Islanders still seeking more production from their power play
COLUMBUS, Ohio — There are a few reasons the Islanders aren’t comfortably in a playoff spot by now, their 9-15 overtime record, including 1-4 in shootouts, chief among them. There’s been improvement there, though, as they’ve won three of their last four past regulation.
However, the power play, another source of inconsistency, had kept sliding the wrong way.
Finally, coach Patrick Roy drastically addressed that deficiency, switching the personnel in both units less than a week after insisting that was not a necessary move.
The Islanders, with seven regular-season games remaining, face yet another must-win scenario on Thursday night against the Eastern Conference-worst Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena.
The Islanders (33-27-15) have grinded out two straight wins that have given them hope in their playoff chase yet broadened the questions of how they might actually fare if they do qualify for the postseason.
They beat the Flyers 4-3 in overtime on Monday night to conclude a 2-1-0 road trip then punctuated that with their first victory in 10 tries in the second game of a back-to-back set, rallying for a 2-1 win over NHL Draft Lottery-bound Chicago on Tuesday night at UBS Arena.
And, finally, the power play was crucial to that win. Bo Horvat snapped home a shot from the slot off Mathew Barzal’s feed at 1:33 of the third period to tie the game and create a path to victory.
Tuesday’s 1-for-2 on the power play followed an 0-for-15 drought over the previous five games and a 2-for-35 (5.7%) slump over an 11-game span.
Roy kept Horvat and Barzal with defenseman Noah Dobson on a unit but added Jean-Gabriel Pageau from his other unit and then mixed in the tireless Casey Cizikas, who has rarely seen power-play time this season.
Roy’s other unit consisted of two defensemen, Mike Reilly and Ryan Pulock, Anders Lee and Kyle Palmieri and Brock Nelson, both switched from Horvat and Barzal’s unit. This unit had a more traditional look, with the defensemen playing the points.
“It was good,” Roy said. “It was a little different, I guess, for Brock and Palms to be on this unit. But I think, if we could practice a little bit, they’re going to feel more and more comfortable. I think it’s important to have two different looks. One night, if the other team does a good job to shut us down, we have the other unit to score the goal. I believe the mix gives us two very good weapons.”
Time, of course, will tell. The Islanders are 19th in the NHL on the power play at 20.3 % (43-for-212), meaning they have been able to figure it out at points this season.
It’s typically, though there have been notable exceptions, a must-have facet of the game during the playoffs.
“Obviously, the power play has struggled the past few games,” defenseman Ryan Pulock said. “But it was big to get that goal and that allowed us to keep going like that.”
Of course, it can’t be a one-off. So Thursday should be telling.
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.
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