The Skinny: Tampa Bay 6, Isles 4

"The Skinny"      

By Eric Hornick

Game 81

Tampa Bay 6, Isles 4

Zdeno Chara scored the Islanders' final goal of the season, the 209th of his brilliant career, and then was honored by numerous ovations as he was named the Game's #1 Star.  That was the Islanders' only highlight in the third period as Tampa Bay scored five goals in the frame, including an empty-netter, as the Stanley Cup Champions completed the sweep of the season series with a 6-4 victory over the Islanders before a sellout crowd of 17,255 at UBS Arena.  

Steven Stamkos had his 10th career hat trick as he set a Lightning record with his ninth consecutive two-point game.  Mathew Barzal assisted on Chara's goal to tie Brock Nelson for the team's scoring lead. 

The Isles end the season with a 37-35-10 record.

The Scoring:

1st Period

Jean-Gabriel Pageau (18) Noah Dobson (38), Anders Lee (18) 00:32 TBL 0,NYI 1

Steven Stamkos (40) Erik Cernak (12), Ondrej Palat (29) 11:57 TBL 1,NYI 1

2nd Period

Kieffer Bellows (6)OWN 09:35 TBL 1,NYI 2

Josh Bailey (14) Anthony Beauvillier (22), Ryan Pulock (16) 18:48 TBL 1,NYI 3 PPG

3rd Period

Corey Perry (19) Nikita Kucherov (43), Victor Hedman (65) 01:21 TBL 2,NYI 3 PPG

Ryan McDonagh (4) Pat Maroon (16), Pierre-Edouard Bellemare (11) 10:10 TBL 3,NYI 3

Steven Stamkos (41) Ondrej Palat (30) 11:13 TBL 4,NYI 3

Steven Stamkos (42) Ondrej Palat (31), Nikita Kucherov (44) 17:50 TBL 5,NYI 3

Zdeno Chara (2) Mathew Barzal (44), Zach Parise (20) 19:16 TBL 5,NYI 4

Brandon Hagel (25)EN Ryan McDonagh (22), Anthony Cirelli (26) 19:35 TBL 6,NYI 4

The Skinny            

The Isles went 16-11-2 in their last 29 games …The Isles scored on their only power play and went 6-8 with the man advantage in their final three games, with both failures coming on shortened power plays due to both teams taking penalties at different times… Josh Bailey ends the season with a four-game point streak while Noah Dobson, Mathew Barzal and Anders Lee all had three game point streaks … The Isles are 25-15-9 in finales (including 2020); this was their first regulation loss since 2016 and only their second (4-2-4) n their last ten regular-season enders.   This was the first time that the Isles ended the regular season by facing Tampa Bay…The Isles went 29-10-6 this season when scoring first but lost all three games to Tampa Bay despite scoring the opening goal…Andy Greene blocked two shots, raising his career total to 1,999. (3rd all-time, dating back to 2005)…The Isles allowed five goals in a period for the first time since January 28, 2021 at Washington (2nd period); it had not happened in the third period, or at home, since January18, 2020, when they allowed five to the Caps in the third period…It was the first time all season (30-1-0) that the Isles did not win a game in which they held a two-goal lead at any point. .… The Isles did end Nikita Kucherov's eight-game goal streak but both Kucherov and Steven Stamkos ended the season on 9-game point streaks…Andrei Vasilevskiy tied for the league lead with his 39th win; he had led the NHL in victories in each of the prior four seasons.

Playing the Big Boys

The Isles ended their home season by facing five consecutive opponents who had at least 100 points when they faced them.  It is only the second time in NHL history that has happened – Montreal did this in 1971-72.  The Isles went 1-3-1 in those five games.

Isles Team Leaders

Goals:  Nelson 37, Lee 28, Pageau 18

Assists: Barzal 44, Dobson 38, Bailey 30

Points:  Nelson 59, Barzal 59, Dobson 51

• Nelson led the Isles in goals for the third straight season, after Lee did so in the prior three seasons.

• Barzal led the team in assists for the fourth time in five seasons (Nick Leddy did so last year)

• Nelson and Barzal share the title as the club point leader.  Barzal has now led or shared the team lead in five straight seasons, matching Mike Bossy's club record. 

• Dobson had 52 points; it is the first time an Islander defenseman has had 50 points since 2008-09 when Mark Streit had 56. Dobson is also the first Islander defenseman in 13 years to score at least 13 goals.  

Other Team Leaders

Games: Parise 82, Dobson 80, Pelech 78

+/-:  Pelech +20, Chara +8, Three with 0

PIM: Chara 85, Wahlstrom 74, Martin 70

PP Goals: Nelson 11, Lee 9, Beauvillier/Wahlstrom 5

PP Points: Dobson 22, Barzal 20, Nelson 14

SH Goals: Parise 2, Three with 1

SH Points: Pageau 4, Parise 2, Pelech 2

OT Goals: Dobson 1

GW Goals: Palmieri 6, Nelson 5, Parise/Dobson 4

Shots: Dobson 190, Nelson 171, Barzal 161

Shoot %:Nelson 21.6%, Lee 17.6%, Bailey 16.1% 

Ice Time: Dobson 21:28, Pelech 21:17,  Pulock 21:08

Face-off Win %: Cizikas 55.6%, Pageau 55.3%, Nelson 49.4%

Shootout Goals: Palmieri 2, Wahlstrom 1, Beauvillier 1

Hits: Martin 235, Clutterbuck 229, Pageau 171

Blocks: Dobson 154, Pelech 140,  Pulock 138

Most Points by an Islander Defenseman, Age 22 or Younger

1. Denis Potvin 98 (1975-76)

2. Denis Potvin 76 (1974-75)

3. Denis Potvin 54 (1973-74)

4. Noah Dobson 51 (2021-22)

5. Bryan Berard 48 (1996-97)

        Tomas Jonsson 48 (1982-83)

