The Skinny: Carolina 2, Isles 1. Carolina leads series, 2-0.

"The Skinny"

By Eric Hornick

Eastern Conference Second Round Game 1

Carolina 2, Isles 1 

Carolina leads series 2-0

Warren Foegele and Nino Niederreiter scored 48 seconds apart early in the 3rd period as the Carolina Hurricanes rallied from a 1-0 deficit and defeated the Isles 2-1 before a sellout crowd of 15,795 at Barclays Center.

Curtis McElhinney, making his first appearance of the playoffs, stopped the final 17 Islander shots to earn his first career playoff victory.  McElhinney, who replaced the injured Petr Mrazek in the second period, is the first goalie in NHL history to make his first three playoff appearances for three different teams (Calgary 2009 and Toronto 2018).

The Canes lead the series 2-0, winning both games at Barclays Center.  It's the first time in Islander history that they have opened a series at home and lost both games; the Canes franchise had won the first two games of a series only once (Hartford vs. Quebec in 1986, best-of-5 series).

Game 3 is in Raleigh on Wednesday night.

The Scoring: 

1st Period

Mathew Barzal (1) Anders Lee, Jordan Eberle 13:17 CAR 0,NYI 1 PPG

2nd Period

No Goals

3rd Period

Warren Foegele (5) Lucas Wallmark, Saku Maenalanen 00:17 CAR 1,NYI 1

Nino Niederreiter (1) Teuvo Teravainen, Jaccob Slavin 01:05 CAR 2,NYI 1

The Series (Carolina leads 2-0)

Game 1: Carolina 1, Isles 0

Game 2: Carolina 2, Isles 1

Game 3: Wednesday at Carolina 7pm

Game 4: Friday at Carolina 7pm

Game 5 (if needed): May 5 at Isles

Game 6 (if needed): May 7 at Carolina

Game 7 (if needed): May 8 at Isles

The Skinny   

The Isles dropped the first two game of a series for the 14th time in their history and for the  first time since the 2002 Conference Quarter-Finals vs. Toronto... The Isles scored the first goal for the first time since Game 1 vs. Pittsburgh… Linesman Derek Amell worked his 200th Stanley Cup playoff game…Petr Mrazek allowed his first goal in 135:04 when Mathew Barzal's pass deflected in off Jaccob Slavin's skate for Barzal's first career playoff goal…. The Isles had a goal disallowed in the second period when the officials ruled that Devon Toews has used a direct kicking motion to score from below the goal line… The Isles have played four second round games at Barclays Center (2016 vs. Tampa Bay and this series) and have lost all four by one goal.  This is the first of the four to not reach overtime… This was the seventh playoff game ever played at Barclays; the Isles have won two (both in overtime), lost three in overtime and lost two in regulation…The Isles held Carolina to 18 shots, fewest by a playoff opponent since Tampa Bay had the same number (4-8-04) in the first game of the Stanley Cup season. The 1994 Rangers were the last team to have 18 or fewer shots in an Islander home playoff games; that season also ended well for them…It's the third time that the Isles have been held to one goal or fewer in the first two games of a series (1994 vs. Rangers, 2002 vs. Toronto)… The Isles have not allowed a power play goal in five straight playoff games, tying a club record that was set over two years (1978 vs Toronto-game 7; 1979 vs. Chicago games 1-4) and tied in 1984 (games 5-6 vs. Montreal and games 1-3 vs. Edmonton)…Curtis McElhinney is the 3rd-oldest goalie to record his first playoff win.  McElhinney, who will turn 36 next month, is younger than only Eddie Johnston (6-1 in 1972 for Boston) and Lester Patrick (1-0 in 1928 for the Rangers). While Johnston won 237 regular season games, it was Patrick's only NHL appearance.  Thus, McElhinney became the oldest goalie in 91 years to record his first win.…There has been a one-goal game in the NHL in each of the last 14 days.

