Islanders: Five questions that need answering after the all-star break

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DALLAS, TX – JUNE 22: (l-r) Doug Wilson of the San Jose Sharks and Lou Lamoriello of the New York Islanders chat prior to the first round of the 2018 NHL Draft at American Airlines Center on June 22, 2018 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

With mediocre efforts and blown leads the few weeks before the all-star break, the New York Islanders need to address some tough questions when the season resumes.

There are 33 games left in the regular season and the New York Islanders are third in the Metropolitan Division. However, they are only two points ahead of the last wild card spot held by the Carolina Hurricanes.

That 17-game-point streak from earlier in the season looks like a long time away. In that streak, the Isles built-up a great point base that is now starting to erode. Case and point, the small gap between the Isles and Hurricanes.

Three points separate the Isles with three other teams below them in the Metropolitan Division (Carolina Hurricanes, Columbus Blue Jackets, Philadelphia Flyers). They’ve also been leapfrogged by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Metropolitan Division.

If the Islanders hope to make the playoffs in 2020, they need to answer and address some issues plaguing this team:

UNIONDALE, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 17: Barry Trotz, the head coach of the New York Islanders handles the bench against the Nashville Predators at NYCB Live’s Nassau Coliseum on December 17, 2019 in Uniondale, New York. The Predators defeated the Islanders 8-3. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

1. Will the defense tighten up and play better?

Barry Trotz preaches team defense and this style is one reason the Islanders were able to make a dramatic turnaround last year, but as we have seen over the last month their defense has not been good enough.

I have zero doubt that Trotz and his coaching staff are working over the break to find ways to improve their defense. They are fourth in goals allowed and 17th on the penalty kill, not terrible, but clearly the team needs to address its defensive lapses.

Individual mistakes are adding up and costing this team wins. Last season, team defense powered them to a 103 point season. They need to find a way back to that.

The loss of Adam Pelech has hurt the team, but it seems that they are struggling with basic fundamentals like puck clearing and winning one-on-one battles. There has been some chatter on social media about the team being tired due to the recent schedule, but I don’t buy it. These are elite athletes in a structured defensive system with a clear role. I would say this is the easiest fix for the team.

UNIONDALE, NEW YORK – JANUARY 06: Semyon Varlamov #40 of the New York Islanders tends net against the Colorado Avalanche during the first period at NYCB Live’s Nassau Coliseum on January 06, 2020 in Uniondale, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

2. Which goalie will earn the number one starter role?

For a few weeks, it looked like Semyon Varlamov would be the number one starter, but he has tailed off and, quite frankly, I think he has looked weak.

His statistics so far this season have him ranked 23rd in SV% with a .915, and 22nd in GAA, with a 2.59. These are middle of the road at best and almost identical to his career stats of a .916SV% and 2.67GAA.

Thomas Griess is 13th in the NHL with a SV% of .925, and 12th in GAA of 2.43. I think he has looked better than Varlamov over the last month after he took a bit of slide.

But the question is, does Trotz make a decision to play his better goalie, Griess in my opinion, or continue alternating goalies the rest of the way.

The Islanders seemed at their best when they could alternate between goalies. It’s clearly not Barry Trotz’s preferred setup. But until they get a goalie who can start 50+ games, alternating between his two guys might just be the best solution.

UNIONDALE, NEW YORK – APRIL 10: (l-r) Adam Pelech #3 and Josh Bailey #12 of the New York Islanders celebrate Bailey’s game winning overtime goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game One of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at NYCB Live’s Nassau Coliseum on April 10, 2019 in Uniondale, New York. The Islanders defeated the Penguins 4-3 in overtime. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

3. Do the top 6 forwards create more offense?

This is a trick question, because who are the top six scoring forwards? Clearly Barzal, Nelson and Bailey are top point producers, if not streaky ones. At the all-star break the next four are Lee, Beauvillier and Brassard, followed by Eberle.

Kind of what you would expect, but the Islanders need more scoring from the secondary players on the offense. Eberle has been improving lately but only has seven goals in 39 games. That’s only one more than Ryan Pulock, a D man.

This brings us back to who are the top six forwards? The answer may be easy from a skill perspective, but it is not an easy answer from a goal and point producing view.

Trotz has been struggling to find lines that produce, mixing lines and forwards to try and find the right combination. I think Brassard has been a pleasant surprise on the wing for this team and Beauvillier is markedly improved this year, but it is just not enough.

The Islanders need to be able to roll two solid top scoring lines night in and night out. They just don’t have that at the moment.

This will be one of the more difficult items to address the rest of the season because it is totally dependent on player improvement.

UNIONDALE, NEW YORK – JANUARY 14: Josh Bailey #12 of the New York Islanders celebrates his goal at 3:59 of the first period against the Detroit Red Wings at NYCB Live’s Nassau Coliseum on January 14, 2020 in Uniondale, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

4. Will the power play improve?

The New York Islanders are 19th in the league with a PP% of 19.5 percent. It’s much better than last season’s 14.5 percent efficiency. But lately, the power play has been falling back on bad habits from 2018-19.

Watching their power play lately is maddening and frustrating because it looks like we are back to last season, a lot of passing and cuteness without a lot of high shot potential. What is really frustrating to me is that the power play looked good the first month of the season, only to regress and look terrible since.

Here is a prediction. This team as structured will not go deep in the playoffs with a power play that looks as weak and feckless as it does right now.

Sure, changing the coach to Jim Hiller has improved PP statistics from the bottom of the NHL last season to the middle of the league this year, but unless this team improves on the PP they will struggle in the playoffs.

The question is, can the power play improve with this group of players? Which brings us to question number five.

UNIONDALE, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 17: General manager Lou Lamoriello watches the game between the New York Islanders and the Nashville Predators as he reaches the 2,500-game milestone as GM. Only two general managers in NHL history has served as many regular-season contests, including Lamoriello’s counterpart (2,816 GP) David Poile of Nashville and Glen Sather (2,700 GP).at NYCB Live’s Nassau Coliseum on December 17, 2019 in Uniondale, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

5. Will Lou Lamoriello make a move to improve the team?

It is the question on all Islander fan’s minds. And the one that can have the biggest impact on answering most of the questions facing the Islanders as we exit the break. Will Lou Lamoriello make a trade to improve this team? Or will Stand Pat be joining us again?

This is debated ad nauseam on every social media site that follows the Isles. The team needs to improve scoring, so will Lou make a trade for a top-six forward and trade one of the Islanders few good prospects for a rental player for the final 33 games? Or, does Lou bring in a solid offensive player with scoring and defensive skills for a mid-round draft pick? Will that type of player even make a difference for the team at this point?

There is even chatter about getting another defensive player now that they have lost Pelech for the season. There is no impact player in Bridgeport that the Isles can bring up that this team needs, or they would have already done so. And no, Josh Ho-Sang is not the impact player they need!

We all know Lou will not show his cards and only he knows what he is going to do. For those that worry about the “chemistry” of this team being disrupted by a trade, I do not buy that. This team is struggling for offense and has started to struggle on defense. This team is due for a trade and a shake up.

For me, there are only a few untouchable players: Barzal, Nelson, Lee, Pelech, and Pulock. Everyone else is fair game and if Lou made a surprise trade for a true top-six scoring forward I would be all right with anyone but the untouchables departing.

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What I think will happen is that Lou will trade for a quality two-way player that provides a little shake-up to the room and uses this summer to make significant roster changes.

The Islanders have some serious questions when the season resumes, what we do know is that it will be a tight points race the rest of the way.

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