Isles' turnaround is too late, but it's real

It's been a few months since a minor firestorm blew through the Islanders, generated by an unsourced rumor that John Tavares would blow out of town at the first opportunity - after his entry-level deal expires following the 2011-12 season.

It's also been a few months since Tavares was given freer rein to play a more creative style under Jack Capuano, who believes in giving his players more opportunity to show their individuality within a system.

A lot has changed since November, when the Islanders changed coaches and that rumor out of Canada came to light. Tavares, who tied his rookie goal total with 24 and surpassed his rookie point total of 54 in Saturday's 5-2 win over the Blues, is indeed more at ease, on and off the ice, and still developing his game.

And he's still baffled by that rumor. "I don't understand it, really," he said. "There's always seemed to be this speculation out there that I should leave. I love it here. I want to be here and I want to win here. We've been through some tough times since I've been here, but we all want to be a part of it when it turns around."

In some ways, it has already started to turn. The Isles' win Saturday was their 20th since Dec. 16 - they are 20-14-4 since they put their 1-17-3 skid to bed, and those 44 points are second-most in the Eastern Conference since that date, behind only the Bruins' 47.

That may not be good enough to make a real playoff chase over these final 16 games - the Islanders would really have to win all of them to have a realistic shot - but it makes for more excitement for next season, when Tavares and his linemates, P.A. Parenteau and Matt Moulson, will also be back, both of them having signed extensions within the last month.

"Anyone who knows Johnny knows he's the complete opposite of a guy who'd want to leave here," Moulson said. "It's not just that we're close. We're all close in here. It's a tight group and that means something."

The on-ice freedom Tavares has now, freedom that Scott Gordon did not give him - and which was the right move for Tavares as a rookie with little knowledge of an NHL defensive system - has also made the young center better.

"Cappy's letting him do his thing and you can see he's getting more comfortable with the puck, more creative," Moulson said. "He knows he's got the freedom to do that and he's making some unbelievable moves."

His move through two Blues defensemen to open the scoring Saturday was indeed a vintage move - straight from his offensive wizardry days of junior hockey, when he was a precocious phenom. He tried a couple of similar moves Saturday that didn't work out, but he was equally pleased with his play to break up a Blues rush and start a two-on-one the other way that Parenteau finished off.

"You don't always want to measure yourself by points, but I think that's a result of a good work ethic all over the ice, away from the puck," Tavares said. "The production comes from that work in all three zones."

Spoken like a true disciple of Gordon, who had a real impact on Tavares even if the coach didn't let his budding star work his magic.

Whatever the influences, Tavares is becoming a real headliner, with the type of talented cast around him that all No. 1 picks need to really shine. The Islanders have a bona fide second line now, they have good, young defensemen and they may yet be a healthy squad next season.

And they will have Tavares for next year, and many years beyond that.

"We've got a great group here, and we're all developing and improving," he said. "I don't know why anyone would say I want to leave."