The 50 Point Club- Islander Defenseman (Since 1992-93)

1. Vladimir Malakhov 57 (1993-94)

2. Mark Streit 56 (2008-09)

3. Vladimir Malakhov 52 (1993-94)

4. Noah Dobson 51 (2021-22)

5. Jeff Norton 50 (1992-93)

Home is Where The Sorokin Is

Ilya Sorokin went 13-5-4 at UBS Arena. This was only his second loss in his last 11 home starts (7-2-2). 

Best Save Percentage, Season (Isles History)

1. Robin Lehner .930 (2018-19)

2. Semyon Varlamov .929 (2020-21)

3. Chico Resch .928 (1975-76)

4. Thomas Greiss .927 (2018-19)

5. Ilya Sorokin .925 (2021-22)

        Thomas Greiss .925 (2015-16)

Best Save Percentage, This Season (NHL)

1. Igor Shesterkin .935

2. Ilya Sorokin .925

PK is More Than Okay

Tampa scored on their only power play; however, the Isles killed 50 of 57 (87.7%) over their last seventeen games and 89 of 102 in the last 32 games (87.3%).  At home the Isles have killed 47 of 54 (87.0%) since the beginning of February.

And How About That Home PP?

The Isles scored on their only power play. Since the beginning of February, the Isles home PP has converted at a 38.0% rate (19-509), which is the best in the NHL in that stretch.  On the season, the Isles home power play finishes at 27.5%, which is the best in any season since 1984-85 (and is 3rd in the NHL this season behind Toronto and Florida).

Zach Attack

Zach Parise has 408 career goals, tying him for 95th place all-time with Patrik Elias and Ray Ferraro.  Ray Bourque has 410 goals and sits 94th.

All-Star Break Splits

The Islander offense has improved significantly since the All-Star break. The Isles scored 92 goals in 39 games before the break (2.4/gm) and have scored 137 in 43 games since the break (3.2/gm).  

Forwards:

Before: 80-106-186 in 39 games (4.8/gm)

After:    117-143-260 in 43 games (6.0/gm)

Defense:

Before: 12-47-59 in 39 games (1.5/gm)

After:    20-81-101 in 43 games (2.3/gm)

Most Career Goals by an Islander Wearing #27

• Anders Lee 212

• Derek King 211

• John Tonelli 206

Most Shutouts In a Season

• 7 Ilya Sorokin 2021-22

• 7 Semyon Varlamov 2020-21 (56-game season)

• 7 Chico Resch 1975-76

• 6 Robin Lehner 2018-19

• 6 Jaroslav Halak 2014-15

Home and Road

The Isles are 37-35-10 overall; they are 20-16-5 at home and 17-19-5 on the road.

Tampa Bay is 51-23-8 overall; they are 27-8-6 at home and 24-15-2 on the road.

Home is Where the Fans Are

The Isles have played 41 home games and recorded 30 sellouts. The sellout crowds of 17,255 are the largest indoor crowds to ever see the Islanders play at home. 

Leader of the Pack

Barry Trotz has coached more games and recorded more victories than any other active coach. Trotz' NHL record is 914-671-60-167 in 1,812 games.

Most Coaching Wins

1. Scotty Bowman  1,244

2. Joel Quenneville  970

3. Barry Trotz    914

Most Games Coached

1. Scotty Bowman  2,141

2. Barry Trotz        1,812

3. Joel Quenneville 1,768

Sweet Lou

Lou Lamoriello has the second-highest win total for any general manager in NHL history:

1. David Poile 1,491 

2. Lou Lamoriello 1,363

3. Glen Sather 1,319

It All Starts at the Top

Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz have 2,277 wins between 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 29-10-6 when scoring first and are 8-25-4 when allowing the opening goal. 

The Shots

Isles        10-11-16=37

Tampa Bay    10-11-13=34

The Isles are 12-9-4 when they outshoot their opponents, 1-2-1 when the shots are even and 24-24-5 when they are outshot. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 90-60-18 when outshot.

In the Nets

Ilya Sorokin made 28 saves; he is 26-18-8 on the season and 0-2-0 vs  Tampa Bay.

Andrei Vasilevskiy made 33 saves; he is 39-18-5 on the season and 10-4-0 vs. the Isles. 

Special Teams

The Isles were 1-1 on the power play (1:08);  Tampa Bay was 1-1 on the power play (1:43).

The Isles are 20-12-6 when they score at least one power play goal and 17-23-4 when they do not. The Isles are 7-17-5 when they allow at least one power play goal and 30-18-5 when they do not.

Three is (Usually) a Magic Number

The Isles are 32-12-4 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 5-23-6 when they do not. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 119-21-15 when scoring three or more.

One-Goal Games

The Isles are 11-9-10 in games decided by a single goal including 8-9 in regulation. They are 1-4 in games decided in overtime and are 2-6 in shootouts. The Isles are 1-9 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game (including one game the Isles scored after allowing an empty-netter).

Back-to-Backs

Including tonight, the Isles are 10-7-1 in the front end and 6-11-1 in the back end. 

Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 27-15-5 in back-ends. 

Matinee Isles

The Isles went 4-6-3 in matinees this season. 

Ice-time Leaders

Isles: Noah Dobson (24:40);  Tampa Bay: Nikita Kucherov (21:55)

Mathew Barzal led Isles forwards with 18:27 of ice-time. 

Isles record by ice-time leaders: Adam Pelech (12-5-4), Noah Dobson (10-13-3), Ryan Pulock (7-6-2), Anthony Beauvillier (0-1-0), Mathew Barzal (1-1-1), Zdeno Chara (2-1-0), Sebastian Aho (0-1-0), Robin Salo (0-2-0), Scott Mayfield (0-3-0), Jean-Gabriel Pageau (0-2-0).

Face-offs

Isles 28, Tampa Bay 29 (49%)

Jean-Gabriel Pageau won 12 of 21 for the Isles; Pierre-Edouard Bellemare won 9 of 11 for Tampa Bay.

Hit Count

Isles 19 (Matt Martin -5)

Tampa Bay 14 (Erik Cernak -5)

Fights 

There were no fights. Season total: 22 (Martin 6, Chara 5, Johnston 4, Pageau 2, Mayfield 2, Wahlstrom 2, Bellows 1, Nelson 1, Palmieri 1)

 

Blocked Shots

Isles 12 (Kieffer Bellows -3)

Tampa Bay 13 (Three with 2)

For the Analytics Crowd 

Corsi: All situations: Isles 64, Tampa Bay 60

Corsi: 5-on-5: Isles 61, Tampa Bay 54

5-on-5 leaders:

Isles: Zdeno Chara +19

Tampa Bay: Zach Bogosian  +4

High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)

All situations: Isles 25, Tampa Bay 21

5-on-5: Isles 24, Tampa Bay 20

Scratches

(Cal Clutterbuck-INJ), (Scott Mayfield-INJ), (Ross Johnston -ILL), (Sebastian Aho -INJ)

Games Lost: 195 (143 to injuries and 52 to COVID protocol)

Zach Parise was the only Islander to have played in every game this season.

Challenges

Isles: 3 successful, 2 failures

Isles are 2-0-1 in games that they are successful (offside 1/18 @PHI, no goalie interference 2/22 @SEA, offside 3/15 @ WSH) and 0-2-0 in games that they are unsuccessful (no goalie interference 10/14 @CAR, no goalie interference 4/5 @DAL)

Opponents: 6 successful, 1 failure

The Isles are 3-2-1 in games where opponents' challenges go their way (goalie interference 10/16 @FLA and 10/23 @ARI; offside 12/19 vs VGK, goalie interference 3/5 vs STL, goalie interference 3/27 vs TB, goalie interference 4/26 vs WSH) and 0-0-1 in games where challenges go the Isles' way (goalie interference 3/15 vs WSH)

Last Minute Heroes:

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

For: 5  (Noah Dobson 19:56 – 12/5/21 vs CHI; Isles lost in SO) (Brock Nelson 17:03 – 2/20/22 vs OTT; Isles lost in SO), (Anders Lee 18:01 – 3/15/22 @ WSH; Isles lost in SO), (Kyle Palmieri 17:16 – 3/17/22 vs. NYR -GWG), (Kyle Palmieri 19:45 – 4/8/22 @ CAR – GWG)

Vs:  2 (Eeli Tolvanen 19:48 – 12/9/21 vs NSH-GWG), (Shea Theodore 19:12 – 12/19/21 vs VGK; Isles lost in SO)

The Isles allowed a tying goal to CAR on 4/8/22 but scored the winner in the final seconds.

All-time Islander Leader Boards:

Games Played (skaters)

1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 *** 3. Josh Bailey 993…

9. Brent Sutter 694 *** 10. Matt Martin 685 *** 11. Brock Nelson 676 *** 12. John Tavares 669 *** 13. Casey Cizikas 664 … 

18. Kenny Jonsson 597 *** 19. Garry Howatt and Anders Lee 596 *** John Tonelli 594 *** 22. Cal Clutterbuck 587

Goals    

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

9. Bobby Nystrom 235 *** 10. Anders Lee 212 *** 11. Derek King 211 *** 12. John Tonelli 206 *** 13. Brock Nelson 205 *** 14 Billy Harris 184 *** 15. Josh Bailey 176

Assists

1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553 *** 4. Josh Bailey 379…

17. Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo 230 *** 19. Mathew Barzal 220 *** 20. Nick Leddy 198 *** 21. Pierre Turgeon 193 *** 22. Brock Nelson 182

Points

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

7. Pat LaFontaine 566 *** 8. Josh Bailey 555 *** 9. John Tonelli 544 *** 10. Bob Bourne 542 …

14. Billy Harris 443 *** 15. Brock Nelson 387 ***  16. Kyle Okposo and Stefan Persson 369 *** 18.  Anders Lee 366…

22. Ziggy Palffy 331 *** 23. Mathew Barzal 311

+/-

1. Bryan Trottier +467 *** 2. Denis Potvin +456 *** 3. Mike Bossy +380…

19. JP Parise +67 *** 20. Adam Pelech +62 *** 21. Jude Drouin +58 *** 22. Patrick Flatley +57 *** 23. Greg Gilbert +54 *** 24. Gord Lane +48  

Games Coached 

1. Al Arbour 1,500 *** 2. Jack Capuano 483 *** 3. Barry Trotz 288

 

Coaching Wins

1. Al Arbour 740 *** 2. Jack Capuano 227 *** 3. Barry Trotz 152

On the Farm

Bridgeport is headed to the Calder Cup Playoffs!  The Isles went 10-5-2-0 in their last seventeen games and finished the regular season with a record of 31-30-7-4 . 

