The New York Islanders are making a notable tweak up front as they head into their second straight game in Canada, with Simon Holmstrom moving all the way from the fourth line to the top unit against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The change comes after a 2-1 shootout loss to the Ottawa Senators, a game where the Islanders hung around but couldn’t find enough offense to back Semyon Varlamov, who was in net after Linus Ullmark was named the first star. Varlamov gave them a chance, but the finish never came.
Now head coach Peter DeBoer is turning to a new look in search of a spark. As Andrew Gross of Newsday reported on X, Holmstrom is sliding into the first line while veteran Kyle Palmieri drops to the fourth line.
It’s the kind of switch that stands out right away. Palmieri leads the team with 1.0 Goals Above Expected and ranks sixth with 1.3 Created xGoals, according to MoneyPuck. Holmstrom sits seventh at 0.4 Goals Above Expected and 13th with 0.2 Created xGoals.
DeBoer has talked about wanting balance throughout the lineup, and this move fits that idea even if it looks unconventional on paper. The Islanders don’t always stick to traditional line deployment, and DeBoer has shown he’s willing to shuffle players around in the middle of a game when he thinks a group is going.
For Holmstrom, this is a big chance to grab a larger role, especially with Mathew Barzal getting closer to returning. Someone will have to come out of the lineup when that happens, and nights like this can matter.
The rest of the forward group stays intact. Matias Maccelli and Bo Horvat remain together, with Holmstrom joining them on the top line. Cal Ritchie stays at center on the second line despite his struggles, between Braydenn Schenn and Victor Eklund.
The third line features Emil Heinieman, JG Pagaeu and Anthony Duclair. Palmieri moves to the fourth line with Ondrej Palat and Casey Cizikas, while Kyle MacLean serves as the extra skater.
The defense does not change. Logan Stanley and Matthew Schaefer stay together on the top pair, Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock hold down the second pair, and Matthew Kessel and Tony DeAngelo round out the blue line. Scott Mayfield is the extra skater there.
In goal, the Islanders are going back to Ilya Sorokin. He’ll start as New York tries to avoid its first losing streak of the season and keep its alternating wins and losses going until it can put together a run.
In Other News...
Islanders Win Came With A Lineup Problem Fans Will Feel Fast
The Islanders left Toronto with a 4-1 win in their second road game of the season, but the mood around the result was tempered by the kind of lineup fallout that can linger long after the final horn. Cal Ritchie and Matias Maccelli both went down during the game and did not finish, adding to a stretch in which the roster has already started to look thin in a hurry.
Alexander Romanovs latest setback only sharpens the concern. The defenseman was moved to injured reserve after suffering an ACL tear, leaving the Islanders to patch things together on the fly, and the next move came in the form of an emergency recall from the AHL to help cover the short-handed group. Even with the win in hand, this is the sort of early-season roster squeeze that can change how a team approaches the next few games. [Read more 🡒]
Logan Stanley Has Become Crucial To An Islanders Race Nobody Expected
Logan Stanley has quietly become one of the more important pieces of the Islanders blue line as the season has worn on, giving the club the kind of steady, low-drama defense it has badly needed. His fit in Peter DeBoers system has stood out because he has brought stability and reliable defensive play while taking on significant ice time, a useful development for a team that has leaned on every capable body it can find back there.
Alexander Romanovs season-ending injury is what pushed Stanley into a much larger role, and the Islanders have benefited from how quickly he settled into it. He has often been the steady presence alongside Matthew Schaefer, and for a player signed for $1.5 million this season, that kind of workload and trust has mattered a lot in a race few around the team expected to be this relevant. [Read more 🡒]
Islanders Prospect Pipeline Is Building Early Momentum In Key Spots
The Islanders prospect group kept giving the organization reasons to pay attention over the weekend, with several young players stacking productive games in key junior and college spots. Tomas Poletn was one of the louder notes, putting up three points across two games for the Kelowna Rockets, while Vladimir Draveck stayed hot for the Guelph Storm with points in four straight and 10 during that span.
Burke Hood also continued to sharpen his game in net, allowing just one goal in each of his last two outings and finishing with a .975 save percentage. Bobby Cowan has been just as steady for Western Michigan University, riding a three-game goal streak and a four-game point streak as the Islanders pipeline starts to show some early momentum in multiple places. [Read more 🡒]