The Skinny: Isles 4, Ottawa 2

"The Skinny"

By Eric Hornick

Game 66

Isles 4, Ottawa 2

Anthony Beauvillier scored with 7:31 to play to break a 2-2 tie and the Islanders regained a share of first place in the Metropolitan Division with a 4-2 win over the Ottawa Senators before a crowd of 11,967 at Canadian Tire Centre.

Valtteri Filppula scored two first period goals for the Isles, who completed a sweep of the home-and-home from Ottawa.

The Isles and Washington share the Metro Division lead with identical 39-21-7 records, including 35 ROWs.  For standings purposes, the season series is currently tied (the odd home game, the first one hosted by the Isles, does not count) so the Isles are in first place based on goal differential (+33 to +20);  Pittsburgh blanked Columbus tonight to jump into third place with 85 points.  Idle Carolina has 79 and Columbus, on the outside looking in, has 77 points.   

With tonight's results, the Isles' magic number to clinch a playoff spot falls to 23; their magic number to win a division for the first time since 1987-88 falls to 31.

The Scoring:  

1st Period

Valtteri Filppula (14) Leo Komarov, Nick Leddy 05:44 NYI 1,OTT 0

Brady Tkachuk (15) Ben Harpur, Anthony Duclair 07:00 NYI 1,OTT 1

Valtteri Filppula (15) Tom Kuhnhackl 15:24 NYI 2,OTT 1

2nd Period

Oscar Lindberg (7) Brian Gibbons, Bobby Ryan 09:13 NYI 2,OTT 2

3rd Period

Anthony Beauvillier (16) Adam Pelech, Mathew Barzal 12:29 NYI 3,OTT 2

Casey Cizikas (19)EN 19:11 NYI 4,OTT 2

The Skinny       

The Isles are 25-9-3 in their last 37 games; they are 18 games over NHL-.500, matching the season high.  … Anthony Beauvillier's game winner was his third goal in the last seven games; Mathew Barzal recorded his 99th career assist (and his first point in four games) on the goal…The Isles have surpassed last season's win and point total; including shootout winners they have scored 20 fewer goals and allowed 78 fewer goals than last year's first 67 games… The Isles have 44 points at home and 41 points on the road … The Isles did not have a power play goal for the seventh straight game (0-15)… With their goals tonight, the Isles have scored 63 goals in the 1st period, 60 goals in the 2nd period, and 64 goals in the third period… Former Ranger Oscar Lindberg scored for the 2nd straight game against the Isles; three of his 37 career goals are vs. the Isles…Adam Pelech went +3 and led the Isles in ice-time for the first time this season (22:25); Ryan Pulock also went +3, raising both defenders to +20 on the season. The Isles have not had two defenders go +20 or better in a season since 2003-04 when both Adrian Aucoin (+29) and Kenny Jonsson (+25) did so…Valtteri Filppula recorded his 2nd two-goal game of the season (and 15th of his career); he has not had a hat trick in 941 career games.  Among active forwards, only Mikko Koivu (973) has played more games without a hat.  It's the first time since 2013-14 (25 goals) that Filppula has scored at least 15 goals…Casey Cizikas' empty-net extended his career-high goal total to 19; he and Filppula have now combined for 34 goals this season… Anders Lee did not score a goal, ending his 6-game goal streak against Ottawa...The Isles are 8 games over NHL-.500 on the road for the first time since the end of the 2014-15 season (22-14-5).

Metro Playoff Watch

1. Isles 85 points/67 games/35 ROW (Saturday vs. Philadelphia)

2. Caps 85 points/67 games/35 ROW (Friday vs. New Jersey)

3. Penguins 81 points/67 games/35 ROW (Saturday at Columbus)

4. Hurricanes 79 points/66 games/35 ROW (Friday vs. Winnipeg)

5. Blue Jackets 77 points/67 games/36 ROW (Saturday at Columbus)

The Hurricanes hold the first Wild Card; the Blue Jackets are currently 2 points out of a playoff berth.

Take a Third Off

Through 67 games, the Isles have allowed 163 goals (including shootouts).  That is 78 goals fewer than they allowed through 67 games last season, meaning they have allowed nearly 1/3rd fewer goals this season than last season.

Strength in the Nets

Thomas Greiss is 7-2-1 in his last 11 appearances, allowing a total of 12 goals on 300 shots (7-2-1, 1.21 GAA, .960 save percentage). On the season, his GAA is 2.22 and his save percentage is .928. 

Robin Lehner is 16-5-2 in his last 23 decisions. On the season, his NHL-leading GAA is 2.19 and his save percentage is .927.

Lehner has won 20 games and Greiss 19.  It's the 1st time in the last 33 years that the Isles have gotten at least 19 wins from two different goalies.  Billy Smith won 20 games and Kelly Hrudey won 19 in 1985-86.