Bridgeport is the 6th seed in their division and will face Providence in a best-of-3 first round series, beginning on Monday in Rhode Island. Game 2 will be in Bridgeport on Wednesday and if needed Game 3 will be in Providence on Friday,

Season Series Stats

Tampa Bay wins the season series, 3 games to 0 (and 6 points to 0) 

UP NEXT

• NHL Draft Lottery – May 10th

• NHL Draft – July 7th-8th

• 2022-23 NHL Season will open in Europe on October 7th

AND FINALLY...

What a crazy season. With everything that went on, one thing was consistent. All 82 games were followed by The Skinny, making yet another perfect season, at least in attendance.  The Skinny streak is 839 consecutive games (including playoffs). With a little luck we will hit 900 games in late February 2023 and 1,000 games sometime in the 2023-24 season (hopefully earlier than game 79!) 

With our beautiful new home, we have a fantastic spot to watch and bring you Islander hockey.  It also gives us a chance to say hello to so many fans- thank you so much for your support and for reading and commenting on The Skinny all year long.

Finally, thanks to my very understanding family for their support – I hope I make you as proud as you make me.

Have a great summer!

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

The Skinny: Isles 5, Washington 1

"The Skinny"      

By Eric Hornick

Game 81

Isles 5, Washington 1

Brock Nelson, Anders Lee and Kyle Palmieri all scored power play goals and Semyon Varlamov made 26 saves as the Islanders completed a sweep of the home-and-home series with a 5-1 win over the Washington Capitals before a crowd of 16,722 at UBS Arena.  

Kyle Palmieri's goal, his 200th in the NHL, was part of a three-goal third period for the second straight game for the Isles and Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Josh Bailey also scored in the frame.  Mathew Barzal had three assists to close within one point of Brock Nelson in the team scoring race while Noah Dobson reached the 50-point mark with a pair of power play helpers. Axel Jonsson-Fjallby spoiled Varlamov's shutout in the final minute.

The win guarantees the Islanders an above NHL-.500 record for the 4th straight year; it is the second-longest streak in club history (14 years from 1974-75 to 1987-88).

The Scoring:

1st Period

Brock Nelson (37) Mathew Barzal (41), Noah Dobson (36) 10:48 WSH 0,NYI 1 PPG

Anders Lee (28) Mathew Barzal (42), Noah Dobson (37) 15:34 WSH 0,NYI 2 PPG

2nd Period

No Goals

3rd Period

Jean-Gabriel Pageau (17) 03:44 WSH 0,NYI 3

Kyle Palmieri (15) Josh Bailey (30), Robin Salo (4) 06:23 WSH 0,NYI 4 PPG

Josh Bailey (13) Mathew Barzal (43) 13:37 WSH 0,NYI 5

Axel Jonsson-Fjallby (2) Anthony Mantha (14), Martin Fehervary (9) 19:18 WSH 1,NYI 5

The Skinny            

The Isles are 16-10-2 in their last 28 games…The Isles outscored Washington 9-2 in the home-and-home, scoring nine consecutive goals…The Isles scored on both of their power plays Tuesday and on their first two attempts tonight; they went 5-7 in the two games and both failures were shortened power plays due to both teams taking penalties at different times…Kyle Palmieri is the 77th active player with 200 career goals (including five current Islanders)…Mathew Barzal, making a late run to win the Islander scoring championship for the fifth straight year, had three assists in a game for the first time since February 11, 2020; it's the seventh time in his career he has had at least three assists…Josh Bailey had an assist for the third straight game to reach 30 assists for the 6th time in his career…Brock Nelson has 11 power play goals this season, most of any Islander in the Trotz era…Both of Axel Jonsson-Fjallby's NHL goals have been scored against Semyon Varlamov.

The Illness

Both Ryan Pulock and Ross Johnston did not play due to non-Covid illness.   

First Times in a Long Time

• The Isles scored three power play goals for the first time in the Barry Trotz era.  They last did so on March 22, 2018, in a 7-6 loss to Tampa Bay.

• The Isles scored five power play goals in a two-game period for the first time since March 15-18, 2018 (vs. Washington and Carolina) 

• The Isles scored five power play goals over consecutive games against the same opponent for the first time since December 2-4, 1980, vs. the Colorado Rockies; the only other time was on March 13-15, 1979 (6 goals) vs Boston. 

• The Isles scored two power play goals in the first period for the first time since January 21, 2020 (Bailey and Beauvillier at MSG). It's the first time they have done so at home since March 29, 2015, at the Coliseum against Detroit (Nelson and Okposo).

• Noah Dobson is the first Islander defenseman to reach 50 points since Mark Streit (2008-09) and the first to do so before turning age 23 since Denis Potvin (three times).

You'll Only Find This in The Skinny!

The Isles had 26 shots on goal for the third consecutive game, matching the club record for having the exact same shot total.  It has been done eight previous times, most recently in 2016.  This is the second time that the Isles have 26 shots on goal in three consecutive games, having also done so in December 1989.

Passing 27

Andres Lee played in his 595th game, passing John Tonelli for 20th in club history and then scored his 212th goal, passing Derek King for 10th in club history.  All three players wear/wore #27.

