Andrew Gross @AGrossNewsday
now
Bailey Johnston Holmstrom and Wotherspoon working with G Jakub Skarek.

Same lineup

Ethan Sears @ethan_sears
7s
Romanov skated on his own this morning, per Lane

Like you said the devils are young and are cutting their teeth with playoff hockey. Almost expected to me. Their goaltending is also suspect. Love to make it past the canes and face the rangers in the 2nd round.
- Cptmjl

Devils do not seem ready yet. Goaltending also does not seem good enough.

I’ll say it before anyone else does. Need Horvat to start scoring. If all anyone is talking about are his FO %’s he’s not playing good.
- Cptmjl

Bo really needs to step it up. I get Barzal was out, but Bo does not look like an impact player.

Andrew Gross @AGrossNewsday
14s
Some tweaks to #Isles PP at morning skate. Personnel stays same on PP1 and PP2 but they were being run in a 2-1-2 formation rather than a 1-3-1. Barzal was up near the blue line on PP1, working on the right side, instead of skating near the left half-wall.

Andrew Gross @AGrossNewsday
14s
Some tweaks to #Isles PP at morning skate. Personnel stays same on PP1 and PP2 but they were being run in a 2-1-2 formation rather than a 1-3-1. Barzal was up near the blue line on PP1, working on the right side, instead of skating near the left half-wall.
- eichiefs9

Sorokin taking a mental note of this.

Andrew Gross @AGrossNewsday
14s
Some tweaks to #Isles PP at morning skate. Personnel stays same on PP1 and PP2 but they were being run in a 2-1-2 formation rather than a 1-3-1. Barzal was up near the blue line on PP1, working on the right side, instead of skating near the left half-wall.
- eichiefs9

I really would prefer they just go with a traditional 2d at this point. Send out Dobson and Pulock with Barzal, Horvat and Brock.

Bo really needs to step it up. I get Barzal was out, but Bo does not look like an impact player.
- ses111

Yeah he has got to start putting the puck in the net. I feel like his attempts at the net are kind of half arsed for a while now. Has to stop thinking and start executing with a quick release which is what made him so effective earlier on.

Yeah he has got to start putting the puck in the net. I feel like his attempts at the net are kind of half arsed for a while now. Has to stop thinking and start executing with a quick release which is what made him so effective earlier on.
- Cptmjl

Very little zip to his game lately.

I have no real problems with Aho. He's not a star in any sense of the word but he's absolutely a solid 3rd pairing guy that can move the puck and get some PP work.

Bolduc wasn't bad but wasn't great either last game. It's going to be real hard to, essentially, roll 5 defenseman against this forecheck with Bolduc getting pretty limited minutes. He only played 8:51 in game 1.
- eichiefs9

Aho has shown me something this season. Your description of him is pretty spot on. He may actually be the best defensive mover of the puck which, granted, isn’t saying much on this team. Bolduc played better than the Habs game but a traffic cone would have been an improvement on that. He did miss a goal by a foot or two on Monday.

I don’t know exactly why, but I feel good about tonight. I’m getting a very fair weather crowd vibe from their fans. If we can score the first goal, it would be huge.

Rangers won the Deserved To Win O’Meter I believe they had 58%.
- Cptmjl

Holy sh!t they did! hahaha carry on...and hopefully your team ties it up tonight.

Cheers.

Aho has shown me something this season. Your description of him is pretty spot on. He may actually be the best defensive mover of the puck which, granted, isn’t saying much on this team. Bolduc played better than the Habs game but a traffic cone would have been an improvement on that. He did miss a goal by a foot or two on Monday.

I don’t know exactly why, but I feel good about tonight. I’m getting a very fair weather crowd vibe from their fans. If we can score the first goal, it would be huge.
- potvin05

Islanders miss Leddy and Toews being able to skate the puck out of trouble. Aho does give them some of that ability.


It's critical the Islander score first tonight or the Canes can really start getting into their heads.

Holy sh!t they did! hahaha carry on...and hopefully your team ties it up tonight.

Cheers.
- MattStrat

Hope so thanks.

I really would prefer they just go with a traditional 2d at this point. Send out Dobson and Pulock with Barzal, Horvat and Brock.
- keaner17

I have been suggesting this for a while. My biggest concern is taking Lee off PP1 where in the past he has been valuable just standing in front of the crease and blocking the goalie's vision. However, he has not been as effective of late at deflections or knocking in rebounds. So, just to shake things up, and hopefully also reduce the chance of shorties, I would give this a try, even if it means bumping Lee down to PP2.

But then who gets removed from PP2? Pageau? Palmieri? Parise? Engvall?

Aho has shown me something this season. Your description of him is pretty spot on. He may actually be the best defensive mover of the puck which, granted, isn’t saying much on this team. Bolduc played better than the Habs game but a traffic cone would have been an improvement on that. He did miss a goal by a foot or two on Monday.

I don’t know exactly why, but I feel good about tonight. I’m getting a very fair weather crowd vibe from their fans. If we can score the first goal, it would be huge.
- potvin05

Agreed, he has worked his way into that third pairing role. Him being able to move the puck makes him exponentially more valuable to this team then a regular 3rd pairing Defenseman.

I have been suggesting this for a while. My biggest concern is taking Lee off PP1 where in the past he has been valuable just standing in front of the crease and blocking the goalie's vision. However, he has not been as effective of late at deflections or knocking in rebounds. So, just to shake things up, and hopefully also reduce the chance of shorties, I would give this a try, even if it means bumping Lee down to PP2.