Best Goals Against Average by An Islander in a Season

1. Chico Resch 1975-76 2.08

2. Robin Lehner 2018-19 2.19

3. Thomas Greiss 2018-19 2.22

Best Save Percentage by an Islander in a Season 

1. Thomas Greiss 2018-19 .928 (.92849)

2. Chico Resch 1975-76 .928 (.9276)

3. Robin Lehner 2018-19 .927

4. Thomas Greiss 2015-16 .925

For the + Column

Casey Cizikas was +1 today and is now +26 on the season.  In the last 30 seasons, only two Islander forwards have finished +26 or higher.

1. Marty McInnis 1993-94 +31 

2. Benoit Hogue 1991-92 +30

3. Casey Cizikas 2018-19 +26

4. Ray Ferraro 1991-92 +25

5. Ryan Strome 2014-15 +23

        Trent Hunter 2003-04 +23

It's Good to be Home

The Isles are 8-4-2 on Coliseum ice; they are averaging 97.1% of capacity on Long Island (including nine sellouts).  

 

Most Points Thru 67 Games (Post-Cup Era)

• 88: 2014-15

• 85: 2018-19

• 84: 2015-16

Most Points Thru 33 Road Games

• 43: 1976-77

• 41: 2018-19

• 41: 1980-81

• 40: 1981-82

• 39: 1975-76

• 39: 1978-79

• 39: 2014-15

Most Points Thru 34 Home Games (Post-Cup Era)

• 46: 1984-85

• 46: 1987-88

• 46: 2003-04

• 46: 2014-15

• 46: 2016-17

• 44: 2015-16

• 44: 2018-19

Fewest Goals Allowed Thru 67 Games (Includes SO)

• 160 1975-76

• 160 1976-77  

• 163 2018-19

Road Warriors

The Isles are 10-3-2 in their last 15 road games and 13-4-2 in their last 19 road games.  The 28 points match the most that the Isles have earned in any single-season stretch of 19 road games in their history (done several times).

Worst to First

The Isles allowed the most goals in the NHL last season.  Only once in NHL history has a team allowed the most goals in one season and the fewest in the next; the Ottawa Senators did so in 1917-18 and 1918-19.   Here's where the Isles are this season:  

Fewest Goals Allowed This Season (Including SO goals) 

The Jennings Trophy is awarded based on goals allowed including shootout goals.

1. ISLES 163

2. Boston 167

3. Dallas 170 

Fewest Goals Allowed This Season (excluding SO goals)

1. ISLES 158

2. Boston 164 

3. Dallas 170

Coach Trotz

Among active coaches, Barry Trotz has coached the most games and is 2nd to Ken Hitchcock in wins. Trotz' NHL record is 801-589-60-141 in 1,591 games. 

Most Coaching Wins

1. Scotty Bowman  1,244

2. Joel Quenneville  890

3. Ken Hitchcock    844 

4. Barry Trotz   801

5. Al Arbour   782

Most Games Coached

1. Scotty Bowman   2,141

2. Joel Quenneville 1,636

3. Al Arbour   1,607

4. Barry Trotz   1,591

5. Ken Hitchcock   1,583

Trotz, who will coach his 1,600th game on March 24th, will catch Al Arbour in games coached on Opening Night next season. If Quenneville doesn't return to coaching Trotz would pass him sometime in December 2019.

This Season vs. Last Season

This Season: 39-21-7 (85 points), with 196 goals scored and 163 goals allowed (includes SO winners)

Last Season: 29-29-9 (67 points), with 216 goals scored and 241 goals allowed (includes SO winners)

The Isles have allowed 78 fewer goals, a decrease of 32.4% as compared to last season.

Last Season (final): 35-37-10 (80 points), with 264 goals scored and 296 goals allowed (includes SO winners)

First Things First

The Isles are 24-8-5 when scoring first and are 15-13-2 when allowing the opening goal (which includes a 1-0 shootout loss).  

Highest Percentage of Games Won (Post-Cup Era) Allowing First Goal

• .545 (18-13-2) 2014-15

• .500 (15-13-2) 2018-19

• .410 (14-21-4) 1985-86

The Shots

Isles     13-10-8=31

Ottawa 12-17-8=37

The Isles are 12-12-1 when they outshoot their opponents, 0-2-0 when the shots are even and 27-7-6 when they are outshot. [The 27 wins when outshot are a franchise record; they won 25 in both 1983-84 and 2017-18.]

Home and Road

The Islanders are 39-21-7 overall; 20-10-4 at home (8-4-2 on Long Island and 12-6-2 in Brooklyn) and 19-11-3 on the road.  All their remaining regular season home games are at the Nassau Coliseum.

Ottawa is 23-39-6 overall; 14-16-4 at home and 9-23-2 on the road.  