Playing the Big Boys

The Isles will end their home season by facing five consecutive opponents who had at least 100 points when they faced them.  It is only the second time in NHL history that has happened – Montreal did this in 1971-72.  The Isles are 1-2-1 in the first four of these games.

Isles Team Leaders

Goals:  Nelson 37, Lee 28, Pageau 17

Assists: Barzal 43, Dobson 37, Bailey 30

Points:  Nelson 59, Barzal 58, Dobson 50

• Nelson will lead the Isles in goals for the third straight season, after Lee did so in the prior three seasons.

• Barzal will lead the team in assists for the fourth time in five seasons (Nick Leddy did so last year)

• Nelson is looking to end Barzal's 4-year run as the club point leader; Mike Bossy is the only Islander to lead the team in scoring in at least five straight seasons.

• Dobson has 50 points; it is the first time an Islander defenseman has had 50 points since 2008-09 when Mark Streit had 56. Dobson is also the first Islander defenseman in 13 years to score at least 13 goals.  

Most Points by an Islander Defenseman, Age 22 or Younger

1. Denis Potvin 98 (1975-76)

2. Denis Potvin 76 (1974-75)

3. Denis Potvin 54 (1973-74)

4. Noah Dobson 50 (2021-22)

5. Bryan Berard 48 (1996-97)

        Tomas Jonsson 48 (1982-83)

The 50 Point Club- Islander Defenseman (Since 1992-93)

1. Vladimir Malakhov 57 (1993-94)

2. Mark Streit 56 (2008-09)

3. Vladimir Malakhov 52 (1993-94)

4. Noah Dobson 50 (2021-22)

  Jeff Norton 50 (1992-93)

Home is Where The Sorokin Is

Ilya Sorokin is 13-4-4 at UBS Arena, with a 2.01 GAA and a .933 save percentage. 

Since February 1st, he has been even better, going 7-1-2 in ten home starts (1.93 GAA, .942 save percentage).

Best Save Percentage, Season (Isles History)

1. Robin Lehner .930 (2018-19)

2. Semyon Varlamov .929 (2020-21)

3. Chico Resch .928 (1975-76)

4. Ilya Sorokin .927 (2021-22)

Thomas Greiss .927 (2018-19)

Best Save Percentage, This Season (NHL)

1. Igor Shesterkin .935

2. Ilya Sorokin .927

PK is More Than Okay

The Isles killed all six Capital power plays (10-10 in the home-and-home); they have killed 50 of 56 (89.3%) over their last seventeen games and 89 of 101 in the last 31 games (88.9%).  At home the Isles have killed 47 of 53 (88.7%) since the beginning of February.

And How About That Home PP?

The Isles went 3 for 5 on the power play. Since the beginning of February, the Isles home PP has converted at a 36.7% rate (18-49), which is the best in the NHL in that stretch.  On the season, the Isles home power play is now at 26.9%, which is the best in any season since 1984-85 (and is 3rd in the NHL this season behind Toronto and Florida).

Zach Attack

Zach Parise has 408 career goals, tying him for 95th place all-time with Patrik Elias and Ray Ferraro and, passing Marian Gaborik.  Ray Bourque has 410 goals and sits 94th.

All-Star Break Splits

The Islander offense has improved significantly since the All-Star break. The Isles scored 92 goals in 39 games before the break (2.4/gm) and have scored 133 in 42 games since the break (3.2/gm).  

Forwards:

Before: 80-106-186 in 39 games (4.8/gm)

After:    114-139-253 in 42 games (6.0/gm)

Defense:

Before: 12-47-59 in 39 games (1.5/gm)

After:    19-79-98 in 42 games (2.3/gm)

Most Career Goals by an Islander Wearing #27

• Anders Lee 212

• Derek King 211

• John Tonelli 206

Most Shutouts In a Season

• 7 Ilya Sorokin 2021-22

• 7 Semyon Varlamov 2020-21 (56-game season)

• 7 Chico Resch 1975-76

• 6 Robin Lehner 2018-19

• 6 Jaroslav Halak 2014-15

Home and Road

The Isles are 37-34-10 overall; they are 20-15-5 at home and 17-19-5 on the road.

Washington is 44-25-12 overall; they are 19-6-6 at home and 25-9-6 on the road.

Home is Where the Fans Are

The Isles have played 40 home games and recorded 29 sellouts. The sellout crowds of 17,255 are the largest indoor crowds to ever see the Islanders play at home. 

Leader of the Pack

Barry Trotz has coached more games and recorded more victories than any other active coach. Trotz' NHL record is 914-670-60-167 in 1,811 games.

Most Coaching Wins

1. Scotty Bowman  1,244

2. Joel Quenneville  970

3. Barry Trotz    914

Most Games Coached

1. Scotty Bowman  2,141

2. Barry Trotz        1,811

3. Joel Quenneville 1,768

Sweet Lou

Lou Lamoriello has the second-highest win total for any general manager in NHL history:

1. David Poile 1,491

2. Lou Lamoriello 1,363

3. Glen Sather 1,319

It All Starts at the Top

Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz have 2,277 wins between 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 29-9-6 when scoring first and are 8-25-4 when allowing the opening goal. 

The Shots

Isles    6-10-10=26

Washington       7-13-7=27

The Isles are 12-8-4 when they outshoot their opponents, 1-2-1 when the shots are even and 24-24-5 when they are outshot. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 90-60-18 when outshot.

