Isles fans will be less happy to see their team is one of just four franchises that won't be represented in the All-Star game -- though they will have a player participating in all-star weekend events. The Islanders, Phoenix Coyotes, Buffalo Sabres and Florida Panthers will only send rookie representatives, with New York's Michael Grabner (nine goals, four assists) competing in the Honda SuperSkills challenge only.

There's plenty to debate with these crowded, talent-rich rosters, but the selection of Elias over John Tavares, the Islanders' leading scorer with 28 points in 37 games, is a little curious. Yes, Elias has more points and no, Tavares isn't setting the league on fire. But you could argue, as I'm about to, that Tavares makes a better selection if only for marketing reasons.

One of the game's top young players and the No. 1 overall selection in the 2009, isn't it better to help Tavares's star rise rather than give another nod to Elias, whose status as his team's leading scorer is largely due to an injury to Zach Parise and the ineptitude of Ilya Kovalchuk? And would it really be so bad to throw a bone to a team looking to secure public approval for a new arena and remain in one of North America's largest TV markets?

In the grand scheme of things, the decision is probably meaningless, but I think it would have been in the league's best interest to pump up the young Islanders center a little bit.

I'm not saying Elias doesn't deserve the selection. He's a great player and it's nice that the Devils get some good news amid this dismal season, but to me, there's more to gain if Tavares gets the nod.

The Islanders lost 5-0 to the Chicago Blackhawks Sunday night. Normally a lopsided beating by the reining Stanley Cup champs wouldn’t register as unusual, but given the Islanders’ 8-2-1 record coming into that game it sure seemed to be a hasty reversal of fortune.

But after breaking down that hot streak a little bit, the one-sided Sunday loss may not be that strange at all.

Over the course of the Islanders’ streak they dialed up goal scoring and seriously cracked down on the opposition. In the Isles’ first 28 games, they averaged a mere 2.1 goals per game, while yielding 3.43. Simply put, that’s pretty wretched and given these figures it was no shock to see the Islanders dueling with the New Jersey Devils for occupancy of the NHL cellar.

Then something sensational happened and the Islanders seemingly blossomed. During the last 11 games heading into Chicago, the Isles upped their goals per game average to 3.01 while cutting goals against to 2.36 per contest. You don’t need to be a genius to see how those two drastic changes in the scoring department could lead to an 8-2-1 hot streak.

Another encouraging sign: The Isles’ core of young talent was leading the way during the streak. John Tavares was averaging better than a point per game (six goals, eight assists) heading into ChiTown. D Andrew MacDonald smoothly transitioned to his role on the top defensive pairing by posting 10 assists. Josh Bailey potted three goals and three assists after being recalled from the AHL and five goals and four helpers from Blake Comeau were notable as well.

The Isles were especially clicking on the power play. New York averaged 1.1 goals per game with the man advantage over the previous 11 games, half a goal better than their season average through the season’s first 28 games. A man down, the Isles improved their PK percentage by 6.4 percent during the streak.

Those are all reasons for optimism as this young club continues to develop. But there are a few signs that seem to indicate the Islanders are about to come back to Earth.

By looking a little closer at special teams we start to see why the previous 11 games may have been a skewed sample. The Islanders may have outscored their opponents 34-26 over that stretch, but if you look only at even-strength performance, usually one of the best predictors of future success, the Islanders were just better than even (22 goals for, 21 against). That’s not a bad mark at all, but it’s not one that indicates the Islanders can keep playing .800 hockey.

The real discouraging mark comes in the shot department. Despite their success, the Islanders were outshot 409 to 293 during the hot stretch. That’s an awful lot of reliance on the goaltending trio of Rick DiPietro, Nathan Lawson and Kevin Poulin.

On average, NHL teams score on about nine percent of their shots. The Islander opponents converted just six percent. Had those foes clicked at the NHL average rate they would have potted 36 goals in the previous 11 games, two more than the Islanders, who enjoyed a shooting percentage of 11.6 percent. If you believe in regression to the mean, it looks like the Isles have just been enjoying a stretch of good luck that coincided with some timely breakouts by their young stars.

For the previous 11 games, the Islanders seemed to be on fire. Turns out the may have just been playing with it. Sunday in Chicago they got burned. The young core is a solid one and lately demonstrated their vast potential. But if the Isles can’t crack down on their opponents’ shot totals, they're more than likely going to get burned again.

The Islanders are red hot and show no signs of cooling down despite dealing away their top defenseman in terms of ice time, as well as their No. 1 goalie this season.

After dispatching the Calgary Flames, winners of four straight themselves, the Islanders are now 7-1-1 since Dec. 16 and have jumped 15 points in the standings. Had they not needed to dig themselves out of a bottomless pit after a disastrous November, we could actually be using the term “playoffs” in conversations about the Islanders right now, but instead they remain 15 points back of Montreal and the No. 8 seed in the East.

