Islanders 3 keys against Buffalo Sabres: Cut the crap

3 of 4

Semyon Varlamov #40 of the New York Islanders. (Photo by Kevin Hoffman/Getty Images) /

The New York Islanders face off against the Buffalo Sabres tonight. After yesterday’s 4-2 loss, what do they need to do to win today?

A 4-2 loss wasn’t what most of us were expecting when the New York Islanders took to the ice in Buffalo to face the Sabres. After all, the Sabres were on a four-game losing streak while the Isles had just bested the Rangers with back-to-back shutouts.

We weren’t the only ones to think that, the players did too. Once they got up 2-0 on the Sabres they took their foot off the gas thinking their job was done. Barry Trotz said as much in the post-game, the Islanders arrogance cost them last night.

Which is a ridiculous occurrence when you think about it.

This is a group of professionals who’ve played this game their entire life. They should know by now that taking your foot off the gas can only invite bad things to happen. Like losing a game when you’re fighting for home-ice advantage.

And it’s not like the Islanders should be in any position to play an arrogant game. Sure, they just made the playoffs for the third straight year, but these same Islanders just dropped a three-game series to the Washington Capitals. What right do they have to be arrogant right now?

Thankfully, they can fix that with another date against the same Buffalo Sabres tonight. So what do they need to do to take a win?

New York Islanders coach Barry Trotz (Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports) /

Cut the Crap

They’ve made the playoffs. Great. But the season isn’t over. There’s still home-ice advantage to play for. And that’s wildly important for a team like the Islanders. Here is their home record compared to their road record, along with their points percentage and rank in the NHL:

Home: 20-3-3, 0.827 Pts%, 1st
Road: 11-13-2, 0.462 Pts%, 20th

Why are they not ruthlessly pursuing as many points as they can accumulate through the remaining schedule? Why do they think it’s acceptable to take thir foot off the gas against the Sabres while they’re up 2-0?

It’s late to be saying this, but it still has to be said: they’ve got to cut the crap.

Luckily, the division and home-ice advantage can still be had. The Capitals and Penguins (first and second in the division respectively), are only four points up on the Isles. Isles have a game in hand on Pittsburgh.

The Penguins still have to play the Flyers (who beat them 7-2) yesterday before playing Buffalo twice. The Caps, have to play the Rangers, Flyers (twice) before ending their season against the Bruins on May 11.

The Islanders have an easier schedule ahead than both teams. Picking up more points than at least one of those teams is possible. Assuming they can play their game and not take themselves out of it. They’ll have to cut this arrogant attitude quickly if they hope to do so.

Head coach Barry Trotz of the New York Islander (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

Special Teams

The Islanders special teams were anything but last night. The penalty kill was 66% effective going 1/3 while the power play went 0/1 on the night.

The Sabres power play was once their strength, but with Jack Eichel out with an injury, that effective power play has started to drop, perilously. Since March 7th – the last time the Isles saw the Sabres – their power play is 13.3% effective. That’s the 26th ranked PP over the last two-ish months. The Isles PK has been 83.6% effective over that stretch.

There’s no reason for the Sabres to find their way back into the game because of their power play if the Isles play to their strength. But that’s what happens when you let a team register five, yes five, shots on net on a single power play.

The Isles power play is a bit of a different story here. Going 0/1 isn’t something new. The Islanders have been poor on the man-advantage all year long. But they’ve seen some success of late. Over their last eight opportunities going into yesterday’s game they had three goals. That’s a 37.5% efficiency.

With a Sabres PK that has been effective 75% of the time on the year, this was a golden opportunity to continue that form as the team heads to the playoffs. Unfortunately, the Islanders managed to get two shots (both high-danger) but only registered a 0.25 xGF.

Tonight, in the return leg of the back-to-back, the Islanders have to press their special teams advantage. Limit the Sabres’ chances on the PK like they’ve done all year and find their rhythm on the PP when they have them.

Mathew Barzal #13 of the New York Islanders skates. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

Mathew Barzal Has to Show Up

There is no question that Mathew Barzal is the Islanders best player. All of their offense runs through him. The Isles have enough depth for them to survive when Barzal is taken out of a particular game, but the other night he was virtually invisible.

Here’s his stat line from the night:

Points: 0
Shots: 1
Hits: 0
Giveaways: 3
Game Score: -0.79

That game score stat takes into account a number of advanced stats, just in case you were wondering. And that -0.79 score had Barzal third from the bottom for Islanders players. Only Semyon Varlamov (-0.88) and Leo Komarov (-0.99).

Going into the final stretch and into the postseason, the Islanders could do well to have Mathew Barzal at his best. That means generating opportunities for himself and for his teammates. Having a 19% xGF on the night is unacceptable, even if the opposition isn’t the Buffalo Sabres. That just cant’ happen.

Back-to-Back Magic

Thankfully, the Islanders typically get it right on the second leg of a back-to-back. Since Barry Trotz has been in charge the Islanders hold an impressive 22-3-4 record in the second leg of back-to-back games.

There’s no doubt that Barry can pull his team into the fight for this one to get a win.

Ideally, the Islanders can sustain that through the remainder of the of the regular season. They still have meaningful games even if they aren’t against meaningful opponents.

Home / Editorials