Islanders Debut Canoe Paddle as Player of the Game Prize
New York swaps the Iron Man mask for a custom paddle, and adds an orange hard hat for the hardest worker.
The New York Islanders have a new piece of hardware for the postgame locker room: a custom canoe paddle for the player of the game.
It replaces the Iron Man mask the team used last season. Bo Horvat said the award should go to the player who made the boat go faster, a nod to a metaphor head coach Pete DeBoer has used.
Ilya Sorokin got the first one after a 37-save shutout in Saturday's 6-0 home opener win over the New Jersey Devils.
The Islanders also created a prize for the hardest worker of the game: an orange hard hat fitted with ear muffs. Casey Cizikas earned it first, with a goal and an assist in the same win.
There was one more ceremony. Victor Eklund was handed the puck from his first NHL goal, and the room sang Happy Birthday to the 20-year-old Swede.
