The Skinny: Isles 5, Washington 2

"The Skinny"

By Eric Hornick

Eastern Conference Round 1 Game 2

Isles 5, Washington 2

Isles lead best-of-7 series 2-0

The Isles and Caps combined for four goals in a 3:58 stretch of the second period, but it was the last goal, an unassisted tally by Brock Nelson just 15 seconds after Alex Ovechkin had tied the game, that turned out to be the game-winner as the Isles took a 2-0 lead in their Round 1 series with a 5-2 win over the Caps at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.

The Isles locked things down late in the game and were rewarded with goals by Cal Clutterbuck and by Anders Lee (into an empty net) to seal the victory.

Ovechkin had both Capital goals, and in a stretch of 18 minutes in the second period had the only five Washington shots.

Game 3 of this series will be at Noon on Sunday.

The Scoring: 

1st Period

Alex Ovechkin (1) Tom Wilson (2), John Carlson (3) 00:56 NYI 0,WSH 1

2nd Period

Nick Leddy (1) Josh Bailey (6), Anthony Beauvillier (3) 02:56 NYI 1,WSH 1 PPG

Matt Martin (2) Scott Mayfield (1) 05:01 NYI 2,WSH 1

Alex Ovechkin (2) Brenden Dillon (1), Dmitry Orlov (2) 06:39 NYI 2,WSH 2

Brock Nelson (3) 06:54 NYI 3,WSH 2 

3rd Period

Cal Clutterbuck (1) Jean-Gabriel Pageau (1) 17:14 NYI 4,WSH 2

Anders Lee (2)EN Jean-Gabriel Pageau (2), Adam Pelech (1) 18:21 NYI 5,WSH 2

The Series (Isles lead 2-0)

Game 1: Isles 4 Washington 2

Game 2: Isles 5 Washington 2

Game 3: Sunday Noon

Game 4: Tuesday, August 18th, 8pm

Game 5 (if needed): Thursday, August 20th

Game 6 (if needed): Saturday, August 22nd

Game 7 (if needed): Sunday, August 23rd 

The Skinny

Anthony Beauvillier has a point in all six games this summer after having only two points in eight games in 2019; Brock Nelson extended his point streak to 4 while Josh Bailey extended his assist streak to three games.…The Isles have a 2-0 lead for the second time this summer and the third time in four series under Barry Trotz. (Prior to Trotz they had not led a series 2-0 since the 1983 Final)…Brendan Dillon blocked nine shots – most by any player in a game this summer that did not require five overtimes…JG Pageau assisted on both late goals; they were his 5th and 6th career playoff goals, to go along with 15 goals…Anders Lee scored for the second straight game; two of his three career playoff goals have been empty-netters….This was the first night game the Isles have played since the exhibition game with the Rangers; game four is also scheduled at night… Every Islander but Matt Martin played at least 12 minutes; Martin scored his second goal of the post-season… New dad Lars Eller went -4, as did TJ Oshie…Alex Ovechkin's two goals give him 67 career post-season goals, first tying and then passing both Denis Savard and Joe NIeuwendyk for 20th place all-time…Tom Wilson's 11 hits were the most by any player in any game this summer…Adam Pelech played 17:41 at even-strength, including 10:46 when Alex Ovechkin was on the ice for Washington…The Isles were outshot 40 times in 68 games in the regular season, but have yet to be outshot in this year's playoffs…This is the first time that the Isles have ever held a 2-0 series lead over Washington; the Caps won the first two games in both 1985 and 1986 while the other five series were tied after two games...The Isles have won eight straight Round 1 games (2 vs. Florida, 4 vs. Pittsburgh, 2 vs. Washington).

First Times in a Long Time (Playoff Only)

• Anthony Beauvillier is the first Islander since Bryan Trottier (all 18 games in 1981 to establish an NHL record) and Mike Bossy (first nine games in 1981) to have a point in the first six playoff games of a season.  

• Brock Nelson's response 15 seconds after Ovechkin's goal was the fastest by an Islander since Pat LaFontaine scored 11 seconds after Mark Howe of the Flyers in 1987

• The Isles have allowed fewer than 30 shots in 7 straight games for the first time since an 8-game stretch in April-May 1984. 

• The Isles have scored three goals in a period in consecutive games for the first time since Games 3 and 4 vs. Toronto in 2002.

Familiar Foes

This is the 8th meeting of the Isles and Washington in the playoffs (Isles are 5-2 and have won 23 of 39 games)

• 1983 Patrick Division Semi-Finals  Isles won series 3-1

• 1984 Patrick Division Finals  Isles won series 4-1

• 1985 Patrick Division Semi-Finals  Isles won series 3-2

• 1986 Patrick Division Semi-Finals  Caps won series 3-0 (Arbour retired thereafter)

• 1987 Patrick Division Semi-Finals  Isles won series 4-3 (LaFontaine 4 OT)

• 1993 Patrick Division Semi-Finals  Isles won series 4-2

• 2015 Eastern Conference First Round  Caps won series 4-3

• 2020 Eastern Conference First Round  Isles lead series 2-0

Joining Radar

Barry Trotz is only the 2nd coach to lead the Isles to multiple series wins, joining Al Arbour.  Terry Simpson and Jack Capuano are the only other coaches to lead the Isles to a playoff series victory.

