Islanders Army

Back In The Day Part 5 - Bates’ Penalty Shot

November 9th, 2007 by Tom

It’s been a while since we ran one of our “Back in The Day” pieces. To refresh your memory, every once in a while we run excerpts from old articles capturing a big/interesting/notable event in Isles history. Today, we go back to April 2002 compliments of Newsday, smack dab in the middle of one of those heated Islander-Maple Leaf battles. Shawn Bates’ penalty shot was one of the few highlights for the Coliseum Heroes in those battles. I was at the game. Never heard the Coliseum louder.

ISLANDERS PLAYOFFS
A Penalty Shot in the Arm
7 minutes turn into 7th heaven
Johnette Howard
Newsday

FORGET THAT THIS drama started slowly before ending with a bang. Most spellbinders do. By the time Islanders center Shawn Bates curled toward the puck at center ice and began bearing down on Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Curtis Joseph for a penalty shot with just 2:30 to play, Game 4 of this first-round playoff series already had snowballed into a rousing, rollicking, breathless classic. A thriller. A seven-minute slice of bedlam.

With the sellout crowd poised to lift the roof off the Coliseum, Bates made sure it was a 4-3 Islanders’ win.

“You’re still shaking,” a TV commentator kidded Bates after he settled into the guest’s seat on the Islanders’ postgame show.

“Nerves,” Bates laughed, still wearing a slap-happy grin.

How many times did this switchback-filled game veer or seem over? Even after Bates rifled the puck into the roof of the net, past Joseph’s flinching right shoulder, this game wasn’t over until the Leafs pulled their rapidly fading goaltender for an extra attacker, then upped their advantage to two men when the Islanders’ Kenny Jonsson was sent off for a slashing penalty with 1:06 to play.

In the last 6:44 alone, the Islanders Kip Miller tied the game at 2 on a bank-shot goal off Joseph and defenseman Roman Hamrlik seemed to win it once for the Islanders just 1:40 later. When Hamrlik let a slap shot fly from just inside the Toronto blue line, it was more of a prayer than a rock-solid threat at the lead - until the puck banged off Joseph’s blocker, then bounced into the net. Hamrlik high- stepped in place like some delirious drum major and conjured up memories of the late Jim Valvano. Like Valvano, bless his heart, Hamrlik was just racing around looking for someone to hug.

The game appeared over - at least for 98 seconds. But the Leafs’ Paul Healey and Shayne Corson crossed behind the Islanders net and goaltender Chris Osgood - thinking Healey still had the puck to his right - never saw Corson curling around the right post and stuffing the puck between his legs to tie the game at 3.

That set up Bates’ heroics just 56 seconds later after the call by referee Brad Watson that probably never should have happened. Did Bryan McCabe deserve a penalty for hauling Bates down? Yes. But a penalty shot? Hard to believe.

“They’ll come out flying [in Game 4] with a bitter taste in their mouths,” Islanders winger Steve Webb warned. “We have to make sure we’re ready.”

Ready for anything. Ready, willing and able to pull out the sort of game they’ll be talking about for years.

[Update] Now with video!
 
 

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