New York Islanders Podcast: Devon Toews Gets His Chance In NHL

TAMPA, FLORIDA - APRIL 09: Drake Caggiula #9 of the North Dakota Fighting Hawks fight for position with Devon Toews #6,Connor Clifton #4 and Michael Garteig #34 of the Quinnipiac Bobcats in the third period during the championship game of the 2016 NCAA Division I Men's Hockey Championships at Amalie Arena on April 9, 2016 in Tampa, Florida.The North Dakota Fighting Hawks defeated the Quinnipiac Bobcats 5-1 to win the national title. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
TAMPA, FLORIDA - APRIL 09: Drake Caggiula #9 of the North Dakota Fighting Hawks fight for position with Devon Toews #6,Connor Clifton #4 and Michael Garteig #34 of the Quinnipiac Bobcats in the third period during the championship game of the 2016 NCAA Division I Men's Hockey Championships at Amalie Arena on April 9, 2016 in Tampa, Florida.The North Dakota Fighting Hawks defeated the Quinnipiac Bobcats 5-1 to win the national title. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Our latest New York Islanders podcast is up. And we spend the first quarter of the show speaking about Devon Toews’ call-up to the NHL.

Unfortunately, it took a Thomas Hickey injury for Devon Toews to be called up but he’s here now for the New York Islanders. He will make his NHL debut, likely on this road trip.

So what can we expect from a defenseman that’s impressed Islanders fans over the last three years in the AHL with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers?

Judging by how the Islanders have treated he two other call-ups they’ve made this season (Michael Dal Colle and Josh Ho-Sang) and with the travel and no practice time, you’d think Toews doesn’t play against the Golden Knights. He’ll likely make his debut on Sunday, December 23rd against the Dallas Stars.

So when he eventually gets his chance, what should we expect he does with it?

Don’t expect too much. As we’ve seen with other Islanders offensive defensemen (Nick Leddy and Ryan Pulock) Barry Trotz likes to break them to to the basics before building them back up again. Expect him to be used as a puck-moving option, but don’t get disappointed if he doesn’t score like he’s doing in the AHL.

What Else Do We Talk About?

Anthony Beauvillier is on fire. Since his four-point night against the New York Rangers, Beauvillier has added another nine points to his tally in 2018-19. Through his first 16 games, he had one point, in the following 16 he had 12. What a turnaround he’s having, again.

The Nassau Coliseum has held three Islanders regular season games so far, all three have been sellouts. The fans are there, they just don’t want to go to Brooklyn.

The New York Islanders power play now has three goals over the last three games for a 25 percent efficiency. It’s a small sample size, but can it be sustained?

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