In the Nets

Semyon Varlamov made 26 saves; he is 10-17-2 on the season and 7-10-3 vs  Washington.

Vitek Vanecek made 22 saves; he is 20-12-6 on the season and 5-2-0 vs. the Isles. 

Special Teams

The Isles were 3-5 on the power play (4:29);  Washington was 0-6 on the power play (8:09).

The Isles are 20-11-6 when they score at least one power play goal and 17-23-4 when they do not. The Isles are 7-16-5 when they allow at least one power play goal and 30-18-5 when they do not.

Three is a Magic Number

The Isles are 32-11-4 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 5-23-6 when they do not. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 119-20-15 when scoring three or more.

One-Goal Games

The Isles are 11-9-10 in games decided by a single goal including 8-9 in regulation. They are 1-4 in games decided in overtime and are 2-6 in shootouts. The Isles are 1-8 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game (including one game the Isles scored after allowing an empty-netter).

Back-to-Backs

Including tonight, the Isles are 10-7-1 in the front end and 6-10-1 in the back end. 

Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 27-14-5 in back-ends. 

Matinee Isles

The Isles went 4-6-3 in matinees this season. 

Ice-time Leaders

Isles: Noah Dobson (22:32);  Washington: John Carlson (24:55)

Jean-Gabriel Pageau led Isles forwards with 20:05 of ice-time. 

Isles record by ice-time leaders: Adam Pelech (12-5-4), Noah Dobson (10-12-3), Ryan Pulock (7-6-2), Anthony Beauvillier (0-1-0), Mathew Barzal (1-1-1), Zdeno Chara (2-1-0), Sebastian Aho (0-1-0), Robin Salo (0-2-0), Scott Mayfield (0-3-0), Jean-Gabriel Pageau (0-2-0).

Face-offs

Isles 37, Washington 19 (66%)

Casey Cizikas won 10 of 14 for the Isles; TJ Oshie won 3 of 5 for Washington.

Hit Count

Isles 13 (Three with 2)

Washington 22 (Two with 3)

Fights 

There were no fights. Season total: 22 (Martin 6, Chara 5, Johnston 4, Pageau 2, Mayfield 2, Wahlstrom 2, Bellows 1, Nelson 1, Palmieri 1)

 

Blocked Shots

Isles 9 (Josh Bailey -3)

Washington 11 (Tom Wilson -3)

For the Analytics Crowd 

Corsi: All situations: Isles 41, Washington 54

Corsi: 5-on-5: Isles 31, Washington 40

5-on-5 leaders:

Isles: Kieffer Bellows +1

Washington: Three with +8

High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)

All situations: Isles 8, Washington 11

5-on-5: Isles 6, Washington 9

Scratches

(Cal Clutterbuck-INJ), (Scott Mayfield-INJ), (Ross Johnston -ILL), (Ryan Pulock-ILL)

Games Lost: 191 (139 to injuries and 52 to COVID protocol)

Zach Parise is the only Islander to have played in every game this season.

Challenges

Isles: 3 successful, 2 failures

Isles are 2-0-1 in games that they are successful (offside 1/18 @PHI, no goalie interference 2/22 @SEA, offside 3/15 @ WSH) and 0-2-0 in games that they are unsuccessful (no goalie interference 10/14 @CAR, no goalie interference 4/5 @DAL)

Opponents: 6 successful, 1 failure

The Isles are 3-2-1 in games where opponents' challenges go their way (goalie interference 10/16 @FLA and 10/23 @ARI; offside 12/19 vs VGK, goalie interference 3/5 vs STL, goalie interference 3/27 vs TB, goalie interference 4/26 vs WSH) and 0-0-1 in games where challenges go the Isles' way (goalie interference 3/15 vs WSH)

Last Minute Heroes:

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

For: 5  (Noah Dobson 19:56 – 12/5/21 vs CHI; Isles lost in SO) (Brock Nelson 17:03 – 2/20/22 vs OTT; Isles lost in SO), (Anders Lee 18:01 – 3/15/22 @ WSH; Isles lost in SO), (Kyle Palmieri 17:16 – 3/17/22 vs. NYR -GWG), (Kyle Palmieri 19:45 – 4/8/22 @ CAR – GWG)

Vs:  2 (Eeli Tolvanen 19:48 – 12/9/21 vs NSH-GWG), (Shea Theodore 19:12 – 12/19/21 vs VGK; Isles lost in SO)

The Isles allowed a tying goal to CAR on 4/8/22 but scored the winner in the final seconds.

All-time Islander Leader Boards:

Games Played (skaters)

1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 *** 3. Josh Bailey 992…

9. Brent Sutter 694 *** 10. Matt Martin 684 *** 11. Brock Nelson 675 *** 12. John Tavares 669 *** 13. Casey Cizikas 662 … 

18. Kenny Jonsson 597 *** 19. Garry Howatt 596 *** 20. Anders Lee 595 *** John Tonelli 594 *** 22. Cal Clutterbuck 587

Goals    

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

9. Bobby Nystrom 235 *** 10. Anders Lee 212 *** 11. Derek King 211 *** 12. John Tonelli 206 *** 13. Brock Nelson 205 *** 14 Billy Harris 184 *** 15. Josh Bailey 175

Assists

1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553 *** 4. Josh Bailey 379…

17. Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo 230 *** 19. Mathew Barzal 220 *** 20. Nick Leddy 198 *** 21. Pierre Turgeon 193 *** 22. Brock Nelson 182