But the Islanders story isn’t about the playoffs right now so much as positioning themselves for seasons to come. To that end, the play of goalie Nathan Lawson in relief of an injured Rick DiPietro (time of absence TBD) has to be encouraging, as must be the play of young Calvin de Haan on the Canadian junior team that smacked around the U.S. squad Monday night.

But the centerpiece of any Islander future is John Tavares, who has torched opponents during this recent run to the tune of 13 points in the nine games. That’s the kind of pace most believed him to be capable of when the Isles picked him at the top of the 2009 draft.

The Islanders will try and continue their success Thursday in Edmonton, before swinging into Colorado and finally Chicago before returning home to Long Island Jan. 11.

The banged-up Isles skate against the Tampa Bay Lightning at the Coliseum tonight. Here are three factors to watch for when the puck drops.

Unstoppable Stamkos

Steven Stamkos reached the century mark in goal scoring on Monday, making him just the sixth player in NHL history to reach 100 goals before his 21st birthday. It wouldn’t be surprising if he continued his scorching start to the season tonight. Stamkos has put up 10 points in his past six games against the Isles, including two power play goals. The remarkable thing about Stamkos’ goal-scoring is that so many of his markers come from the same spot -- a one-timer from the left faceoff circle. Call it a hunch; he’ll fire a few off from that area tonight if the Bolts go a man up.

Defensive Adjustments

With Mike Mottau out for the season with hip surgery the Islanders blue line takes a big hit, but compensating for his absence shouldn’t be anything new. Mottau was sidelined since late November with an eye injury before suffering the torn labrum that’s ended his season. That said, they’ll probably want to improve on the defensive downturn since Mottau’s absence that’s seen their goals-allowed per game spike to 3.5 since Nov. 21. Their season average hovers at 3.37, an NHL worst.

Tough Sledding for Tavares

With little help around him, it certainly appears that the development of John Tavares has stalled. His point-per-game totals are down from last season and he currently lacks a goal in his last nine games. This is starting to have the look of a lost season for the growing youngster and it’s a tough spot to find himself in so early in his career. It’s going to be an interesting test of his resolve to see how he carries himself, but everything I’ve seen from him so far indicates he’ll have the poise and level head to stay strong ... if only mentally. Asking him to carry the league’s second-worst offense may be asking a little too much though.

The Isles are back in action tonight, facing the Boston Bruins. Here are three factors to monitor when the game gets underway.

Lighting the Lamp
Boston has been able to save a little on their electricity bills this season, considering visiting teams have been unable to turn on the goal light too often. The Bruins are the NHL’s top defensive team, combining some stellar goaltending from Tim Thomas with a top-notch blue line and a neutral-zone clogging trap. The Islanders are the second-lowest scoring team in the league, which means the Isles’ defense will need to be far stingier than their 3.24 goals-against average Thursday night.

Sparking Tavares
John Tavares has been held without a point in the past two games. By far the post talented player the Islanders have, New York needs him to be more productive ... but how? Every game he usually faces the opposition’s top checking line and defensive pairing. Considering he doesn’t have much help, it’s been tough for him to get going, but it’s doubtful his help is going to get any better this season. JT is going to have to do it himself.

The System
Given the Islanders’ propensity to sit back under new coach Jack Capuano, this could be a really slow game decided by one or two key neutral zone turnovers. The Isles have reeled in their forecheck under the new coach and Claude Julien’s B’s have always hovered in the neutral zone, waiting to snatch up an errant pass and speed back on an odd-man rush. New York will have to take extra-good care of the puck through center ice tonight.

What did we learn about the New York Islanders?

They are way too sensitive.

The treatment of Chris Botta of AOL Fanhouse was a joke. Revoking his credential was a very poor way to handle the situation. It may have distracted the hockey world about how bad the Islanders' start to the season has been. But then only added to the embarrassment. I like Garth Snow. I think he dropped the ball on this one.

Rick DiPietro is playing better.

Dipietro is healthy for the first time in a while. After a slow start, he's been better late in the month. He was great in an OT loss to the Thrashers and stoned the Devils to end the Isles' 14-game slide.

Step back for John Tavares.

Tavares has eight goals, not bad for the second-year player, but only two in November. It's tough spot for him on a team that's struggling. He needs to fight through it. Keep shooting the puck. He has scored in half the games in which he's had four or more shots.

Why was Josh Bailey sent down?

This one I don't get. He hasn't been great, just three goals and three assists but what does going down to the minors prove? Let the kid play with the big boys. I talked to a few people around the league and no one really knows why this was done.

Matt Moulson has been solid.

This time last season Matt had five multi-point games, this year just two. He's still on pace to have a similar season. Last November, he had five goals. This November, he had four. Last year at this time, he had 11 goals, this season eight. He may be a tad off the pace but there is still time for him to match last year's coming-out party.

It's too early to tell anything about Jack Capuano.

