Grabner takes fast road to top with Isles

After pin-balling to three different teams in four months, Michael Grabner is now showing the promise that so many saw in him as a first-round draft pick in 2006.

So what has changed?

"Michael's playing to his strength," Islanders coach Jack Capuano said, "and that's utilizing his speed."

The lightning-fast Grabner notched his team-leading 25th goal Tuesday against Ottawa. The 23-year-old Austrian winger is making a strong case for NHL Rookie of the Year with a recent streak that includes eight goals in the past four games and 16 in the past 15 games.

Grabner, who scored his second career hat trick against Buffalo Sunday, also won the fastest skater award at the All-Star Game skills competition and was named one of the NHL's top three stars of the week twice, all in the past month.

Hard to imagine that it was only four months ago the Islanders snagged him off waivers, discarded by Florida after a poor training camp.

Grabner, who was traded to Florida from Vancouver at the draft this June, has logged many miles to find a secure spot in the NHL. But after a circuitous route to Long Island, he's finally proven he belongs.

"In Vancouver I was up and down, living out of a hotel. In Florida, I was only there for 10 days before I got waived," Grabner said. "This team has made me feel like I have a home here."

"I was a little quiet in the beginning," said Grabner, affectionately nicknamed "The Gremlin" by teammate Andrew MacDonald. "But it's a great group of guys here that are all really close. A lot of us are the same age, same interests. That's helped."

Grabner hasn't felt that way since boarding with Rob and Rachael McCann when he first came to the United States from Austria almost seven years ago.

In the three seasons he lived with them while playing for the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey league, the McCanns witnessed him transform from the shy, skinny 16-year-old who devoured Cap'n Crunch cereal and chocolate pudding snacks to a bona fide NHL player.

"He's an unstoppable force when he has something to prove," McCann said. "If you want to get Michael to do something, just tell him he can't."

Grabner quickly outgrew the need for index cards placed around the McCanns' house, labeled for mundane items like "cupboard" and "plate" in both English and Grabner's native language German. He now roundly beats Rob, who has a PhD in Educational Leadership from Gonzaga, in Scrabble and shares his daily routine with his 7,325 followers on Twitter.

Nor is he still the player whose speed and skill were overlooked when doubts arose about his defensive abilities or his desire to go to the gritty areas on the ice.

"Early in his career he maybe didn't want to go to those high-traffic areas, but he's really evolved," said Columbus Blue Jackets coach Scott Arniel, who coached Grabner in the AHL with the Manitoba Moose.

Grabner's speed and his willingness to use it are his biggest assets.

"He's got so much confidence now in knowing that he's faster than everyone out there, that he just blows right by them," linemate Kyle Okposo said. "It's like trying to catch Devin Hester when you're five yards behind."

His unexpected production has also been one of the few highlights of a disappointing season for the Islanders, who are in 27th place despite four straight wins.

"He's one of the silver linings of a season that hasn't gone how we've wanted," general manager Garth Snow said.

"This year has had a lot of ups and downs," Grabner said. "When I was waived, I was just hoping to get picked up. I just wanted to earn a spot and show what I can do."

And with the same effortlessness that propels him past an opposing defenseman on the ice, Grabner casually brushes off all the recent accolades and attention and keeps his focus straight ahead.

"I just don't want to look back now."