The Islanders haven’t looked like the same team from night to night, and that’s exactly why their slow start doesn’t have to turn into a full-blown crisis.
One night, New York is dropping a 6-0 hammer on the New Jersey Devils. The next, it’s taking a 5-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night. That kind of swing makes the Islanders hard to pin down, but it also makes the point clear: this team is still sorting itself out.
What helps is the landscape around them. The Metro Division has not separated itself beyond the Carolina Hurricanes and the Washington Capitals.
The Rangers have started well, but the loss of Igor Shesterkin is expected to catch up to them eventually. Unless Dylan Garand can come out of nowhere like Jim Carey or Tim Thomas did, the fact is that the Rangers will eventually hit a wall.
The Penguins, Flyers, and Blue Jackets haven’t shown anything that suggests they’re clearly better than the Islanders either. That leaves New York with room to breathe, even if the start has been uneven.
In a sense, the Islanders and Devils are in the same boat. Both teams have talent.
Both teams have had trouble putting together steady performances. And for the Islanders, that’s the real task right now: stack good efforts on top of one another and separate from the pack.
There’s also the coaching factor. Peter DeBoer hasn’t even been behind the bench for a dozen games yet, and this remains a work in progress despite all the veteran pieces in the room. The shortened preseason has made life messier across the league, and sloppy play has shown up everywhere.
That hasn’t just hurt five-on-five rhythm. Special teams have taken a hit too.
The complaints about the condensed ramp-up are over now, though. The Islanders can’t do anything about that part of it. What they can do is get more comfortable under DeBoer and start finding a steadier gear.
That’s where the division matters. In the Central Division or the Atlantic Division, a lukewarm start could be a real problem.
In the Metro, the Islanders have a little more runway. If they catch fire at the right time, they could surge into the playoffs and maybe do a lot more than just get there.
In Other News...
Mathew Barzal Found Unexpected Inspiration During His Injury Comeback
Mathew Barzals road back from a knee injury has been a long one, but an unexpected moment on live television gave the Islanders forward a boost he probably did not see coming. During an appearance on Fox & Friends, Barzal was surprised by Tommy Ryan, a fan whose connection to the team and to Barzal goes back to Ryans hospitalization, when he credited the Islanders for helping him get through leukemia treatment.
The relationship has grown from there, including a previous meeting at UBS Arena, and Ryans presence clearly hit home for Barzal as he continues working his way through recovery. For a player trying to navigate the patience and grind of coming back, finding motivation in the story of a fan who drew strength from him in the first place is a reminder that these ties can run both ways. [Read more 🡒]
Matthew Schaefer Is Giving Islanders Fans A Massive Reason To Believe
At 19, Matthew Schaefer is already logging a workload that would be notable for a veteran, let alone a rookie defenseman. The Islanders are trusting him with 25:26 of ice time per game, and even in a role that still leaves him with limited shorthanded duty, his influence has been obvious every night hes on the ice.
The numbers back up what the eye test suggests. Schaefers underlying profile includes a 54.9% expected goals share and 3.52 expected goals for per 60 minutes, markers of a player driving play rather than just surviving it. With that kind of start, it is easy to see why the conversation around him is already stretching far beyond this season and into the kind of upside that can reshape a blue line. [Read more 🡒]
Islanders Got The Exact Boost They Needed In A Tight Win
Kyle Palmieri gave the Islanders exactly the kind of lift they had been waiting for in a 3-2 win over the Canucks, scoring twice and finishing the night with the deciding goal. It was the sort of timely contribution New York needed in a tight game, and it came with the added significance of Palmieri continuing to work his way back after ACL surgery, a process the team has been watching closely.
Matias Maccelli also fit neatly into the picture, scoring his first goal as an Islander and helping create the winner after getting moved up to the top line. Head coach Pete DeBoer praised both players afterward, pointing to Palmieris return and Maccellis motivation and performance as encouraging signs for a team looking for more reliable offense when the margins are thin. [Read more 🡒]