But then who gets removed from PP2? Pageau? Palmieri? Parise? Engvall?
- JohnScammo

That’s because he has been on the perimeter rather then in front of the net. I’m sure that has a lot to do with their puck possession and zone entry issues of course on the PP. He doesn’t have the opportunity to get there more often then not.

I have been suggesting this for a while. My biggest concern is taking Lee off PP1 where in the past he has been valuable just standing in front of the crease and blocking the goalie's vision. However, he has not been as effective of late at deflections or knocking in rebounds. So, just to shake things up, and hopefully also reduce the chance of shorties, I would give this a try, even if it means bumping Lee down to PP2.

But then who gets removed from PP2? Pageau? Palmieri? Parise? Engvall?
- JohnScammo

Engvall has 1PP point in 18 regular season games + 1 playoff game, I think that'd be the easy choice. His points seem to come mostly off the rush. His shot/passing isn't particularly special to the point that he'd be a lock for the PP.

I'd probably be on board for the 2D on the PP idea, but I think the way they're adjusting to putting two guys on the blueline will make it a little easier to get pucks up high and escape the aggressive CAR PK. It should, in theory, give them some more breathing room out there by stretching out the penalty killers a little

I have been suggesting this for a while. My biggest concern is taking Lee off PP1 where in the past he has been valuable just standing in front of the crease and blocking the goalie's vision. However, he has not been as effective of late at deflections or knocking in rebounds. So, just to shake things up, and hopefully also reduce the chance of shorties, I would give this a try, even if it means bumping Lee down to PP2.

But then who gets removed from PP2? Pageau? Palmieri? Parise? Engvall?
- JohnScammo

Might not be popular, but Engvall. He's not really a 'blueline in' player IMO. If the Isles are going to consistently try to generate the chances from the blueline, they may as well put two guys up there for a bit of unpredictability. Additionally it 'should' cut down on the short handed opportunities (in theory).
Make Carolina have to commit their forwards to the points so we can work the 3 on 2 down low

Engvall has 1PP point in 18 regular season games + 1 playoff game, I think that'd be the easy choice. His points seem to come mostly off the rush. His shot/passing isn't particularly special to the point that he'd be a lock for the PP.

I'd probably be on board for the 2D on the PP idea, but I think the way they're adjusting to putting two guys on the blueline will make it a little easier to get pucks up high and escape the aggressive CAR PK. It should, in theory, give them some more breathing room out there by stretching out the penalty killers a little
- eichiefs9

Not very impressive, although to be fair, PP2 doesn't see the ice time that PP1 does. Also, Engvall skates well, and having more than one guy who can skate the puck into the o-zone on the PP is helpful. But despite that, yeah, I'd be fine with taking him off the PP.

Might not be popular, but Engvall. He's not really a 'blueline in' player IMO. If the Isles are going to consistently try to generate the chances from the blueline, they may as well put two guys up there for a bit of unpredictability. Additionally it 'should' cut down on the short handed opportunities (in theory).
Make Carolina have to commit their forwards to the points so we can work the 3 on 2 down low
- keaner17

See chiefs post above. The stats would support this.

Might not be popular, but Engvall. He's not really a 'blueline in' player IMO. If the Isles are going to consistently try to generate the chances from the blueline, they may as well put two guys up there for a bit of unpredictability. Additionally it 'should' cut down on the short handed opportunities (in theory).
Make Carolina have to commit their forwards to the points so we can work the 3 on 2 down low
- keaner17

Also not popular, but I would have played Bailey tonight over Engvall. Bailey has historically picked up his point production in the playoffs from about .55 pts per game during their regular season to .70 on average in the playoffs. Maybe he’s toast, but I think it’s worth a shot. Engvall’s .22 playoff points per game won’t be missed, and frankly he doesn’t provide many other intangibles that they’d be missing. Just my take.

Also not popular, but I would have played Bailey tonight over Engvall. Bailey has historically picked up his point production in the playoffs from about .55 pts per game during their regular season to .70 on average in the playoffs. Maybe he’s toast, but I think it’s worth a shot. Engvall’s .22 playoff points per game won’t be missed, and frankly he doesn’t provide many other intangibles that they’d be missing. Just my take.
- streaks

He brings some speed, which the Isles are sorely lacking overall. The question is whether he can leverage that into something useful.

Andrew Gross @AGrossNewsday
14s
Some tweaks to #Isles PP at morning skate. Personnel stays same on PP1 and PP2 but they were being run in a 2-1-2 formation rather than a 1-3-1. Barzal was up near the blue line on PP1, working on the right side, instead of skating near the left half-wall.
- eichiefs9

Good call.

Historically Canes high-pressure PK has forgotten about the bumper guy.

Good call.

Historically Canes high-pressure PK has forgotten about the bumper guy.
- BINGO!

Which seems to be where Horvat thrives on the PP

He brings some speed, which the Isles are sorely lacking overall. The question is whether he can leverage that into something useful.
- UIF

Engvall was pretty invisible last game, save for a spin shot that he put wide of the net. He's frustratingly soft for a guy who is 6'5". I'd take my chances on getting playoff Bailey back. Even Holmstrom. I am saying all of this in hopes that Engvall has a monster game tonight, but I'm not expecting it to happen.

Engvall was pretty invisible last game, save for a spin shot that he put wide of the net. He's frustratingly soft for a guy who is 6'5". I'd take my chances on getting playoff Bailey back. Even Holmstrom. I am saying all of this in hopes that Engvall has a monster game tonight, but I'm not expecting it to happen.
- streaks

And you think Bailey will be an improvement in that department?? As was mentioned, at least Engvall brings speed. Replacing him with Bailey makes a slow team slower.