Patrick Roy says the quiet part out loud about preseason wins and losses

The New York Islanders are 0-2 to start the 2025 NHL preseason, but head coach Patrick Roy isn't concerned. In fact, he's encouraged.

The Islanders have an embarrassment of riches in their forward group – which is a great problem to have, especially in terms of creating stiffer competition for spots on the team's Opening Night roster.

Take, for example, New York's 6-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday. The Devils rolled out a roster rich with NHL talent, while the Islanders iced mostly prospects like Marc Gatcomb and Kyle MacLean – and perhaps that was by design.

Gatcomb and MacLean are among the "fringe" forwards battling for one of the final spots on the Islanders' 23-man roster, so it made sense to sacrifice ice time for veterans and play the youngsters against the Devils' top NHL talent to see how they fare in game situation (and perhaps allow some of the roster battles to sort themselves out based on the results).

“Preseason [is] preseason," Roy said. "Who cares about the win and losses? Yeah, you want to win every game you’re playing in, but at the same time, I think it’s more important for us to see those guys – and maybe some guys made our decision easier tonight.”

Islanders' forward roster battles heating up during NHL preseason

So, which "guys" could Roy have been referring to? Perhaps MacLean, who needs to have a strong camp in order to earn a spot in the Islanders' lineup after an up-and-down 2024-25 season. New York's lack of forward depth last season allowed him to keep his roster spot despite his ineffectiveness for stretches of time, but that changes this year. Roy is sending a message to his players that nothing is guaranteed.

Islanders fans may be itching to see more of the likes of stars like Mat Barzal, Bo Horvat or Kyle Palmieri, but their time will come. Preseason isn't about them, anyway. Preseason games give prospects the rare chance to test themselves in NHL conditions while management evaluates whether upside outweighs the safer-but-limited contributions of veterans.

That’s how kids on the bubble can push themselves into meaningful roster spots. A rookie winger who creates offense or kills penalties effectively in September can make a depth veteran expendable before the season even begins. Depth forwards on Long Island like Gatcomb and MacLean should have their head on a swivel, and that's just how Roy wants it.