The Skinny: Pittsburgh 2, Isles 1

"The Skinny"

By Eric Hornick

First Round Game 1

Pittsburgh 2, Isles 1

Best-of-7 series tied, 1-1

Bryan Rust and Jeff Carter scored first period goals and Tristan Jarry made 37 saves for his first career playoff win as the Pittsburgh Penguins evened their First Round series with the Islanders with a 2-1 victory over the Islanders before a socially-distant crowd of 9,334 at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh. 

Josh Bailey scored the Islanders' only goal – it was his 11th career playoff tally.  Semyon Varlamov made 43 saves in defeat.

The series is tied 1 game to 1; game 3 will be played at the Coliseum on Thursday. 

The Scoring: 

1st Period

Bryan Rust (1) 03:22 NYI 0,PIT 1

Jeff Carter (1) Jared McCann (1), Kasperi Kapanen (1) 13:07 NYI 0,PIT 2

2nd Period

Josh Bailey (1) Brock Nelson (1), Scott Mayfield (1) 14:44 NYI 1,PIT 2

3rd Period

No Goals 

The Series (Series tied, 1-1)

Game 1: Isles 4, Pittsburgh 3 (OT)

Game 2: Pittsburgh 2, Isles 1

Game 3: Thursday at Isles (7:00)

Game 4: Saturday at Isles (3:00)

Game 5: Monday, May 24 at Pittsburgh (TBD)

Game 6: Wednesday, May 26 at Isles (if needed)

Game 7: Friday, May 28 at Pittsburgh (if needed)

The Skinny 

The Isles are 3-4 in game 2's under Barry Trotz… Nick Leddy played his 50th playoff game as an Islander without being penalized, extending his own club record; Brock Nelson also played his 50th playoff game.…The Isles were credited with 46 hits, giving them 118 hits for the two games in Pittsburgh. …The Isles had won five straight playoff games from Pittsburgh, including three at PPG Paints Arena before losing tonight…Jeff Carter now has 40 career playoff goals, matching five others, including Bob Bourne and John Tonelli, for 97th on the all-time playoff list…Scott Mayfield had seven shots on goal; he had never had more than five in an NHL game (regular season or playoffs)…Roman Hamrlik (4-30-2002 in Toronto) was the last Islander defenseman to have seven shots in a playoff game that ended in regulation time…Tonight's defeat guarantees that the Isles will play on May 24th – the anniversary of the first Stanley Cup.

First Time in a Long Time

• Semyon Varlamov made 43 saves- it is the most by an Islander goalie in a playoff game ending in regulation since Billy Smith stopped 45 on April 15, 1977 in Buffalo.

5:16 – 5/16 – 5:16 Remaining

The Isles' last two playoff overtime goals in Pittsburgh were scored at 5:16 of overtime (David Volek in 1993 -Game 7) and on Sunday, which was May 16.  Josh Bailey's goal tonight was scored with 5:16 remaining in the second period. 516 is of course the Nassau County area code.

Pageau, Pageau, JG Pageau

JG Pageau has 21 goals in 59 career Stanley Cup games. Among active players who have played 59 or fewer games, only Jake Guentzel and Nathan MacKinnon have scored more goals:

• Jake Guentzel 25 goals in 47 games

• Nathan MacKinnon 22 goals in 41 games

• JG Pageau 21 goals in 59 games

• David Pastrnak 20 goals in 54 games

Brock Best

Brock Nelson has 17 playoff goals for the Islanders, more than any Isles in the 2000s:

• Brock Nelson 17

• Josh Bailey 11

• John Tavares 11

• Anthony Beauvillier 10

Nelson's 17 goals are tied for 13th in Islander history with Jude Drouin and Billy Harris.  Nelson has scored more playoffs goals for the Isles than any other US-born player.

A Familiar Playoff Foe

This is the sixth all-time playoff meeting between the teams:

• 1975- Quarter-Finals. Isles won series 4 games to 3.

• 1982- Preliminary Series. Isles won series 3 games to 2.

• 1993- Division Final. Isles won series 4 games to 3.

• 2013- Conference Quarter-Finals. Pittsburgh won series 4 games to 2.

• 2019- First Round. Isles won series 4 games to 0. 

Barry and Al

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.

Lou and Bill

Lou Lamoriello has won 29 playoff series as a General Manager, which allowed him to pass Bill Torrey for second place on the all-time list in the 2020 Bubble. Glen Sather has 41 series wins.

Overtime is Our Time

The Isles are 37-21 (.638) all-time in overtime, including 18-9 (.667) on the road. Both percentages are 2nd-best (to Tampa Bay) in NHL history. The Isles are 1-0 in overtime this season; they have gone 8-8 in sixteen overtime games since 2015.