By Division & Conference

The Isles are 16-6-1 in Division games and 23-15-5 in games versus other divisions.  The Isles are 24-10-5 against the East and 15-11-1 against the West.  

In the Nets

Thomas Greiss made 35 saves and is now 19-10-2 on the season and 5-1-0 in his career against Ottawa.  

Anders Nilsson made 27 saves; he is 11-17-1 on the season and 0-4-0 against the Islanders.  

Power Plays

The Isles were 0-2 on the power play in 2:37 of PP time; Ottawa was 0-2 on the power play in 2:37 of PP time.

The Isles are 22-2-2 when they score at least one power play goal and 17-19-5 when they do not.  The Isles are 13-13-5 when they allow at least one power play goal and 268-2 when they do not.

Three is a Magic Number

The Isles are 33-2-2 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 6-19-5 when they do not.  

One Goal Games

The Isles are 15-4-7 in games decided by a single goal including 6-4 in regulation. They are 5-2 in games decided in overtime and are 4-5 in shootouts.  The Isles are 5-6 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game.

Tired vs. Rested 

• The Isles are 4-0-0 when both teams played the night before. 

• The Isles are 6-0-1 when they are rested, and their opponents are not. 

• The Isles are 5-1-1 when their opponents are rested, and the Isles are not.

• The Isles are 24-20-5 when both teams are rested. 

Ice-time Leaders

Isles: Adam Pelech (Season-high 22:25); Ottawa: Cody Ceci (23:07)

Valtteri Filppula led Isles forwards with a season-high 19:28 of ice-time.

Isles record by ice-time leader: Ryan Pulock (18-10-5), Nick Leddy (14-9-2), Scott Mayfield (6-1-0), Johnny Boychuk (0-1-0), Adam Pelech (1-0-0).

Face-offs

Isles 24, Ottawa 34 (51%).  

Casey Cizikas won 5 of 10 for the Isles; Chris Tierney won 9 of 11 for Ottawa.

Face-offs by period: 1st period 12/24; 2nd period 7/18; 3rd period 5/16.

Face-offs by strength: Even strength: 21/52, Power play 1/2, Penalty kill 2/4.

Hit Count

Isles 39 (Johnny Boychuk -6)  

Ottawa 25 (Three with 3)

   

Fights

There were no fights. Season total –14 (Scott Mayfield -4, Ross Johnston-3, Matt Martin -2, Anders Lee- 2, Josh Bailey, Johnny Boychuk, Jordan Eberle).  

 

Blocked Shots

The Isles blocked 25 shots (Five with 3) 

For the Corsi Crowd 

All situations: Isles 64, Ottawa 73

5-on-5 Isles 52, Ottawa 57

5-on-5 leaders:

Isles: Adam Pelech +12

Ottawa: Brady Tkachuk +12

Back-to-Backs

The Isles are 7-3-1 in the front half and 9-1-1 in the back half. The next back-to-back is March 16-17 in Detroit and Minnesota and the final back-to-back of the season is the following week (March 23-24) in Ottawa and vs. Arizona. 

The Isles won the first nine back-ends of back-to-backs this season, establishing a new club record for consecutive wins in back ends, but are 0-1-1 in the last two back-ends. 

Night and Day

The Isles are 33-18-7 in night games and 6-3-0 in matinees. The next matinee is on March 16th in Detroit. The final two matinees are the following weekend (March 23rd in Philly and March 24th vs. Arizona (at the Coliseum). 

Ironmen

Anders Lee 185, Brock Nelson 162, Mathew Barzal 149.  Four other Isles: Nick Leddy, Ryan Pulock, Josh Bailey and Leo Komarov have appeared in every game this season.

Scratches

(Matt Martin – INJ), (Cal Clutterbuck-INJ), (Robin Lehner -INJ), Andrew Ladd, Thomas Hickey, Luca Sbisa, Dennis Seidenberg, Joshua Ho-Sang

Total games lost: 129

Comeback Kings

The Isles are 6-5-1 when trailing in a game by a 2-0 score, defeating NYR (11/15), CBJ (12/1), DET (12/8), OTT (12/28), STL (1/5) and COL (2/9 - OT), while earning a point vs. EDM (2/21 – OTL).

The Isles are 14-1-1 when scoring the game's first two goals.

Late Heroes

The Isles have scored once in the final two minutes of regulation to either tie or take the lead:

1/10- NY Rangers-Josh Bailey scored the winning goal (18:34)

Late Goals Allowed

The Isles have allowed a goal four times in the final two minutes of regulation to either tie or win a game:

10/4 – CAR Hurricanes – Jordan Staal tied game (18:25), but Isles won in overtime.

11/8 – TB Lightning – Tyler Johnson scored the winning goal (18:34)

11/23 – NJ Devils – Marcus Johansson tied game (19:49), but Isles won in overtime.

