The New York Islanders may have gone 3-0 against the Florida Panthers this season, but that doesn’t mean their qualifying round series will be a cakewalk.
In their three matchups against the Panthers this season, the Islanders were outshot in every game (by an average of 36-31 in each) and honestly, New York’s goaltending played a key role in their record against Florida.
Their first game was decided in a shootout, with the Panthers outshooting the Islanders 37-28. The Islanders got quite a few good chances on the rush throughout the game, especially in the second period and early in the third period, while Florida was able to get some quality opportunities while set up in the offensive zone. The Panthers were able to get some good chances from the slot or around the net, but Semyon Varlamov’s strong positioning was key.
In the second game, the Islanders took a 2-1 win, with Thomas Greiss stopping 37 of 38 shots. If you re-watch the highlights from this one, there were some pretty excellent saves made by both goalies. The first period is pretty dull but the chances pick up after that. Greiss made some excellent saves while in movement, sliding over to stop four or five chances from within 10 feet of the net on the Panthers’ power plays. Sergei Bobrovsky was great as well, making some nice saves on the likes of Mathew Barzal, Anthony Beauvillier and Jordan Eberle but if it weren’t for Greiss, Florida certainly could have won this one.
The Islanders won the third game 3-1, despite being outshot once again. Greiss didn’t necessarily get tested the same way as the previous game but his rebound control was near perfect and he didn’t give up many second chances whatsoever. He also made an outstanding save against Brett Connolly in the dying minutes to secure an Islanders’ win.
In the three games, the Panthers scored just four goals on 108 shots against New York’s netminders. One key in this was that the Islanders killed off nine of Florida’s 10 power play opportunities and much of the credit for that success can go to Thomas Greiss, especially in their second game against the Panthers.
The Islanders had a goaltending advantage this season and as previously discussed, have the advantage in net for the series. But if New York’s goaltending hadn’t been as strong in their meetings against the Panthers this season, the results could’ve been different. The Islanders will need to get the same caliber of goaltending in at least a good chunk of their qualifying round series in order to get past the Panthers.
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Here’s today’s poll question (results and discussion will be posted in a future article):
How big of a factor do you think the quality of New York's goaltending will be in the series?
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