The New York Islanders Look for a Hot Start to the Season

The wait is over! The New York Islanders will begin the regular season traveling to Canada to face the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday. The summer seemed to drag, especially with little player movement from Mathieu Darche. Head coach Peter DeBoer has chosen his squad to battle with at the start of October. However, remember the first week of the season will not define or decide the entire campaign.

In the first 8 days of the NHL regular season, the Islanders play four games with no back-to-back games and two Metropolitan Division matchups. The home opener will be against the New Jersey Devils, with a visit to the rival New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. The Chicago Blackhawks will visit UBS Arena next Thursday to start a three-game homestand.

It remains to be seen if DeBoer will let Ilya Sorokin play all four games, but Semyon Varlamov made the roster as a medical miracle and will serve as the backup. Additionally, Mathew Barzal will not be ready to play against Toronto to open the season, but could be available for the home opener. Realistically, expect to see Barzal open the season against the Rangers.

Getting off to a hot start is never a bad thing, but not essential to making the playoffs or winning the Stanley Cup. Victor Eklund will be getting himself acclimated to NHL life, and Logan Stanley will be getting himself comfortable in his new home.

Many "experts" have written off the Islanders after a quiet offseason and the aging veterans on this roster, but that is not enough for me to forget that this team was in a playoff spot heading through the trade deadline last year.

I do think that this team has the potential to get off to a slow start, but steady the course by the holiday season. DeBoer's system will take time not only to work, but also for the players to get comfortable. The young players will take time, even the second-year guys, Calum Ritchie and Matthew Schaefer.

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