We're All Confident

Well, most of us anyway. Thanks to everyone who participated in the first Islanders Outsider Playoff Confidence Poll. At the moment, you can still see the results of the poll over there in the sidebar, but I certainly don't expect anyone to do any math. Here's what you can see at a glance: the respondents to this poll are an overwhelmingly confident bunch. Adding up the numbers, 5/6 of the respondents expressed some degree of confidence that the Islanders will make playoffs. Those 20 voters ran the gamut from just barely confident to supremely confident that the Islanders will play beyond April 4. The relatively even distribution of votes from 6-10 was notable. 46 percent of the total respondents can be classified as being very confident.

We have one voter who is sitting right on the fence, and three more with serious doubts about the Islanders' chances of finishing in the top eight. I was somewhat surprised by how few people voted in the lower half of the scale. As much faith as you may have in Ted Nolan and the team's ability to play winning hockey, the conference is so tight that it's difficult to feel comfortable with the positional jockeying. Unless the Islanders suddenly display an inclination to take over the Atlantic, I will remain cautiously optimistic about their playoff future.

I tried to time this poll so that it didn't coincide with a busy, emotion-swaying portion of the schedule, and I think that worked out fairly well. That being said, how do we all feel now after two straight overtime losses? I sense disappointment over losing two points that easily could have been in the Islanders' bank, but no frustration or panic. Such is the effect of the NHL's charitable distribution of points in the standings.