Chasing the Architect

Lou Lamoriello has won 27 playoff series as a General Manager, tying Jack Adams and Sam Pollock for third on the all-time list.  Bill Torrey won 28 series, while the all-time leader, Glen Sather, has 41 wins.

Overtime is Our Time

The Isles are 34-17 (.667) all-time in overtime, including 18-10 (.643) at home. The .667 overall percentage is 2nd to Tampa Bay (17-8 .680) while the .643 home percentages is the best in NHL history. The Isles are 0-0 in overtime this season; they have gone 5-4 in nine overtime games since 2015.

Lead/Tie/Trailed

Game 1: Led: 13:08, Tied: 31:28,  Trailed: 15:24 

Game 2: Led: 34:44, Tied: 3:16, Trailed: 22:00

Vs Florida:  Led: 120:01, Tied: 58:56,  Trailed 61:03

Playoffs All-Time

The Isles improve to 153-125 in 278 all-time playoff games.  They are 86-46 at home (including 2-5 at Barclays and 2-0 in Toronto) and 67-79 on the road. In this year's playoffs, the Isles are 2-0 when they are the home team and 3-1 when they are the road team.

Coach Trotz

Barry Trotz is second among active coaches, trailing only Joel Quenneville, in both wins and games. Trotz' NHL record is 845-618-60-151 in 1,674 games and will begin next season just five wins shy of supplanting Ken Hitchcock as the 3rd-winningest coach in NHL history.

Most Coaching Wins

1. Scotty Bowman  1,244

2. Joel Quenneville  925

3. Ken Hitchcock    849

4. Barry Trotz    845

5. Al Arbour    782

Most Games Coached

1. Scotty Bowman   2,141

2. Joel Quenneville 1,705

3. Barry Trotz        1,674

4. Al Arbour 1,607 

Coach Trotz (Playoffs)

Barry Trotz has now coached 127 playoff games (64-63).  His 64 wins are 17th all-time, breaking a tie with Fred Shero; he is two wins behind Lindy Ruff and Claude Julien.  Trotz won the Stanley Cup with Washington in 2018; Joel Quenneville (3) and Mike Sullivan (2) are the only active coaches with multiple Stanley Cups.

Trotz is the 2nd coach in Islander playoff history to coach the Isles against a team he formerly coached; Ted Nolan did that in 2007 vs. Buffalo.  Trotz is the first to coach against the Isles and then coach the Isles against that same opponent.

Most playoff wins by Islander coaches:

• Al Arbour 123

• Jack Capuano 10

• Terry Simpson 9

• Barry Trotz 9

• Peter Laviolette 4

• Ted Nolan 1

• Steve Stirling 1

Most playoff games coached (Islanders):

• Al Arbour 209

• Jack Capuano 24

• Terry Simpson 20

• Barry Trotz 14

• Peter Laviolette 12

• 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 2

• Jack Capuano 1

• Terry Simpson 1

First Things First

The Isles are 2-0 when scoring first and are 3-1 when allowing the first goal in the playoffs.

The Shots

Isles    12-12-8=32

Washington  6-7-12=25

Shots by Game

• Game 1: Isles 27, Washington 26

• Game 2: Isles 32, Washington 25

• Series: Isles 59, Washington 51

• Vs. Florida: Isles 122, Florida 103

• Playoffs: Isles 181, Opponents 154

The Isles are 4-0 when they outshoot their opponents, 1-1 when the shots are even and 0-0 when they are outshot. 

In the Nets

Semyon Varlamov made 23 saves and improves to 5-1 this summer and 18-14 all-time in the playoffs.

Braden Holtby made 27 saves but falls to 1-3-1 this summer and 49-44-1 all-time in the playoffs.  (The "1" is a shootout loss in the Round Robin)

Power Plays

The Isles were 1-5 on the power play in 8:18 of PP time; Washington was 0-2 on the power play in 4:00 of PP time.

Power Plays by Game

• Game 1: Isles 0-4 (5:17; 3 shots), Washington 2-7 (11:05, 12 shots)

• Game 2: Isles 1-5 (8:18, 5 shots), Washington 0-2 (4:00, 1 shot)

• Series: Isles 1-9 (13:35, 8 shots), Washington 2-9 (15:05, 13 shots)

•

• Vs. Florida: Isles 4-13 (23:55; 15 shots), Florida 4-14 (16:51, 21 shots)

• Playoffs:  Power Play: 5-22 (37:30, 23 shots), Penalty Kill 6-23 (31:56, 34 shots)

Three is a Magic Number

The Isles are 4-0 in the playoffs when they score at least three goals and 1-1 when they do not.  Last season the Isles scored at least three goals in each of their four wins and two or fewer in each of their four losses.

