FanHouse Sean Bergenheim

Over the next week, FanHouse will preview the top players and teams in next Friday's NHL Draft. This is the first post in a six part series.

The New York Islanders had an abysmal 2008-09 season, falling to last place in November and hanging on with ease throughout the rest of the season. For their efforts, and by way of the draft lottery, they were awarded the first overall pick in this summer's draft. Islander fans everywhere are holding their breath, afraid that their team will, somehow, mess this opportunity up.

The New York Islanders surprised the New Jersey Devils on Saturday afternoon with a seven-goal explosion that ultimately chased goaltender Martin Brodeur. Leading the goal-scoring assault for the Islanders was 25-year-old forward Sean Bergenheim, who capped off his first career hat trick with just 0.7 seconds remaining in regulation.

With the playoff race as tight as it is in the Eastern Conference, every point counts, and when you're faced with winnable games against teams currently out of the playoff picture, picking up the two points is an absolute must.

With less than 10 minutes to play in their game against Atlanta on Saturday, the Carolina Hurricanes were holding a rather comfortable 3-1 lead. Then, for whatever reason, the bottom fell out for the Hurricanes, as Atlanta erupted for four unanswered goals to pick up a 5-3 win.

At the 2:21 mark of the third period during Thursday's Islanders-Maple Leafs game, Brendan Witt delivered a vicious elbow to the head of Toronto's Niklas Hagman.



It's obvious that Hagman had absolutely no idea where he was following the hit, as he stumbled off the ice in a rather scary manner. Witt received a five-minute major, as well as a 10-minute game misconduct for elbowing.