Much the same with Jack that you saw with Scott Gordon as far as results. I believe that Snow pulled the one lever that he had left when he fired Gordon. It's not like Snow had any more players to call up or trades to make. Capuano has deserved the chance to coach in the NHL and he knows the kids. That doesn't mean he won't meet the same fate in two years.

The Isles will try to end their four-game slide in Carolina tonight where Eric Staal and the Hurricanes are battling a two-game skid of their own. Both squads will show off some of the top young skaters tonight with rookie Jeff Skinner currently leading the Canes in the scoring department. Here are three keys to spy when the puck drops.

Hey, Look! Someone's Healthy!
Formerly injured center Rob Schremp will make his season debut tonight after battling a bum back. On the sidelines he missed out on the team's early success and has been unable to help when things started to sour four games ago. Expect him to come out with a lot of energy between Josh Bailey and Blake Comeau on the second line tonight. And did someone say line combinations?

New Look Lines
With Schremp's return, head coach Scott Gordon will roll out some new line combos. According to Chris Botta of Islanders Point Blank, here's how they looked at practice:

Moulson - Tavares - Parenteau
Bailey - Schremp - Comeau
Weight - Nielsen - Grabner
Martin - Konopka - Hunter/Gillies

Perhaps the changes will wake up Bailey and Comeau who have been quiet lately. Bailey in particular has no points and is averaging just one shot on goal since returning from the hip pointer he sustained against the Maple Leafs Oct. 18. Comeau's been getting his shot off, but he's also sporting a minus-5 rating over the past three contests.

Faceoffs
The Islanders should have a big edge in the faceoff circle tonight considering the Canes are flat out awful on the draw. Through their first 11 games, Carolina has claimed just 37.4 percent of their faceoffs. Look for the Isles to own the time of possession edge tonight. And if they can turn that edge into offense, look for them to put their losing streak behind them.

It’s safe to say the Islanders’ hot start is officially over. Four straight losses mar their most recent stretch of schedule and the team’s solid starting record of 4-1-2 has now ballooned to 4-5-2. Once-sizzling Blake Comeau has registered just two points in the last seven games and hasn’t scored a goal since his pair against the Rangers on Columbus Day. Josh Bailey has scuffled since enduring a hip pointer and even when John Tavares records a hat trick, it’s not enough to get the Isles a win.

Safe to say the boys from the Island can use this three-day respite before suiting up for consecutive road games Wednesday in Carolina and Thursday in Ottawa. After that they’ll return home to take on the Philadelphia Face Checkers Flyers in a game that promises to feature more than a few gloves hitting the ice.

In the meantime, here’s some reading to get you caught up on the Isles’ situation.

Morning Links

• Chris Botta breaks down the team’s recent poor play.
• Sean Leahy over at Puck Daddy looks at some of the fisticuffs from the Flyers game.
• Lighthouse Hockey breaks down the bad (understatement) 6-1 loss to the Flyers, as well as offering an opinion on the Danny Briere's crosscheck on Frans Nielsen's face. Some people have noted Briere as a classy individual, and off the ice that may well be. On it though, he seems to favor some pretty dirty shots, such as spearing Alex Ovechkin in his man parts during a blowout Buffalo win a few seasons back.
• LHH also takes a look at the Islanders’ prospect picture.

The New York Islanders announced late Thursday morning that rookie winger Nino Niederreiter, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2010 entry draft, would be returned to his WHL team, the Portland Winterhawks. The announcement comes just after Niederreiter skated in his ninth NHL game Wednesday night, a 5-3 loss to the Montreal Canadiens.

Under league rules, NHL teams are allowed a nine-game sample run with junior players taken in the previous draft. After that time, the team can either return the player to his junior team or keep him on the NHL roster and start the clock on the player's entry-level contract. By returning Niederreiter to the WHL, the top prospect's deal will not expire until after the 2013-14 season.

The Swiss forward, known by the nickname El Niño, was solid but didn't have a tremendous impact during the Islanders' hot start to the season. Over the nine games he recorded just one goal and one assist while averaging 13:36 of ice time, primarily skating on the third line alongside Doug Weight. Against the Canadiens he failed to record a shot on goal in 14:28 of action.

Many believe the future will be bright for Niederreiter, who turned heads as the top-scorer of the Swiss team at the 2010 World Junior Championships. He was the NHL's youngest player at the start of the season and, at 18 years and 31 days, was the fifth-youngest to play in an NHL game since the 1987-88 season.

The move appears to be a smart one on several levels. First, Niederreiter will see much more ice time with the Winterhawks than the Isles. Even if he's not facing the same level of competition, there's only so much he can grow spending 47 minutes on the bench each night. Second, the Islanders will now enjoy Niederreiter's services when some of their more advanced prospects -- like former No. 1 pick John Tavares, Kyle Okposo and Josh Bailey -- are more seasoned and ready to form the core of a true playoff contender. Even if the Islanders do overcome an array of injuries to key players like Okposo and D Mark Streit to crash the postseason party this season, it's unlikely Niederreiter would have been the missing ingredient given the early returns.