The Skinny: Isles 3, Buffalo 0

"The Skinny"          

By Eric Hornick

Game 15

Isles 3, Buffalo 0

Anders Lee and Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored first period goals for the second straight game, and Ilya Sorokin made 20 saves for his first career win and first career shutout as the Isles completed a sweep of a back-to-back series with Buffalo with a 3-0 win over the Sabres at KeyBank Center.

Sorokin, who became the first Islander to record a shutout for his first NHL win since Anders Nilsson on March 24, 2012, benefited from an off-side challenge by Barry Trotz in the third period that erased a Victor Olofsson power play goal.

Anders Lee's last-second empty-netter completed his 26th career 2-goal game (and second this season).  Lee now leads the team in goals with (7).

The Scoring:

1st Period

Anders Lee (6) Noah Dobson (6), Josh Bailey (6) 04:43 NYI 1,BUF 0

Jean-Gabriel Pageau (6)  Ryan Pulock (6), Nick Leddy (7) 11:58 NYI 2,BUF 0

2nd Period

No Goals

3rd Period

Anders Lee (7)  Josh Bailey (7),  Jean-Gabriel Pageau (4) 19:59 NYI 3,BUF 0 ENG

The Skinny        

The Isles have points in eight straight (5-0-3); it is their longest point streak since last season's club-record 17-game streak.…The Sabres, who were held without a shot in the third period on Monday, did not have a shot on goal in the final 13:14 of the second period.… Mathew Barzal's point streak ended at a career-high nine games.  It is the longest point streak for the Isles since Josh Bailey had an 11 game point streak in last 2017…The Isles have scored 19 goals in the first period (most in the East), but only 19 goals in the second and third periods… JG Pageau has five goals in the last four games; he has eight goals in 26 career games against Buffalo…Josh Bailey had a pair of assists for his second straight multi-point game; he passed Patrick Flatley for 7th on the club's assist list…Barry Trotz coached his 165th game for the Isles, passing Peter Laviolette for 6th place… The Isles are four games over .500 for the first time this season and are 5-0-1 in February…Victor Olofsson's point streak ended at seven games (3-5-8)…The Isles have won three straight road games and three straight games overall for the first time this season…Bailey, Lee and Pageau all had two points, and each went +2...Barzal appeared in his 247th consecutive Isles game, passing John Tavares for the 7th-longest streak in club history…Among active NHL players without a hat trick no one has more two-goal games than Anders Lee.(26)…Coaches are 9-2 in offside challenges this season…Ilya Sorokin had the lead for the final 55:17 after not playing with a lead in any of his three prior starts.

Most 1st Period Goals

The Isles are 3rd in the NHL in first period goals this season:

1. Edmonton 22

2. Columbus 21 

3. ISLES 19 

Pageau, Pageau, Pageau … JG Pageau

JG Pageau scored a first period goal for the 4th straight game; he is the 8th player in club history to do so:

• Jean-Gabriel Pageau  2/11/2021 - CURRENT

• Matt Moulson 11/26/2011 -12/3/2011

• Bryan Smolinski 3/27/1997 -4/3/1997

• Todd Bertuzzi 3/4/1997- 3/11/1997

• Ziggy Palffy 2/29/1996 - 3/5/1996

• Pat LaFontaine 12/28/1989 - 1/2/1990

• Bryan Trottier 1/13/1983 -1/20/1983

• John Tonelli 1/8/1983 - 1/15/1983

Pageau will have a shot to become the first Islander with a five-game streak on Thursday.

Locking It Down

The Isles have allowed only five third period goals in their first 15 games.  The team recorded their fourth shutout of the season; it is the fastest in club history they have reached four shutouts.

Varly: A Look Back

Semyon Varlamov did not face a shot in the third period on Monday, becoming only the 4th NHL goalie since expansion to do so twice in one period (Washington scored an empty-net goal on their only shot on January 28th) in a single season.

Varly is the fourth goalie since expansion to have two periods facing 0 shots in the same season (Remember Washington scored an ENG on their only shot in 3rd pd in October)

The others are Henrik Lundqvist (2016-17 for NYR), Evgeny Nabokov (2007-08 for SJS) and Ron Tugnutt (1998-99 for OTT)

Home Sweet Home

The Isles have earned points in their first five home games (4-0-1).  The nine points match the most in the first five games since 1982-83, when they opened 7-0-0.  The Isles opened 2017-18 with a 4-0-1 record in Brooklyn.

Home and Road

The Isles are 8-4-3 overall; they are 4-0-1 at home and 4-4-2 on the road.

Buffalo is 4-6-2 overall; they are 2-5-1 at home and 2-1-1 on the road.

Coach Trotz

Barry Trotz is second among active coaches, trailing only Joel Quenneville, in both wins and games. Trotz' NHL record is 853-622-60-154 in 1,689 games, and he has passed Ken Hitchcock as the 3rd-winningest coach in NHL history.