Overtime vs. Pittsburgh

The Isles are 4-3 all-time in playoff overtime games vs. Pittsburgh. The 1982, 1993 and 2013 series all ended on overtime goals.

• 04/10/82 @ Rick Kehoe L Pit 4:14 

• 04/13/82 Vs John Tonelli W Pit 6:19  

• 05/14/93 @ David Volek W Pit 5:16 

• 05/05/13 Vs Chris Kunitz L Pit 8:44

• 05/11/13 Vs Brooks Orpik L Pit 7:49

• 04/10/19 Vs Josh Bailey W Pit 4:39

• 05/16/21 @ Kyle Palmieri W Pit 16:30

Lead/Tie/Trailed

Game 1: Led: 3:43, Tied: 53:01, Trailed: 19:46 

Game 2: Led  0:00, Tied:   3:22, Trailed: 56:38

Series:   Led: 3:43, Tied: 56:23, Trailed: 76:24

Playoffs All-Time

The Isles fall to 162-134 in 296 all-time playoff games.  They are 90-50 at home (including 2-5 at Barclays, 5-2 in Toronto and 1-2 in Edmonton) and 72-84 on the road. In this year's playoffs, the Isles are 0-0 at home and 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 877-635-60-158 in 1,730 games. 

Most Coaching Wins

1. Scotty Bowman  1,244

2. Joel Quenneville  962

3. Barry Trotz    877

Most Games Coached

1. Scotty Bowman   2,141

2. Joel Quenneville 1,761

3. Barry Trotz        1,730

Coach Trotz (Playoffs)

Barry Trotz has now coached 145 playoff games (73-72).  His 145 games are tied for 12th with Peter Laviolette while his 73 wins are 15th all time (3 behind Laviolette).  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.

Most playoff wins by Islander coaches:

• Al Arbour 119

• Barry Trotz 18

• Jack Capuano 10

• Terry Simpson 9

• Peter Laviolette 4

• Ted Nolan 1

• Steve Stirling 1

Most playoff games coached (Islanders):

• Al Arbour 198

• Barry Trotz 32

• Jack Capuano 24

• Terry Simpson 20

• Peter Laviolette 12

• Steve Stirling 5

• Ted Nolan 5

Most overtime wins/overtime record:

• Al Arbour 26 (26-9)

• Barry Trotz 4 (4-5)

• Jack Capuano 4 (4-5)

• Terry Simpson 3 (3-0)

• Peter Laviolette 0 (0-1)

• Steve Stirling 0 (0-1)

Most game 7 wins/game seven record)

• Al Arbour 4 (2-2)

• Terry Simpson 2 (1-1)

• Barry Trotz 1 (1-0)

• Jack Capuano 1 (0-1)

• Peter Laviolette 0 (0-1)

Most playoff series wins:

• Al Arbour 29

• Barry Trotz 4

• Jack Capuano 1

• Terry Simpson 1

First Things First

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

The Shots

Isles      13-15-10=38    

Pittsburgh 19-10-6=45

Shots by Game

• Game 1: Isles 41, Pittsburgh 42

• Game 2: Isles 38, Pittsburgh 45

• Series:  Isles 79, Pittsburgh 87

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

In the Nets

Semyon Varlamov made 43 saves but falls to 0-1 in the 2021 playoffs and 24-21 in his playoff career. 

 

Tristan Jarry made 37 saves; he is 1-1 in this year's playoffs and 1-2 in his career.

Power Plays

The Isles were 0-1 on the power play in 1:28 of PP time; Pittsburgh was 0-2 on the power play in 4:00 of PP time.

Power Plays by Game

• Game 1: Isles 0-2 (4:00, 2 shots), Pittsburgh 0-3 (6:00, 3 shots)

• Game 2: Isles 0-1 (1:28, 1 shot), Pittsburgh 0-2 (4:00, 1 shot)

• Series: Isles 0-3 (5:28, 3 shots), Pittsburgh 0-5 (10:00, 4 shots)

Three is a Magic Number

The Isles are 1-0 in the playoffs (0-0 in regulation and 1-0 in overtime) when they score at least three goals and 0-1 when they do not. 

Shutting the Door

The Isles are 0-1 when allowing two or fewer goals in this year's playoffs.  

One Goal Games

The Isles are 1-1 in the playoffs in one-goal games (0-0 in regulation and 1-0 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 (22:34);  Pittsburgh Kris Letang (26:17)

Mathew Barzal led Isles forwards with 17:51 of ice-time 

Isles record by ice-time leader: Adam Pelech (1-0), Nick Leddy (0-1)

Face-offs

Isles 24, Pittsburgh 26 (48%)  

Casey Cizikas won 7 of 12 for the Isles; Jeff Carter won 11 of 15 for Pittsburgh.  