For the History Books

Warren Foegele's goal was the earliest the Isles had allowed in a playoff game since April 8, 1987 when Mike Gartner scored 15 seconds into game 1 vs. Kelly Hrudey (Hrudey would have the last laugh).  It was also the earliest goal the Isles have ever allowed in the 3rd period of a playoff game [Reijo Ruotsalainen -1982 (Rangers) and Bobby Gould- 1983 (Washington)].  Gould's goal was scored at the Coliseum and was also the earliest goal the Isles had allowed at home before today.

Foegele has made a habit of scoring early in this year's playoffs; he also scored at 17 seconds of the first period vs. Washington in game 3 in Raleigh so today's goal tied his own club record.

Niederreiter's goal at 1:05 gave Carolina the earliest two goals in any playoff period in their history.

The Injuries

Trevor Van Riemsdyk suffered an upper body injury :36 into the game and did not return.  Petr Mrazek left with a lower body injury in the 2nd period.  Saku Maenalanen left the game early in the 3rd period. 

Cal Clutterbuck was assisted off the ice at the end of the game.

When Mrazek left, Todd Scarola needed to dress as the emergency goalie.  Scarola played collegiately for Stony Brook and played roller hockey for the Empire State Legends Elite team in March.

Overtime is Our Time

The Isles are 34-17 (.667) all-time in overtime, including 18-10 (.643) at home.  The .667 overall percentage and .643 home percentages are both the best in NHL history. The Isles are 1-1 in overtime this season; nine of the 24 playoff games the Isles have played since 2015 have gone to overtime with the Isles holding a 5-4 record.  

Lead/Tie/Trail

In game 1, the game was tied for 64:04.  

In game 2, the Isles led for 27:00, the game was tied for 14:05, and Carolina led for 18:55.

Series Total: The Isles have led for 27:00, the game was tied for 78:09, and Carolina led for 18:55.

Vs Pittsburgh, the Isles led for 127:34, the game was tied for 112:14 and Pittsburgh led for 4:51

Other than the final 8:22 of game two, the final 9:33 of game three and the final :38 of game four (all vs. Pittsburgh), the score of every Isles playoff game has been tied or within one goal for the entire playoffs.

Playoffs All-Time

The Isles fall to 148-122 in 270 all-time playoff games.  They are 84-46 at home (including 2-5 at Barclays) and 64-76 on the road.  

What a Season!

The Isles finished 2nd in the Metro Division, 4th in the Eastern Conference and 5th in the NHL. The Isles have not finished that high since the conference was created. They last finished that high in a conference in 87-88, when they were 3rd in the Wales Conference.  It's the first time since 1985-86 that the Isles have finished in the top five overall.

The Best (Fourth) Line in Hockey

In the regular season, the Isles were 35-16-6 when Casey Cizikas, Matt Martin and Cal Clutterbuck all play and are 13-11-1 when one or more miss a game.  They are 4-2 when all three play in the playoffs.

In game 1, the trio combined for 1 shot on goal and 11 hits.  The trio has combined for 20 shots on goal and 75 hits in the playoffs.

Most Points (Post-Cup Era)

• 103: 2018-19 

• 101: 2014-15

Most Road Points (Post Cup Era)

• 51: 2018-19

• 49: 2014-15

Worst to First

The Isles allowed the most goals in the NHL last season and the fewest goals in the NHL this season.  Only once before in NHL history had 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.  

Coach Trotz

In regular season play, Barry Trotz is 2nd among active coaches in games and third in wins. Trotz' NHL record is 810-595-60-141 in 1,606 games. 

Most Coaching Wins

1. Scotty Bowman  1,244

2. Joel Quenneville  890

3. Ken Hitchcock    849

4. Barry Trotz    810

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   1,606

5. Ken Hitchcock   1,598

Trotz, who is a finalist for the Jack Adams Award, will catch Al Arbour in games coached on Opening Night next season.  

Coach Trotz (Playoffs)

Barry Trotz has now coached 119 playoff games (59-60), tying Toe Blake for 15th all-time in games coached; he is one game behind Lindy Ruff (120).  His 59 wins are 19th all time, two behind Jacques Lemaire and four behind Fred Shero and Claude Julien.  Trotz won the Stanley Cup last season; Joel Quenneville (3) and Mike Sullivan (2) are the only active coaches with multiple Stanley Cups.