Most Coaching Wins

1. Scotty Bowman  1,244

2. Joel Quenneville  934

3. Barry Trotz    853

Most Games Coached

1. Scotty Bowman   2,141

2. Joel Quenneville 1,718

3. Barry Trotz        1,689

Sweet Lou

Lou Lamoriello is the third-winningest general manager in NHL history:

1. David Poile 1,421

2. Glen Sather 1,319

3. Lou Lamoriello 1,302

It All Starts at the Top

Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz have 2,155 wins between the two of them.  They start each game with more than any other pair in NHL history (David Poile and Peter Laviolette had 2,036 after their last game together).   Bill Torrey and Al Arbour had a then-record 1,462 at the end of the 1991-92 season, which was their last season together.  

First Things First

The Isles are 7-1-1 when scoring first and are 1-3-2 when allowing the opening goal. 

The Shots

Isles    10-5-9=24

Buffalo      9-3-8=20

The Isles are 7-1-2 when they outshoot their opponents, 1-0-0 when the shots are even and 1-2-1 when they are outshot.  Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 55-27-11 when outshot; the 55 wins are the most in the NHL.

In the Nets

Ilya Sorokin made 20 saves to improve to 1-2-1 on the season and 1-0-0 against Buffalo.  It was the first shutout (and first win) of his NHL career.

Carter Hutton made 21 saves but falls to 1-4-0 on the season and 1-4-0 in his career against the Isles. 

Special Teams

The Isles were 0-2 on the power play (4:00); Buffalo was also 0-2 on the power play (4:00).

The Isles are 5-1-2 when they score at least one power play goal and 3-3-1 when they do not.  The Isles are 1-4-1 when they allow at least one power play goal and 7-0-2 when they do not.

Three is a Magic Number

The Isles are 6-1-2 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 2-3-1 when they do not.  Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 73-6-9 when scoring three or more.

One-Goal Games

The Isles are 2-1-3 in games decided by a single goal including 2-1 in regulation. They are 0-2 in games decided in overtime and are 0-1 in shootouts.  The Isles are 0-0 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game.

Back-to-Backs

Including tonight, the Isles are 1-0-1 in the front-half and 1-0-1 in the back-half. The next back-to-back is scheduled for February 27th/28th, both home games with Pittsburgh.

Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 18-2-3 in back-ends.

Series

The schedule as currently comprised has the Isles playing the same opponent in consecutive games seventeen times this season (including three-game stretches vs. the Sabres and Devils in early March, vs the Flyers in late March and vs. the Caps in late April).  The Isles are 3-1-1 in the first game and 1-3-1 in the second game:

NYR (W/L); NJ (W/L); WAS (L/L); PHI (Lot/Lot), BUF(W/W)

Tired vs. Rested 

• The Isles are 1-0-1 when both teams played the night before. 

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

• The Isles are 0-0-0 when their opponents are rested, and the Isles are not.

• The Isles are 6-4-2 when both teams are rested. 

Ice-time Leaders

Isles: Nick Leddy (24:25); Buffalo: Rasmus Dahlin (25:21)

JG Pageau led Isles forwards with 19:25 of ice-time. 

Isles record by ice-time leaders: Nick Leddy (3-0-0), Ryan Pulock (4-2-2), Scott Mayfield (0-1-0), Mathew Barzal (0-1-1), Adam Pelech (1-0-0).

Face-offs

Isles 24, Buffalo 22 (52%)

JG Pageau won 10 of 17 for the Isles; Cody Eakin won 6 of 10 for Buffalo.

The Isles are 6-3-1 when they win more face-offs than the opposition, 0-1-1 when they are tied, and 1-1-1 when they win fewer.

Hit Count

Isles 12 (Matt Martin -3)

Buffalo 22 (William Borgen-5)

Fights 

There were no fights.  Season total: 0

 

Blocked Shots

Isles 19 (Ryan Pulock -5)

Buffalo 11 (Three with 2)

For the Analytics Crowd 

Corsi: All situations: Isles 44, Buffalo 53

Corsi: 5-on-5 Isles 36, Buffalo 48

5-on-5 leaders:

Isles:  Jordan Eberle +8

Buffalo: Colin Miller +17 

High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)

All situations: Isles 6, Buffalo 14

5-on-5: Isles 5, Buffalo 12

Scratches

Ross Johnston, Sebastian Aho, Cory Schneider

Games Lost: 14

245 Game Club

The Isles have three players who have active consecutive game streaks of at least 245 games, and they are three of just 17 players in the NHL whose streak began no later than the start of the 2017-18 season.   

Ironman Streaks: Anders Lee 283, Brock Nelson 260, Mathew Barzal 247, Ryan Pulock 210, Josh Bailey 168.  All five players have appeared in every game since Barry Trotz became the Isles' coach.

