New York Islanders: Breaking Down 4-1 Win Over Winnipeg Jets

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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 06: Brock Nelson #29 of the New York Islanders celebrates his goal at 4:38 of the second period against Laurent Brossoit #30 of the Winnipeg Jets at NYCB Live’s Nassau Coliseum on October 06, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

Confidence Building

The Islanders needed this. Desperately. They needed to feel good about their offensive abilities. It’s only game number two of the season, but the Islanders have faced questions about their offense ever since the trade deadline in 2018-19.

The Islanders would finish the 2018-19 season ranked 22nd in the league for goals scored. Just not good enough for the Islanders (or anyone really).

If they were going to improve in 2019-20 they’d have to generate more offense. Ideally, they’d bring in another forward to generate that offense. They didn’t. Instead, they doubled down and kept everyone they already had, hoping they’d have better years.

In the first game of the 2019-20 season, we saw the Islanders offensive weaknesses on full display. They technically didn’t score a goal, and generally failed to generate anything.

They needed a game to feel good about themselves. They needed to score a few to know they could generate the offense Barry Trotz and Lou Lamoriello wanted. They did just that against the Winnipeg Jets.

With goals from four different sources and ten different players with points, the Islanders offense put on a show tonight.

Look, I’m not suggesting that the Islanders will roll the NHL with the best offense. But gaining this confidence should do them well as they go forward this season.