Eyes On Isles
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How Barry Trotz New York Islanders team fare after a break

By Michel Anderson|
EDMONTON, ALBERTA - SEPTEMBER 15: Head coach Barry Trotz of the New York Islanders looks on against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the second period in Game Five of the Eastern Conference Final during the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place on September 15, 2020 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
EDMONTON, ALBERTA - SEPTEMBER 15: Head coach Barry Trotz of the New York Islanders looks on against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the second period in Game Five of the Eastern Conference Final during the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place on September 15, 2020 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

The New York Islanders aren’t in action for another few days. A five-day break so early in the season feels weird. but when you look back at the last few schedules, this has happened before.

Back in 2018, the Isles had one four-day and two three-day breaks in the opening month of the season. The next year, the Isles had two four-day breaks in the month of October. And don’t forget the number of three-day breaks throughout the years since 2018-19.

With a return to the ice coming soon (they’re back on Saturday in Nashville), how do the Islanders fare after these breaks in the schedule?

How Barry Trotz New York Islanders deal after a break

And by breaks what I mean is anything that is at least three days long. And, I’m only looking back as far as 2018-19 when Barry Trotz was behind the bench. I’m interested in how these Islanders do after a break. And while the 2018-19 team is different(ish) from the current one, the style of play is very much the same.

One last thing, when it comes to “faring” or how well they do, I’m just looking at the very first game after the break. Did they win, lose, or lose in OT?

Here are all of the breaks that I’m looking at along with the result of the very next game after the break:

2018
Oct 9 to Oct 12: W
Oct 14 to Oct 16: L
Oct 21 to Oct 23: OTL
Dec 24 to Dec 27: W

2019
Jan 23 to Feb 1: OTL
Feb 17 to Feb 19: L
Oct 20 to Oct 23: W
Nov 10 to Nov 12: W
Dec 24 to Dec 26: L

2020
Jan 8 to Jan 10: OTL
Jan 22 to Jan 31: OTL

2021
Feb 1 to Feb 5: W
Apr 12 to Apr 14: L

So, in total that record 5-4-4. That’s 14 points from a possible 26 available points. That’s above 500 (0.539 to be specific). And while that doesn’t sound incredible, keep in mind the context. The Isles are coming off a break, and rusty, but still manage to stay about 500.

Also, keep in mind that in 2020-21 only 15 teams had a better points percentage through the entire season than the Isles post-break 0.539 points percentage. So it’s not that bad with all things considered.

So when the Islanders get back to the ice on Saturday in Nashville, they’ll be a bit rusty, but it seems safe to say they’ll probably leave there with a point or two.

Unless the break totally ruins their momentum and just brings them back to the same team we saw in the first two games of the year.

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