One Goal Games

The Isles are 1-1 in the playoffs in one-goal games (1-1 in regulation and 0-0 in overtime). The Isles are 0-0 in playoff games where an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game.

Ice-time Leaders

Isles: Nick Leddy (22:11);  Washington: John Carlson (25:05)

Josh Bailey led Isles forwards with 19:13 of ice-time 

Isles record by ice-time leader: Scott Mayfield (1-0), Adam Pelech (2-0), Mathew Barzal (1-0), Nick Leddy (1-1)

Face-offs

Isles 36, Washington 30 (55%).

JG Pageau won 17 of 23 and Brock Nelson won 9 of 15 for the Isles; Nic Down won 10 of 11 for Washington.  

Face-offs by Game

• Game 1: Isles 36, Washington 20 (64%).  

• Game 2: Isles 36, Washington 30 (55%)

• Series: Isles 72, Washington 50 (59%)

•

• Vs. Florida  Isles 106, Florida 127 (45%)

• Playoffs: Isles 178, Opponents 177 (50%)

Hit Count

Isles 38 (Three with 5)

Washington 36 (Tom Wilson -11, including 8 in the first period)

Hits Game by Game:

• Game 1: Isles 39, Washington 36

• Game 2: Isles 38, Washington 36

• Series: Isles 77, Washington 72

•

• Vs. Florida:  Isles 128, Florida 124

• Playoffs: Isles 205, Opponents 196

Fights

There were no fights. Playoff total -1 (Lee -1).   

Blocked Shots

Isles 18 (Devon Toews -4)

Washington 17 (Brenden Dillon -9)

For the Analytics Crowd 

Corsi: All situations: Isles 59, Washington 55

Corsi: 5-on-5 Isles 45, Washington 43

5-on-5 leaders:

Isles:  Anders Lee +8

Washington: Two with +6

Corsi Game by Game:

• Game 1 (All) Isles 47, Washington 54;  (5-on-5) Isles 37, Washington 26

• Game 2:(All) Isles 59, Washington 55;  (5-on-5) Isles 45, Washington 43

• Series: (All) Isles 106, Washington 109; (5-on-5) Isles 82, Washington 69

•

• Vs Florida (All) Isles 226, Florida 224;  (5-on-5) Isles 174, Florida 168

• Playoffs (All)  Isles 332, Opponent 333; (5-on-5) Isles 256, Opponent 237

Scratches

Johnny Boychuk, Tom Kuhnhackl, Noah Dobson, Andrew Ladd, Otto Koivula, Michael Dal Colle, Ross Johnston, Thomas Hickey, Sebastian Aho, Christopher Gibson

Playoff games lost: 3. 

Post-Season Late Heroes (Final Two Minutes of Regulation, or Overtime)

None

Post-Season Late Goals Allowed

None

Playoff Challenges

None

Active Islander Playoff Leaders: (As NYI)

Games:

Casey Cizikas 38

Matt Martin 38

Josh Bailey 36

Goals:

Brock Nelson 10 

Josh Bailey 9 

Jordan Eberle 7

Anthony Beauvillier 5

Cal Clutterbuck 5

Assists:

Josh Bailey 15

Mathew Barzal 9

Nick Leddy 8 

Devon Toews 8

Brock Nelson 7

Ryan Pulock 7

Jordan Eberle 6

Points:

Josh Bailey 24

Brock Nelson 16 

Jordan Eberle 13

Mathew Barzal 12

Nick Leddy 11

Penalty Minutes:

Matt Martin 44

Cal Clutterbuck 42

Casey Cizikas 38

PP Goals

Mathew Barzal 2

Josh Bailey 2 

Brock Nelson 2 

Ryan Pulock 2

Devon Toews 1

Anthony Beauvillier 1

Jordan Eberle 1

Nick Leddy 1

SH Goals

Josh Bailey 1

 

GW Goals

Brock Nelson 3

Anthony Beauvillier 2

Jordan Eberle 2

Josh Bailey 2

Thomas Hickey 1

Goaltending

Thomas Greiss  5-6  2.49 GAA, .920 save percentage

Semyon Varlamov 5-1 1.83 GAA, .929 save percentage

Up Next

ROUND 1- GAME 3 – SUNDAY, AUGUST 16th  -  ISLANDERS VS WASHINGTON (AT TORONTO)  12:00PM

[MSG+ (pre-game at 11:30AM), 88.7 WRHU-FM, WRCN 103.9FM, ESPN-1050]

The Isles will look to take a 3-0 lead in the series on Sunday.

The Isles are 12-1 when they lead a series 2-0 and will look to move within a game of advancing with a victory on Adam Pelech's 26th birthday.

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