Most playoff wins by Islander coaches:

• Al Arbour 123

• Jack Capuano 10

• Terry Simpson 9

• Barry Trotz 4

• Peter Laviolette 4

• Ted Nolan 1

• Steve Stirling 1

Most playoff games coached (Islanders):

• Al Arbour 209

• Jack Capuano 24

• Terry Simpson 20

• Peter Laviolette 12

• Barry Trotz 6

• Steve Stirling 5

• Ted Nolan 5

Most overtime wins/overtime record:

• Al Arbour 26 (26-9)

• Jack Capuano 4 (4-5)

• Terry Simpson 3 (3-0)

• Barry Trotz 1 (1-1)

• Peter Laviolette 0 (0-1)

• Steve Stirling 0 (0-1)

Most playoff series wins:

• Al Arbour 29

• Barry Trotz 1

• Jack Capuano 1

• Terry Simpson 1

What a Difference a Year Makes

This Season: 48-27-7 (103 points), with 228 goals scored and 196 goals allowed (includes SO winners)

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

The Isles allowed 100 fewer goals, a decrease of 33.7% as compared to last season.

First Things First

The Isles are 1-0 when scoring first and are 3-1 when allowing the first goal in the playoffs.

The Shots

Isles        7-13-7=27

Carolina  3-9-6=18

Shots by Game

• Game 1: Isles 31, Carolina 32

• Game 2: Isles 27, Carolina 18

• Series: Isles 58, Carolina 50

• Vs Pittsburgh: Isles 129, Pittsburgh 136

• Playoff Totals: Isles 187, Opponents 186

The Isles are 1-1 when they outshoot their opponents, 0-0 when the shots are even and 3-1 when they are outshot. [The Isles won a franchise-record 31 games when outshot this season.]

In the Nets

Robin Lehner made 16 saves but falls to 4-2 in the playoffs and 0-21 in his career against Carolina.   

Petr Mrzaek made 9 saves before leaving due to an injury 6:27 into the 2nd period.  Curtis McElhinney made 17 saves to earn the victory in relief.  McElhinney, who has never started a Stanley Cup playoff games is now 1-1 in the playoffs and 1-0 in his career against the Isles. 

Power Plays

The Isles were 1-2 on the power play in 2:48 of PP time; Carolina was 0-3 on the power play in 4:35 of PP time, including 1:25 of 5-on-3 time.

Power Plays by Game

• Game 1: Isles 0-4 (7:43; 7 shots), Carolina 0-4 (5:43, 7 shots)

• Game 2: Isles 1-2 (2:48; 2 shots), Carolina 0-3 (4:35, 2 shots)

• Series: Isles 1-6 (10:31; 9 shots), Carolina 0-7 (10:18, 9 shots)

• Vs Pittsburgh: Isles 2-13 (20:47, 25 shots), Pittsburgh 1-12 (19:32, 11 shots)

• Playoff Totals: Isles 3-19 (31:18, 34 shots), Opponents 1-19 (29:50, 20 shots)

Three is a Magic Number

The Isles are 4-0 in the playoffs when they score at least three goals and 0-2 when they do not.  In the regular season the Isles went 38-2-2 when they scored at least three goals (including shootout winners) and 10-25-5 when they did not.  The 10 wins when being held to two goals or fewer are a franchise record.

One Goal Games

The Isles are 1-2 in the playoffs in one-goal games (0-1 in regulation and 1-1 in overtime); they were 19-6-7 in games decided by a single goal in the regular season. The Isles are 1-0 in playoff games where an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game.

Ice-time Leaders

Isles: Ryan Pulock (23:18);  Carolina: Jaccob Slavin (27:21)

Mathew Barzal led Isles forwards with 20:18 of ice-time 

Isles record by ice-time leader: Adam Pelech (1-0), Ryan Pulock (3-2) 

Face-offs

Isles 30, Carolina 22 (58%).

Valtteri Filppula and Casey Cizikas each won 7 of 10 for the Isles; Justin Williams won 3 of 4 for Carolina.