12/15- DET Red Wings – Thomas Vanek tied game (18:57), but Isles won in a shootout.

Offside Challenges

12/8 vs DET Red Wings – Red Wings goal overturned after successful Isles challenge.

12/20 vs VEG Golden Knights – Golden Knights goal overturned after successful Isles challenge.

1/8 vs CAR Hurricanes – Isles goal overturned after successful Hurricane challenge

2/5 vs BOS Bruins – Isles goal overturned after successful Bruin challenge.

2/28 vs TOR Maple Leafs – Maple Leaf goal overturned after successful Isles challenge.

All-time Islander Leader Boards:

Games Played (skaters)

1. Bryan Trottier 1123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1060 *** 3. Bob Nystrom 900 *** 4. Clark Gillies 872 *** 

5. Bob Bourne 814***6. Josh Bailey 782

Goals

1. Mike Bossy 573 *** 2. Bryan Trottier 500 *** 3. Denis Potvin 310 …

14. Patrick Flatley 160 *** 15. Pierre Turgeon and Anders Lee 147 *** 17. Mariusz Czerkawski 145 *** 18. Kyle Okposo 139 ***19. Josh Bailey 138…

21. Duane Sutter 121 *** 22. Brock Nelson 120

Assists

1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553…

9. Stefan Persson 317 *** 10. Bob Bourne 304 *** 11.  Josh Bailey 289 …

25. David Volek 154 *** 26. Mariusz Czerkawski 150 *** 27. Nick Leddy 149

Points

1. Bryan Trottier 1353 *** 2. Mike Bossy 1126 *** 3. Denis Potvin 1052…

12. Patrick Flatley 488 *** 13. Billy Harris 443 *** 14. Josh Bailey 427…

23. Ed Westfall 286 *** 24. Jason Blake 258 *** 25. Anders Lee 250

Games Played (Goalies)

1. Billy Smith 674 *** 2. Rick DiPietro 318 *** 3. Glenn Resch 282 …

7. Glenn Healy 176 *** 8. Thomas Greiss 154

Wins (Goalie)

1. Billy Smith 304 *** 2. Glenn Resch 157 *** 3. Rick DiPietro 130*** 4. Kelly Hrudey 108***

5. Jaroslav Halak 88 *** 6.  Thomas Greiss 81

Shutouts (Goalie)

1. Glenn Resch 25 ***2. Billy Smith 22 *** 3. Rick DiPietro 16 *** 4. Tommy Salo 14***

5. Jaroslav Halak 12 *** 6.  Evgeni Nabokov and Thomas Greiss 9

Season Series Stats

The Isles won the season series three games to none (and 4 points to 1).   

The Isles are 6-1-0 in their last seven games against Ottawa. The Isles have done well in Ottawa in recent years, going 7-1-1.  They have won three consecutive games in regulation in Ottawa for the first time ever.

On the Farm  

The red-hot Sound Tigers, winners of seven straight games, are 11-1-1-0 in their last 13 games (including three OT wins and two shootout wins) and have improved to 35-18-5-2 on the season.  

Bridgeport has earned points in 10 straight games (9-0-1-0); they are six points behind Charlotte for the Division lead.  The Sound Tigers have a 15-point cushion in the race for a playoff spot.

The Sound Tigers will play on Friday in Rochester and on Sunday afternoon at 4pm in Toronto.  Sunday's game will be televised by NHL Network.

Leaders:  Goals: Steve Bernier 20; Assists: Chris Bourque 33; Points: Chris Bourque 46; +/-: Otto Koivula +16.  Goalies: Jeremy Smith 17-9-3 (2.85 GAA); Christopher Gibson 18-9-4 (2.89 GAA)

Up Next

SATURDAY, MARCH 9th  – PHILADELPHIA AT ISLANDERS AT NASSSAU COLISEUM 7:00PM 

[MSG+ (Pre-game at 6:30pm), 88.7 WRHU-FM,WRCN 103.9FM, Radio.com] 

The Isles return home for a key three-game homestand, beginning on Saturday against Philadelphia.  It will be the second meeting of the teams at the Coliseum in a seven-day period and will be highlighted by a celebrating honoring the late Architect of the Isles' Stanley Cup Dynasty, Bill Torrey.  

It will be the third meeting of the teams this season, with the road team winning the first two games.  The season series will conclude on the afternoon of March 23rd in Philadelphia.

Eric Hornick has been the statistician on Islander home game telecasts since January 21, 1982. Information contained in "The Skinny" has been gathered from various sources.  Follow Eric @ehornick on Twitter & on his blog www.nyiskinny.com.

Forever1940 is the nom de plume of Eric Hornick, statistician on Islander home telecasts since January 21, 1982. Visit my blog: NYISkinny.com and follow me on Twitter @ehornick