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Okposo On WFAN: Islanders Remain Humble In Face Of Incredible Start

NEW YORK (WFAN) -- He's playing on the top line for the surprise team of the NHL. But Kyle Okposo says neither he nor his teammates are letting the Islanders' stunning early season success go to their heads.

Speaking to WFAN's Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts on Tuesday, Okposo said his team is confident thanks to a 17-7-0 start that has put the entire league on notice, adding the job general manager Garth Snow did during the offseason acquiring pieces cannot be stated enough.

"It actually doesn't surprise me, with the way that our team has been put together," Okposo said. "I've said it since Day 1 of the season, we're a different group. We got a different team. We had some pretty good acquisitions over the summer and the beginning part of training camp with Jaroslav Halak coming in and Chad Johnson backstopping us. We signed a couple of guys like (Mikhail) Grabovski and (Nikolay) Kulemin that really legitimizes our team, and then (Garth Snow) did a shrewd job of getting Johnny Boychuk and Nick Leddy in here. Those two guys have been so key to our success. We have a pretty good group of guys and we're going to keep going with it."

The Islanders have won 11 of their last 14, including a 3-1 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Saturday night. The Isles were outshot 16-2 in the third period, yet found a way to win. Last season, which ended with the Isles well out of the playoff race, they likely would have found a way to lose that type of game. But now, with veterans littering the roster and Halak providing stability in net, no scenario is out of their control.

"To have that stability back there, to somebody who is a true No. 1 goalie in this league makes a huge difference," Okposo said.

Okposo, who has five goals and 21 points this season, said the Islanders would like to do more than simply make the playoffs during the franchise's final season at Nassau Coliseum.

"First we have to get there. We have to keep playing well the rest of the regular season, but we want to make some noise," Okposo said. "We feel like we have the team to do it and a great group of guys. We're excited for the challenges that lay ahead."

The Islanders host Ottawa on Tuesday night.

Okposo spoke about several other topics, including the noise inside the Coliseum, playing alongside John Tavares and the prospects of challenging for a division title. To hear his complete interview, please click on the audio link below.

Kyle Okposo

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