Anders Lee shares a similar sentiment to that of NY Islanders fans

2024 NHL Awards Red Carpet
2024 NHL Awards Red Carpet / Bruce Bennett/GettyImages

Anders Lee is back on the ice, as the NY Islanders captain made his summer debut in Da Beauty League Tuesday night. The NY Islanders captain wasted no time getting on the score sheet as he scored a wrap-around goal less than two minutes into the game, to give Team Tria a 1-0 lead against Brock Nelson and Team Anderson.

Though the four-on-four league has become a popular way for Minnesota natives to keep active during the off-season, it's nothing compared to the real thing, as training camp is only about two months away.

The last two seasons the Islanders found themselves eliminated early from postseason contention, falling to the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round on both occasions. Slow starts and extended losing streaks saw the team scratching and clawing to work their way into wild card position in the final days of the season.

While the first goal of every team is to reach the postseason, Lee and the Islanders would like to do it in a less stressful fashion.

“We can do a better job of putting ourselves in a position where we’re not grinding and grinding out the last few months of the regular season and spending a lot of that effort into getting into the playoffs," Lee told NHL.com at Da Beauty League. “That’s the hardest thing to do. We need to put ourselves in a position that we’re ready to go from Day One and then keep that through all 82 games and into the playoffs.

Lee isn't the only one who feels that way, as the fan base would love to not have their emotions toyed with, reaching emotional highs and lows with each game's outcome.

With the addition of Anthony Duclair, the Islanders are hoping they can fill the goal more often, as he could become the speedy scoring winger the team has been searching for.

“Having Anthony come in, it’s huge for us,” Lee said. “He brings a big element to our team with the speed and playmaking, and he’s been around a long time and has seen a lot of hockey. So, he’s going to be very welcomed in our room.”

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