Points

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

7. Pat LaFontaine 566 *** 8. Josh Bailey 554 *** 9. John Tonelli 544 *** 10. Bob Bourne 542 …

14. Billy Harris 443 *** 15. Brock Nelson 387 ***  16. Kyle Okposo and Stefan Persson 369 *** 18.  Anders Lee 365…

22. Ziggy Palffy 331 *** 23. Mathew Barzal 310

+/-

1. Bryan Trottier +467 *** 2. Denis Potvin +456 *** 3. Mike Bossy +380…

19. JP Parise +67 *** 20. Adam Pelech +62 *** 21. Jude Drouin +58 *** 22. Patrick Flatley +57 *** 23. Greg Gilbert +54 *** 24. Gord Lane +48  

Games Coached 

1. Al Arbour 1,500 *** 2. Jack Capuano 483 *** 3. Barry Trotz 287

 

Coaching Wins

1. Al Arbour 740 *** 2. Jack Capuano 227 *** 3. Barry Trotz 152

On the Farm

Bridgeport is headed to the Calder Cup Playoffs!  The Isles went 10-5-2-0 in their last seventeen games and finished the regular season with a record of 31-30-7-4 . 

Chris Terry led the team with 30 goals and 61 points while Otto Koivula had a team-leading 35 helpers. Jakub Skurek went 16-15-4 in goal on the season while Cory Schneider was 14-11-4.

Bridgeport is off for a week before beginning the playoffs. They are the 6th seed in their division and will face Providence in a best-of-3 first round series, beginning on Monday in Rhode Island.

Season Series Stats

The teams split the season series, 2 games to 2 (the Isles earned 5 points to Washington's 4).   

The Isles are 4-6-2 in their last 12 games against the Caps, including 3-2-1 on home ice.

UP NEXT

FRIDAY, APRIL 29th  –TAMPA BAY AT ISLANDERS 7:30 PM 

[MSG+2 (Pre-game at 7:00pm), WRHU 88.7 FM, WRCN 103.9FM, ESPN Radio]

For the third straight season, the Isles will end their season against Tampa Bay, only this time it will be in the regular season. 

The Isles are 0-2-0 vs. Tampa Bay this season, losing both games by 4-1 scores. 

The Isles are 25-14-9 in finales (including 2020); they are 3-0-2 in their last five finales and 4-1-4 in their last nine regular-season enders.   This will be the first time that the Isles end the regular season by facing Tampa Bay.

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

The Skinny: Isles 4, Washington 1

"The Skinny"      

By Eric Hornick

Game 80

Isles 4, Washington 1

Ryan Pulock and Noah Dobson each scored power play goals as the Islanders snapped a five-game winless streak with a 4-1 win over the Washington Capitals before a crowd of 18,573 at Capital One Arena.

After Kyle Palmieri had yet another goal disallowed, Conor Sheary gave the Caps a 1-0 lead ,but Pulock evened the game before the first period ended.  It stayed that way through 40 minutes and then the Isles got the power play goal from Dobson, a shorthanded goal from Casey Cizikas and an even-strength goal from Anders Lee for the final margin of victory.

The win ends the road season with a 17-19-5 record and guarantees the Islanders at least an NHL-.500 record.

The Scoring:

1st Period

Conor Sheary (19) Marcus Johansson (20), Nick Jensen (16) 10:24 NYI 0,WSH 1

Ryan Pulock (5) Kieffer Bellows (13), Kyle Palmieri (18) 16:18 NYI 1,WSH 1 PPG

2nd Period

No Goals

3rd Period

Noah Dobson (13) Josh Bailey (29), Mathew Barzal (40) 02:56 NYI 2,WSH 1 PPG

Casey Cizikas (10) 08:42 NYI 3,WSH 1 SHG

Anders Lee (27) 15:17 NYI 4,WSH 1

The Skinny            

The Isles are 15-10-2 in their last 27 games…Ryan Pulock scored on the power play for the second straight game and extended his point streak to three games …Kieffer Bellows now has a three-game point streak and also had five points in this last seven games (1-4-5) after going pointless in his ten prior appearances…Mathew Barzal reached the 40-assist mark for the fourth time in his career…Casey Cizikas recorded his 10th career shorthanded goal…The Isles scored two power play goals and a shorthanded goals in the same game for the third time this season..  Justin Schultz played his 600th NHL game…The Caps had outscored their opponents 101-69 in the third period before allowing three goals to the Isles…The Isles are 7-0-3 in the final road games of their last ten regular seasons (including 2020, when they did not know it would be a finale), winning in 2014-2019 and 2022…It is the second time in his career that Connor Sheary has scored at least 19 goals (career high is 23 in 2016-17)… Kyle Palmieri had a potential 200th goal erased by video review; he has had at least a half-dozen reversed this season.

The Illness

Both Zdeno Chara and Brock Nelson did not play due to non-Covid illness.  The Isles dressed only 17 skaters for the first time since March 24, 2007 ,in Philadelphia. 

First Times in a Long Time

• Ryan Pulock and Noah Dobson are the first Islander defensemen to score a power play goal in the same game since Lubomir Visnovsky and Johnny Boychuk did so, also against the Caps, on December 29, 2014. (Both Nick Leddy and Pulock have scored two power play goals in a game in that span)

• Pulock is the first 1st Islander defenseman with PP goals in consecutive games in 12 years (Mark Streit - 1/9-1/12/2010); he will look to tie the club record of 3 (last done by Adrian Aucoin in 2002) on Thursday.

