The Islanders playoff hopes took a beating after Tampa Bay dropped 8 goals on them last night.
Greg Logan over at Newsday reports that things are a little heated between coach Ted Nolan (who opted to start backup Wade Dubliewicz in a big game against the Rangers last week) and franchise goalie Rick DiPietro.
"The thread by which the Islanders' playoff hopes were hanging came completely unraveled last night in an 8-4 loss to Tampa Bay that left coach Ted Nolan at odds with goaltender Rick DiPietro and at a loss to do anything about his team's physical breakdown. ....
"We ask him over and over again not to play the puck as much," Nolan said of DiPietro. "He's one of the best puck-handlers in the league, but you just can't overhandle it. When you overhandle it, you get yourself in trouble a little bit." .....
Showing his frustration, Nolan said of DiPietro: "The only thing you can do is keep going through it over and over again. You can't do that. You've got to let our defense handle it a little bit more. He just wants to play it. What can you do?" .....
Asked if he had any response to Nolan's criticism of his puckhandling decisions, DiPietro shrugged and said: "No. Whatever."
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