The Islanders have already shown signs of life on the power play. The problem is the part that matters most still isn’t coming often enough.
That’s the gap they’re trying to close as they work through a three-game homestand, with Thursday’s matchup against the Stanley Cup champion Hurricanes at UBS Arena on deck. Entering that game, the Islanders sat 29th in the NHL on the man advantage at 15.9% - 7 for 44 - and they were coming off Saturday’s 4-0 loss to the Oilers, when they went 0 for 4. Over their last four games, they were 1 for 14, a 7.1% clip.
The encouraging part, at least from inside the room, is that the chances are there more regularly now. The finishing touch is the issue.
“If we actually see some analytics and stats behind the scenes, there’s a lot of good things we’re doing,” Brayden Schenn, who plays on the first power-play unit, told Newsday. “I don’t think it feels as bad with being [29th] in the league, it doesn’t feel like a number that we should be there.
We need some more finish, a little bit more execution, a little bit quicker puck movement. If we do [that], the plays will keep opening up and then we need the finish on top of that.”
Coach Pete DeBoer spent Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s practices pushing that point harder than usual. Power-play reps are standard fare every day, but this week he zeroed in on the details that turn movement into goals.
At one point, DeBoer set up two nets close together - one in the right corner, the other on the left half-wall - and had the two units trade quick, close-quarters reps. The idea was simple: speed up the puck, shrink the space, and force the kind of decisions that lead to actual finishes.
“Support, quicker puck movement, making that last play to finish it off,” DeBoer said. “The last play is always the toughest.
Sometimes it’s a one-touch. Sometimes it’s a saucer pass.
In this league, in order to score - and that’s five-on-five, too - you have to be able to make some of those skill plays at the end and those are things you can work on.
“We are missing some skill in our lineup right now. You hope you add that skill back in and you’ll get more of those finishing plays. I’ve been very happy with the group grasping the foundation of what we want to do.”
That missing skill includes Mathew Barzal, who has been out since the opening of training camp with a left knee issue, along with Matias Maccelli, who is dealing with a lower-body injury, and defenseman Ryan Pulock, who is sidelined by an upper-body injury. All three skated with teammates in red, non-contact jerseys during Thursday’s optional morning skate, marking the second straight day they had done so.
Barzal, Maccelli and Cal Ritchie, who has a lower-body injury and has not resumed skating, are all expected to be used on the power play once healthy.
Even without them, the Islanders have taken steps forward in some areas. The zone entries are cleaner, the puck movement is better and the rotation through the zone looks smoother. DeBoer said the video from last season showed a power play that was “stagnant,” and that part of the structure has already changed.
“The rotation is smoother,” Schenn said. “We just need to move the puck quicker and try not to hold it as long.
We don’t have to skate it into the next guy. We have to move it quick and pass it and give that guy time and space.
When that guy gets the puck, he has to make the right reads. We’ve had some looks that could have gone in and didn’t.
It’s still a work in progress.”
The numbers back up the idea that the Islanders are getting chances, even if the results haven’t followed. According to StatMuse.com, they rank 14th with 8.43 shots per power play opportunities. But MoneyPuck.com has them 24th with a 6.48 shooting percentage on all five-on-four shot attempts.
That leaves the same conclusion the Islanders keep circling back to: the setup is better, but the final touch still has to arrive.
“Honestly, I think we’re improving,” Matthew Schaefer, who quarterbacks the first power-play unit, told Newsday. “I think we have a lot of chances.
We just have to keep moving the puck quick and finding what’s open. Once the goals start going in, I think it will help.”
For now, that next step remains the hardest one to take.
In Other News...
Islanders Still Waiting On Mathew Barzal For One Frustrating Reason
Mathew Barzal is back on the ice with the Islanders, but only in a limited way for now. He has been skating in a non-contact jersey during practice as he works through inflammation in his left knee, and coach Pete DeBoer confirmed he is still not cleared for contact. Teammates have sounded encouraged by the sight of him moving again, especially after Barzals left kneecap injury in February 2025 led to surgery and wiped out the rest of that season.
The frustrating part for the Islanders is the lack of any real timetable. Barzal played most of last season after returning from that injury, but this latest knee issue has kept him from a full return to NHL games, and the team is still waiting for a clearer answer on when that changes. For a club that leans on his speed and creativity, the progress is welcome, but it does not yet solve the bigger question hanging over his availability. [Read more 🡒]
Islanders Finally Have Some Hope As Key Reinforcements Near
The Islanders are finally getting a little bit of encouraging injury news, and for a team that has spent the early part of the season waiting for help, that matters. The latest update brought some movement on the returns of Mathew Barzal, Mattias Maccelli and Ryan Pulock, three players whose absences have left noticeable holes in the lineup and forced the club to keep patching things together while trying to stay afloat.
Barzals situation remains the one everyone is watching most closely, since his knee injury has kept him out entirely so far this season. Even with that lingering uncertainty, the fact that the Islanders can point to progress on multiple fronts gives them something they have not had much of lately: a real sense that reinforcements are getting closer, even if the final steps still have to play out. [Read more 🡒]
Islanders Add Veteran Blue Line Depth After Surprise Camp Push
The Islanders have turned a surprise camp push into a new opportunity for Ben Hutton, signing the veteran defenseman to a one-year contract after he first arrived on a professional tryout agreement. Hutton has spent time with several NHL teams over his career, and his resume includes a Stanley Cup win with the Vegas Golden Knights in 2023, giving New York another experienced option on the blue line as the roster takes shape.
For the Islanders, the move adds a familiar depth piece without much risk, and it comes after Hutton had been looking for a landing spot following his latest camp audition. The signing gives him a chance to stick in New York and gives the club another veteran presence to lean on if injuries or lineup changes test the defense early in the season. [Read more 🡒]