New York Islanders 2016-2017 Player Predictions vs Results

Before the season I made predictions for 10 New York Islanders, let’s see if my expectations were reached or if the guys fell short.

Before we get started I just want to say I didn’t have a crystal ball and my original predictions were just my feelings on each guy heading into the New York Islanders 2016-2017 season. Some were close others not so much. So without further ado let’s get started.

Thomas Greiss

My Prediction: 32 games 20-10-2 .912 sv% 2.49 GAA

Actual Results: 51 games 26-18-5 .913 sv% 2.69 GAA

I’m actually amazed how close I was with the save percentage that’s pretty cool. I totally wasn’t expecting Jaroslav Halak to get sent down to the minors though which throws off my win-loss record.

The GAA was a little higher than I expected as well. In 2015-16 he had a GAA of 2.36. It was a career year for Thomas Greiss though. I thought that naturally, his numbers wouldn’t be as good as he went back into the backup role.

Greiss’ 2016-2017 season was still a success and he was a major part of the Isles midseason turnaround.

New York Islanders

Jaroslav Halak

My Prediction: 45 games 28-14-3 .918 SV% 2.34 GAA

Actual Results: 28 games 12-9-5 .915 SV% 2.80 GAA

Welp, I wasn’t expecting the Isles to waive Jaroslav Halak. I thought for sure that he’d spend the season as the starter, or at least the 1A goalie if Greiss was to be the 1B.

The GAA prediction was nowhere close, but Halak really struggled early on in the season before he got sent down. Granted, some will say defensive lapses were a part of the reason for his struggles in net, which is half true.

He wasn’t the same netminder he was two years ago, overall it was a step back for Jaro and he didn’t reach expectations despite a strong finish to his season. Hopefully next year the Islanders have a simpler two goalie system instead of a three-goalie disaster, that should help both of these goalies for 2017-2018.

John Tavares

My Prediction: 40 goals 45 assists 85 points

Actual Results: 28 goals 38 assists 66 points

If 2015-2016 was considered a down year for John Tavares, then I don’t know what to consider 2016-2017. Maybe my expectations were too high for J.T. I might’ve got ahead of myself. If you read my original prediction piece you would see that I claimed linemate consistency would help him.

I thought it would be Andrew Ladd and P.A. Parenteau who would play alongside John Tavares. It turned out that it’d be Anders Lee and Josh Bailey along with Tavares who would make up the Isles top line.

Although it wasn’t expected that top unit was extremely productive for the Isles this year. Tavares may not have put up the gaudy numbers but as a unit, they worked well and formed as productive a top line that the Isles have had in a long time.

Brock Nelson

My Prediction: 28 goals 20 assists 48 points

Actual Results: 20 goals 25 assists 45 points

Guys I fell into the trap that is

Brock Nelson

. Although I was pretty close with the point total, I was off by eight goals. I fell for believing in the wrist shot. Brock Nelson’s got a beautiful wrist shot look here:

That is what Brock Nelson can do. Nelson also loves to do this:

He is the most frustrating player on the ice at times. The talent is there he just can’t put it together consistently and more often than not it looks like he’s just coasting around out there. This was Brock’s best statistical year point wise too which is the sad thing.

I wouldn’t consider it a great year by any sorts but once again if you look at the end of the year stats his numbers can be enticing (from afar). I guess cross your fingers he gets taken in the expansion draft.

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Alan Quine

My Prediction: 5 goals

Actual Results: 5 goals 13 assists 18 points

Why did I only predict a goal total for Alan Quine, I’m not sure. I took the easy way out because I didn’t think he’d be a big part of this Islander team. Pretty solid guess though.

He played in 61 games for the Islanders which is a lot more than I was expecting. Quine didn’t provide much offense but it’s not like the Isles were really expecting him to either.

Sadly Quine’s legacy will likely be that Game 5 overtime winner in Florida. I don’t think he’s an NHL caliber player. Probably a borderline AHL’er/NHL’er for life.

Shane Prince

My Prediction: 8-10 goals 20 points

Actual Results: 5 goals 13 assists 18 points

Again I got lazy with this prediction. I’m mad at August 2016 me. Anyway, Shane Prince put up the exact same numbers as Alan Quine. The thing with Prince is he played just 50 games this year for the team.

He’s another guy who I don’t see being here long term. He’s still relatively young at 24 years old I just don’t know if he fits into the Isles plans. He’s an okay placeholder but that’s all he really is.

He’s not someone who would be an integral part of a championship team. So for 2017 and beyond I would rather a prospect like Michael Dal Colle or a piece acquired in a trade get action over him. Sorry Princy.

Cal Clutterbuck

My Prediction: 15-18 goals

Actual Results: 5 goals 15 assists 20 points

Cal Clutterbuck did not have a very good year. He spent a good portion of the year struggling with injuries but something just seemed off with him all year long. He was coming off a 15 goal season playing on a line with Casey Cizikas and Matt Martin.

I assumed he’d play alongside Jason Chimera (he did not). The reason for my high goal total prediction was based on playing with the more offensive Chimera.

Related Story: Analyzing the Clutterbuck and Cizikas Deals

Again I fell into the trap of the talented wrist shot…damn you Cal!

Despite his struggles he got a contract extension with the team. Maybe it’s a ploy to keep his good buddy John Tavares here? Overall I like Clutter a lot so I understand I’m a bit biased but I think he bounces back next year, but as for 2016-2017 it was a bad year for the agitator.

Casey Cizikas

My Prediction: 8-10 goals

Actual Results: 8 goals 17 assists 25 points

Casey Cizikas’ goal total was right where I figured it’d be. Some believed that maybe he’d center the Isles third line due to his raise this past offseason. He didn’t, he stayed put on that fourth line and kept his usual production going.

He finished with the same goal total that he did the previous year although his points dipped by four as his assists came down. Granted Zeeker played in just 59 games so if we got a full season out of him maybe he would’ve cracked the 30 point plateau.

Josh Bailey

My Prediction: 12-15 goals 35 points

Actual Results: 13 goals 43 assists 56 points

Nobody expected Josh Bailey to have the year that he did. It was by far his best at the NHL level. Did it help that he was playing on a line with John Tavares and Anders Lee? Sure it did but I’d be lying to you if I said that Bails didn’t play the best hockey of his career this year.

He was part of the Isles solid first line and at times this year, earlier in the year, he was the Isles most consistent forward.

Related Story: The Underrated and Undervalued Top Line

Granted, Anders Lee, Jason Chimera and Andrew Ladd had monster second half’s but honestly, Bailey helped keep the Isles somewhat afloat during their miserable first half.

I’m not a Bailey lover by any means but you have to give credit when credit is due.

Jason Chimera

My Prediction: 15 goals 15 assists 30 points

Actual Result: 20 goals 13 assists 33 points

Jason Chimera was a fantastic pickup. This past offseason Chimmer signed a 2-year $4.5 million contract with the Isles. Matt Martin signed a 4-year $10 million contract with the Maple Leafs.

Considering that Chimera had 20 goals and 33 points this year while Martin had five goals and nine points I would say that Garth hit a home run here with his cheaper more productive replacement.

I was off on the goal total but definitely pretty close with the end point total. At 37 years old it was a great year for Chimera, especially considering the slow start he got off to.

Next: A Tale Of Two Seasons

Those were my predictions. Like I said some were good some were bad, this summer I’ll make sure to be more specific with my predictions I got pretty vague at times. No more ranges we are going to go all in.