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New York Islanders

Islanders Shutout Again; All Too Familiar Issues Loom Large

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Brad Penner // Imagn Images

ELMONT, NY — The Detroit Red Wings (3-3-0) defeated the New York Islanders (2-2-2) 1-0 in a lifeless UBS Arena on Tuesday evening. Patrick Kane scored the lone goal in the contest just 8:54 into the first period. The Islanders have been shut out for the third time in just six games. That’s the first time it’s happened in franchise history—historical offensive ineptitude to start the season.



Detroit’s only goal came from Anders Lee losing track of Kane, who slipped behind him into the open space. From there, Vladimir Tarasenko slipped him the puck, and Kane did what he had done for the last 15 years when he was open in the slot.

Islanders Head Coach Patrick Roy described the goal: “Just the coverage. He sneaks behind our guys. We talked about it before the game; they love to hit the second wave and come in late. It was pretty much what they’ve been doing.”

So, to summarize, the Islander prepped for that exact scenario and still failed to cover it up. Detroit’s first shot hit the twine, and it was all Detroit needed.

Positives?

The Islanders outshot Detroit 29-11. They carried most of the play, but that mainly came from Detroit, who allowed them to do so. After the Kane goal, chipping pucks and battling on the walls was the name of the game for Detroit. Still, the Islanders carried the play and generated some pressure.

Simon Holmstrom didn’t look too out of depth on line one. He needed to have more poise with the puck. On his first-period chance, a mini breakaway, he overhandled and allowed Moritz Seider to make a play on the puck. It behooved Holmstrom to fire a sharp wrister, a tool in his arsenal, but he opted to try and stickhandle.

Elsewhere, Holmstrom looked strong off the puck, as per usual. The biggest points of frustration came in the first period when he found himself just a bit out of sync with Mat Barzal and Bo Horvat. The unit improved as the game went on, and that’s a good thing.

Scott Mayfield looked great. Fast, confident, strong. Everything that makes him good was on display tonight- something that the team missed greatly last year when he was hobbled due to his ankle.

Oliver Wahlstrom had a decent game. He played just 9:14 and didn’t register a shot, but his play off the puck and in the defensive zone continued to improve. The more comfortable he gets there, the more everything else will come to him. He’s got the shot. The goals will come soon.

Ilya Sorokin did his job. Can’t fault him for the goal, and he kept everything else out. Just like he did in St. Louis, Sorokin stopped all but one piece of rubber and got a loss.

Special Teams

One of the power play units looked much improved with its new look. Horvat, Kyle Palmieri, Noah Dobson, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, and Anders Lee made up one unit and snapped the puck around at a blistering pace. They created some good chances, but none went in.

As for the other unit… woof. Barzal, Brock Nelson, Mike Reilly, Maxim Tsyplakov, and Holmstrom never truly got set up. They struggled mightily and clearly were the lesser of the two units tonight.

Thanks to a game largely played in the offensive zone, the Islanders only took one penalty all night- Reilly for hooking. The penalty kill did its job, limiting Detroit to just one shot and no stoppages during the entire power play.

Despite a less-than-stellar performance during face-offs at 6v5 (they lost all but one of those by my count), the special teams’ face-offs were stellar. On the power play, the Islanders won 7/9 draws; on the kill, they won the only draw.

Negatives:

Lee and Tsyplakov aside, the Islanders do not have any player willing to go to the front of the net right now. Anthony Duclair would do so, which created space for Barzal and Horvat. Holmstrom did not do nearly enough of that tonight, which hurt the top line.

Liam Foudy didn’t move the needle for me. He showed great speed and decent forechecking ability, but nothing really stood out about his game in the 7:52 that he played. He’ll probably get another look against New Jersey on Friday.

They got shut out. Again.

Detroit scored one goal and sat back for the rest of the game. They dared the Islanders to win the game. They gave the Islanders the outside, letting them take whatever outside chances they wanted.

Alex Lyon stopped all 29 shots, with his best save coming in the second period on Barzal at the back door.

Through six games, it’s become increasingly clear what Roy’s system has improved. It’s cleaned up the defense and the neutral zone. In the offensive zone, however, Roy’s system calls for the Islanders to take what the opponents give.

They’ve done that. They just haven’t forced their will onto any team this year. Against Montreal, it took a nine-round shootout to get a win. Against Colorado, they played perhaps the worst starting goalie in the NHL. They collapsed against Utah and got shut out in the other three games.

What’s Next?

There needs to be an infusion of goals and quick. The Devils are next on Friday, and the next night brings the reigning Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers.

Through six games, this team has struggled with the same things it has since the last year with Barry Trotz at the helm: defensive lapses, inconsistent offense, and bad special teams.

The season is still young, and it can change in a blink. But there are fair reasons to be skeptical through six games.

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