Face-offs by Game

• Game 1: Isles 33, Pittsburgh 37 (47%)

• Game 2: Isles 24, Pittsburgh 26 (48%)

• Series: Isles 57, Pittsburgh 63 (48%)

Hit Count

Isles 46 (Leo Komarov and Adam Pelech -6)

Pittsburgh 37 (Brandon Tanev-6)

Hits Game by Game:

• Game 1: Isles 72, Pittsburgh 47 

• Game 2: Isles 46, Pittsburgh 37

• Series: Isles 118, Pittsburgh 84

Blocked Shots

Isles 16 (Scott Mayfield -4)

Pittsburgh 7 (Kris Letang -3)

For the Analytics Crowd 

Corsi: All situations: Isles 51, Pittsburgh 68  

Corsi: 5-on-5 Isles 44, Pittsburgh 64

5-on-5 leaders:

Isles:  Cal Clutterbuck +6

Pittsburgh: Brian Dumoulin +16

High Danger Chances:

All situations: Isles 14, Pittsburgh 8  

5-on-5 Isles 14, Pittsburgh 8

Corsi Game by Game:

• Game 1 (All) Isles 60, Pittsburgh 67;  (5-on-5) Isles 55, Pittsburgh 58

• Game 1 (All) Isles 51, Pittsburgh 68;  (5-on-5) Isles 44, Pittsburgh 64

• Series: (All)  Isles 111, Pittsburgh 135;  (5-on-5) Isles 99, Pittsburgh 122

High-Danger Game by Game:

• Game 1 (All) Isles 8, Pittsburgh 11;  (5-on-5) Isles 6, Pittsburgh 10

• Game 1 (All) Isles 14, Pittsburgh 8;  (5-on-5) Isles 14, Pittsburgh 8

• Series: (All)  Isles 22, Pittsburgh 19;  (5-on-5) Isles 20, Pittsburgh 18

Scratches

(Anders Lee), Cory Schneider, Sebastian Aho, Braydon Coburn, Kieffer Bellows, Ross Johnston, Travis Zajac, Michael Dal Colle

Playoff games lost: 3

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

• Kyle Palmieri (16:30 of OT on 5/16 vs. Pittsburgh – Game 1)

Post-Season Late Goals Allowed

• None

Playoff Challenges

• None

Active Islander Playoff Leaders: (As NYI)

Games:

Matt Martin 56

Josh Bailey 54

Casey Cizikas 52

Nick Leddy 50

Brock Nelson 50

Consecutive Games

Matt Martin 56

Nick Leddy 50

Brock Nelson 45

Goals:

Brock Nelson 17

Josh Bailey 11

Anthony Beauvillier 10

JG Pageau 9

Jordan Eberle 9

Anders Lee 8

Mathew Barzal 7

Matt Martin 6

Cal Clutterbuck 6

Nick Leddy 5

Assists:

Josh Bailey 27

Mathew Barzal 17

Jordan Eberle 14

Brock Nelson 14

Nick Leddy 12

Ryan Pulock 12

Points:

Josh Bailey 38

Brock Nelson 29

Mathew Barzal 24

Jordan Eberle 23

Nick Leddy 17

Anthony Beauvillier 17

Anders Lee 16

Penalty Minutes:

Matt Martin 68

Cal Clutterbuck 60

Casey Cizikas 42

PP Goals

Mathew Barzal 3

Anders Lee 3

Ryan Pulock 3

Josh Bailey 2

Anthony Beauvillier 2

Jordan Eberle 2

Brock Nelson 2 

Nick Leddy 1

SH Goals

Josh Bailey 1

 

GW Goals

Brock Nelson 5

Anthony Beauvillier 3

Jordan Eberle 3

Josh Bailey 2

Thomas Hickey 1

Mathew Barzal 1

Leo Komarov 1

Andy Greene 1

Scott Mayfield 1

Kyle Palmieri 1

OT Goals 

Josh Bailey 1

Mathew Barzal 1

Thomas Hickey 1

Jordan Eberle 1

Kyle Palmieri 1

Goaltending

Semyon Varlamov 11-8  2.14 GAA, .924 save percentage

Ilya Sorokin 1-0 2.35 GAA, .929 save percentage

UP NEXT

THURSDAY, MAY 20th  –ISLANDERS AT PITTSBURGH 7:30pm

[MSG+ [pre-game at 7:00], WRHU 88.7 FM, WRCN 103.9FM, ESPN 98.7]

The Barn Doors will swing open for a playoff game for the first time in 25 months as the Isles and Penguins play Game 3 of the series on Thursday.

The Isles are 9-10 all-time in series after splitting the first two games, while Pittsburgh is 16-14 after splitting the first two games. 

The Isles are 5-1 in playoff games against Pittsburgh under Barry Trotz, including 2-0 at the Coliseum.

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