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Following back-to-back trips to the Conference Finals, the New York Islanders fell short of the playoffs this season, finishing ninth in the Eastern Conference.
Given the Islanders entered the year projected to be contenders in the East, the result couldn’t be much more disappointing. It certainly didn’t help that the team started the year on a 13-game road trip, but then considering they followed up with an 11-game losing streak and also lost their first seven home games of the year, it’s hard to justify their struggles. Yes, there were key injuries and absences but the Islanders really struggled with consistency.
Coming into the year, some key changes were that the Islanders lost both Jordan Eberle and Nick Leddy as a result of the Expansion Draft (or in Leddy’s case, Expansion Draft-related concerns). At the time, it wasn’t viewed as a huge issue but in reality, the team lost a forward who ranked third on the team in goals and a veteran defenseman who was, at the time, the Islanders’ clear top offensive defenseman. Then to offset the losses, the Islanders didn’t really do much. I’m not saying losing Eberle and Leddy is what sunk the team this year but for a team who couldn’t score, losing two key offensive assets really didn’t help at the very least.
As for the season itself, there was a clear divide between how the team performed against different qualities of competition, and to a much greater extent than what would’ve obviously been expected. The team was great against non-playoff teams, dropping few games to teams lower in the standings, but could rarely beat any team holding a playoff spot, which was frustrating. The Islanders also really struggled to win games that went past regulation.
As usual, offense was also a concern once again. The team actually did have a slightly higher goals per game average this year than last, but the team was scoring more on the power play and less at even strength. The reality is there were way too many players who weren’t producing, or at least weren’t producing consistently. Anders Lee and Kyle Palmieri both came alive in the back half of the year but started really slow. Josh Bailey, Anthony Beauvillier and the fourth line were all underwhelming, while Oliver Wahlstrom also really struggled to take a step forward.
As for the blue line, Noah Dobson became a key fixture and Adam Pelech was great, while I thought Ryan Pulock got better as the year went on, after he returned. Scott Mayfield was also solid but the team was missing a big piece on the left side after Leddy was dealt.
The Islanders also went from allowing the 10th fewest shots per game last season to the 11th most shots per game this year. That said, while they dropped from the second-fewest goals against per game last season, they did still allow just the seventh-fewest goals per game. The team’s penalty kill was also even better than last season, operating at 84.2 per cent.
If there was a bright spot, it was once again the team’s goaltending. Ilya Sorokin established himself as capable of a full-time starting role, posting an excellent .925 save percentage through 52 games this year. While Semyon Varlamov took a step back, he still posted a .911 save percentage as well.
If the Islanders want to rebound from the poor year, they can’t be shy to make some moves this offseason. While there are other issues, the team has lacked high-end scoring for a long time now and while their deep playoff runs may have masked the problem a bit, it’s obvious the team needs to add a couple of legitimate top forwards.
If they make some upgrades, I think the Islanders could end up right back in the playoffs next year. If management chooses to come back a very similar roster which sees only minor changes though, it’s unlikely we'll see the Islanders end up in a better spot.
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