Face-offs by period: 1st period 12/18; 2nd period 11/20; 3rd period 7/14.

Face-offs by strength: Even strength: 26/46, Power play 2/3, Penalty kill 2/3.

Face-offs by Game

• Game 1: Isles 36, Carolina 23 (59%).  

• Game 2: Isles 30, Carolina 22 (58%)

• Series: Isles 66, Carolina 45 (59%).

• Vs Pittsburgh: Isles 120, Pittsburgh 112 (52%)

• Playoff Total: Isles 186, Opponents 157 (54%)

Hit Count

Isles 44 (Leo Komarov -6)

Carolina 38 (Brock McGinn -5)

Hits Game by Game:

• Game 1: Isles 44, Carolina 33

• Game 2: Isles 44, Carolina 38

• Series: Isles 88, Carolina 71 

• Vs Pittsburgh: Isles 180, Pittsburgh 171

• Playoff Total: Isles 268, Opponents 247

Fights

There were no fights. Playoff total -0.  The Isles were involved in 16 fights in the regular season.

Blocked Shots

The Isles blocked 16 shots (Nick Leddy -4).  

For the Corsi Crowd 

All situations: Isles 56, Carolina 51

5-on-5 Isles 47, Carolina 45

5-on-5 leaders:

Isles: Scott Mayfield and Devon Toews +20

Carolina: Sebastian Aho +11 

Corsi Game by Game:

• Game 1 (All) Isles 57, Carolina 60;  (5-on-5) Isles 42, Carolina 43

• Game 2 (All) Isles 56, Carolina 51;  (5-on-5) Isles 47, Carolina 45

• Series (All) Isles 113, Carolina 111;  (5-on-5) Isles 89, Carolina 88

Scratches

(Andrew Ladd -INJ), (Tanner Fritz- INJ), (Johnny Boychuk), Luca Sbisa, Dennis Seidenberg, Ross Johnston, Michael Dal Colle

Playoff games lost: 14.  The Isles lost 153 man-games in the regular season

Post-Season Late Heroes

The Isles have scored once in overtime:

4/10 – PIT Penguins-Josh Bailey scored the winning goal (4:39 of OT) 

Post-Season Late Goals Allowed

The Isles have allowed a goal once in the final two minutes of regulation to either tie or win a game, and have allowed one overtime goal:

4/10 – PIT Penguins – Justin Schultz tied the game (18:31), but the Isles won in overtime. 

4/26 – CAR Hurricanes – Jordan Staal scored the winning goal (4:04 of OT)

Playoff Offside Challenges

4/10 – PIT Penguins – Isles goal overturned after successful Penguin challenge. 

On the Farm  

The Sound Tigers were eliminated on Saturday night with an overtime loss to Hershey; the Bears win the series 3 games to 2 and will face regular season champion Charlotte in the 2nd round

Bridgeport finished the regular season with a record of 43-24-6-3; the 97 points is their most ever in a 76-game schedule and their highest total since Jack Capuano led them to a 106-point campaign in 2008-09 (80 games).  

Playoff Leaders: Goals: Three with 2; Assists: Kyle Burrough-3; Points: Oliver Wahlstrom/Matt Lorito 4;

 +/-: Joshua Ho-Sang +2. Goalies: Christopher Gibson 2-2 (1.91 GAA); Jeremy Smith 0-1 (2.09 GAA).

Up Next

ROUND 2 VS CAROLINA

GAME 3: WEDNESDAY, MAY 1st – AT CAROLINA 7:00PM

[NBCSN, 88.7 WRHU-FM, 103.9 FM WRCN and Radio.com.  Expanded post-game coverage on MSG/MSG+]]

May Hockey!

The Isles will look to get back in the series in game 3 on Wednesday in Raleigh.  The Isles had success in Raleigh in the regular season, winning both games (both were played in October).

 

The Isles have rebounded from a 2-0 deficit to win a playoff series four times, most recently in 1985 vs. Washington (best-of-5). They have lost the last six playoff series that they have lost the first two games.

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