Islanders second line carrying offensive load for team

To start the year, the New York Islanders second line wasn’t off to what you’d call a “hot start”. The trio of Brock Nelson, Josh Bailey, and Anthony Beauvillier was struggling to find their form.

Through the first four games of the year, the second line put up a combined four points. Not exactly glowing production from the Isles second scoring line.

But since then the “killer B” line has picked it up for the Islanders. Their 13 combined points lead the team in terms of offense-share. Their responsible for over a third of the Isles points so far this year.

New York Islanders second line has highest offensive share

That’s right, with 13 combined points – Bailey has five, Beauvillier has four, and Nelson has four – the Isles second line is leading the team for offensive share with 35%. The next best line is the top line (Barzal-Lee-Palmieri) with 21% offensive share:

Offense share by line

Line 1: 8 points =  21%
Line 2: 13 points = 35%
Line 3: 6 points = 16%
Line 4: 3 points = 8%

Total production for entire team = 37 points

This is good news for the New York Islanders. To have any success, the Islanders need their top two lines to be pulling their weight offensively. And for a few games at the start of the year the Killer B’s weren’t doing that.

Having the second line rolling and more importantly, contributing is widely important to the Islanders. The team isn’t a high-octane offensive team. They don’t score a ton of goals. So having a full unit fail to carry their weight offensively is a big problem for the team’s chances of winning.

There’s no secret to the line. Beauvillier is the energy, forechecking, and digging along the boards. Bailey is the “brains”, his hockey IQ and top-notch passing sets up his linemates more than he sets himself up. Brock Nelson is the heart and finisher on the line. The three are well balanced in their approach to the game and complement each other well.