Iron Man

Anders Lee has the fourth-longest consecutive game streak in club history while Brock Nelson and Mathew Barzal have also moved into the top seven; it is the first time in club history that three different Isles have had concurrent streaks of at least 240 games:

1. Billy Harris 10/7/1972 -11/30/1979 576 (*)

2. Bobby Nystrom 1/7/1975 - 11/25/1978 301

3. Matt Moulson 10/3/2009 - 4/4/2013 284

4. Anders Lee 1/26/2017 – CURRENT 283

5. Denis Potvin 11/29/1975 - 1/17/1979 262

6. Brock Nelson 3/16/2017 – CURRENT 260

7. Mathew Barzal 10/6/2017- CURRENT 247

8. John Tavares 10/16/2010 - 12/23/2013 246

9. J.P. Parise 1/7/1975 – 1/7/1978 240 (**)

10. Richard Park 10/5/2006 - 2/18/2009 221

 (*) Start of NHL career.

(**) Entire career with Islanders

Iron D

Ryan Pulock has become the third Islander defensemen to play in 210 consecutive games: 

1. Denis Potvin 11/29/1975-1/17/1979 262

2. Bryan McCabe 10/7/1995-2/4/1998 220 (*) (**)

3. Ryan Pulock 12/29/2017 – CURRENT 210

 (*) Start of NHL career.

(**) Entire career with Islanders

Challenges

Isles: 1 successful, 0 failures 

The Isles are 1-0-0 in games that they are successful and 0-0-0 in games that they are unsuccessful.(offsides 2/16 @BUF)

Opponents: 1 successful, 0 failure (goalie interference 1/14 @ NYR)

The Isles are 0-0-0 in games where opponents' challenges go their way and 1-0-0 in games that go the opponents' way.

Last Minute Heroes:

The Isles have scored 1 goal and allowed 2 goals in the final three minutes of the third period that were either the winning goal or forced overtime:

For: 1 [Anders Lee, 2/6/21 vs PIT (17:14) -winning goal]

Vs:  2 [Justin Schultz, 1/26/21 @ WSH (19:33)-winning goal; Evgeni Malkin, 2/11/21 vs PIT (19:42) – tying goal/PIT won in OT]

All-time Islander Leader Boards:

Games Played (skaters)

1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 *** 3. Bob Nystrom 900 *** 4. Josh Bailey 880…

17. John Tonelli 594 *** 18. Matt Martin 575 *** 19. Brock Nelson 563 *** 20. Ken Morrow 550 *** 21. Casey Cizikas 549 …

28. Dave Lewis 514. *** 29. Richard Pilon and Mick Vukota 509 *** 31. Anders Lee 508 *** 32. Ed Westfall and Cal Clutterbuck 493

Goals

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

12. Billy Harris 184 *** 13. Anders Lee 179 *** 14. Ziggy Palffy 168 *** 15. Patrick Flatley 160 *** 16. Josh Bailey 155 *** 17. Brock Nelson 153

Assists

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

6.  John Tonelli 338 *** 7. Josh Bailey 329 …

20. Ed Westfall 181 *** 21. Kenny Jonsson and Nick Leddy 175

Points

1. Bryan Trottier 1,353 *** 2. Mike Bossy 1,126 *** 3. Denis Potvin 1,052…

11. Derek King 499 *** 12. Patrick Flatley 488 *** 13. Josh Bailey 484…

20. Ziggy Palffy 331 ***  21. Anders Lee 311  *** 22.  Brock Nelson 301

Games Coached 

1. Al Arbour 1,500 *** 2. Jack Capuano 483 *** 3. Mike Milbury 192 *** 4. Terry Simpson 187 *** 5. Scott Gordon 181 *** 6. Barry Trotz 165

 

Coaching Wins

1. Al Arbour 740 *** 2. Jack Capuano 227 *** 3. Barry Trotz 91

On the Farm

Bridgeport is 0-3-0 on the season (0-1-0 vs. Hartford and 0-2-0 vs. Providence).  They will host Hartford on Wednesday at 1pm.

Season Series Stats

The Isles lead the season series 2 games to 0 (and 4 points to 0).

The Isles have won five straight games from Buffalo, including three straight games at KeyBank Center. It is the first time that they have won five straight from Buffalo since 2002-2004 (seven straight wins).

The Isles are 9-2-3 in their last 14 games in Buffalo, dating back to 2013.

This was the second game of a twelve-game in 21-days stretch in which the Isles are scheduled to face the Sabres six times, including a make-up at the Coliseum on February 22nd. 

UP NEXT

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18th  – ISLANDERS AT PITTSBURGH 7:00pm

[MSG+ (pre-game at 6:30], WRHU 88.7 FM, WRCN 103.9FM, ESPN 1050]

The Isles head to Pittsburgh for a pair of games, as the teams meet for the third and fourth times this season. 

The teams has split a pair of games so far, including a come-from-behind shootout win by the Pens last Thursday. It is the only game in the last six Islander games that the team did not win (5-0-1).

Five of the last six regular season games between the teams have gone past regulation (Isles 3-0-0; Pens 3-1-2).  This will be the Isles' first game in Pittsburgh since November 19, 2019, when Brock Nelson overtime goal capped a 5-4 win in a game the Isles trailed by a pair of goals until the 15:41 mark of the third period.

Mathew Barzal is expected to play his 250th NHL game.

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