Chasing 27

Andres Lee played in his 594th game, tying John Tonelli for 20th in club history and then scored his 211th goal, tying Derek King for 10th in club history.  All three players wear/wore #27.

Playing the Big Boys

The Isles will end their home season by facing five consecutive opponents who had at least 100 points when they faced them.  It is only the second time in NHL history that has happened – Montreal did this in 1971-72… 

Isles Team Leaders

Goals:  Nelson 36, Lee 27, Pageau 16

Assists: Barzal 40, Dobson 35, Bailey 29

Points:  Nelson 58, Barzal 55, Dobson 48

• Nelson will lead the Isles in goals for the third straight season, after Lee did so in the prior three seasons.

• Barzal is looking to lead the team in assists for the fourth time in five seasons (Nick Leddy did so last year)

• Nelson is looking to end Barzal's 4-year run as the club point leader; Mike Bossy is the only Islander to lead the team in scoring in at least five straight seasons.

• Dobson has 48 points; no Islander defenseman has had 50 points since 2008-09 when Mark Streit had 56. Dobson is the first Islander defenseman in 13 years to score at least 13 goals.  

Most Points by an Islander Defenseman, Age 22 or Younger

1. Denis Potvin 98 (1975-76)

2. Denis Potvin 76 (1974-75)

3. Denis Potvin 54 (1973-74)

4. Noah Dobson 48 (2021-22)

        Bryan Berard 48 (1996-97)

        Tomas Jonsson 48 (1982-83)

Most Points by an Islander Defenseman (Since 1994-95)

1. Mark Streit 56 (2008-09)

2. Mark Streit 49 (2009-10)

3. Noah Dobson 48 (2021-22)

4. Bryan Berard 48 (1996-97)

Home is Where The Sorokin Is

Ilya Sorokin is 13-4-4 at UBS Arena, with a 2.01 GAA and a .933 save percentage. 

Since February 1st, he has been even better, going 7-1-2 in ten home starts (1.93 GAA, .942 save percentage).

Best Save Percentage, Season (Isles History)

1. Robin Lehner .930 (2018-19)

2. Semyon Varlamov .929 (2020-21)

3. Chico Resch .928 (1975-76)

4. Ilya Sorokin .927 (2021-22)

Thomas Greiss .927 (2018-19)

Best Save Percentage, This Season (NHL)

1. Igor Shesterkin .935

2. Ilya Sorokin .927

PK is More Than Okay

The Isles killed all four Capital power plays and scored a shorthanded goal; they have killed 44 of 50 (88.0%) over their last sixteen games and 83 of 95 in the last 30 games (87.4%).  At home the Isles have killed 41 of 47 (87.2%) since the beginning of February.

And How About That Home PP?

Since the beginning of February, the Isles home PP has converted at a 34.1% rate (15-44).  Only Tampa Bay (36.4%) and Florida (34.2%) have had a better home power play in that stretch.

Zach Attack

Zach Parise has 408 career goals, tying him for 95th place all-time with Patrik Elias and Ray Ferraro and, passing Marian Gaborik.  Ray Bourque has 410 goals and sits 94th.

All-Star Break Splits

The Islander offense has improved significantly since the All-Star break. The Isles scored 92 goals in 39 games before the break (2.4/gm) and have scored 128 in 41 games since the break (3.1gm).  

Forwards:

Before: 80-106-186 in 39 games (4.8/gm)

After:  109-135-244 in 41 games (6.0/gm)

Defense:

Before: 12-47-59 in 39 games (1.5/gm)

After:    19-76-95 in 41 games (2.3/gm)

Most Career Goals by an Islander Wearing #27

• Derek King 211

      Anders Lee 211

• John Tonelli 206

Most Shutouts In a Season

• 7 Ilya Sorokin 2021-22

• 7 Semyon Varlamov 2020-21 (56-game season)

• 7 Chico Resch 1975-76

• 6 Robin Lehner 2018-19

• 6 Jaroslav Halak 2014-15

Home and Road

The Isles are 36-34-10 overall; they are 19-15-5 at home and 17-19-5 on the road.

Washington is 44-24-12 overall; they are 19-6-6 at home and 25-8-6 on the road.

Home is Where the Fans Are

The Isles have played 39 home games and recorded 29 sellouts. The sellout crowds of 17,255 are the largest indoor crowds to ever see the Islanders play at home. 

Leader of the Pack

Barry Trotz has coached more games and recorded more victories than any other active coach. Trotz' NHL record is 913-670-60-167 in 1,810 games.

Most Coaching Wins

1. Scotty Bowman  1,244

2. Joel Quenneville  970

3. Barry Trotz    913

Most Games Coached

1. Scotty Bowman  2,141

2. Barry Trotz        1,810

3. Joel Quenneville 1,768

Sweet Lou

Lou Lamoriello has the second-highest win total for any general manager in NHL history:

1. David Poile 1,490

2. Lou Lamoriello 1,362

3. Glen Sather 1,319

It All Starts at the Top

Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz have 2,275 wins between 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 28-9-6 when scoring first and are 8-25-4 when allowing the opening goal. 

The Shots

Isles    13-5-8=26

Washington       10-9-14=33

The Isles are 12-8-4 when they outshoot their opponents, 1-2-1 when the shots are even and 23-24-5 when they are outshot. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 89-60-18 when outshot.

In the Nets

Ilya Sorokin made 32 saves; he is 26-17-8 on the season and 1-2-0 vs  Washington.

Ilya Samsonov made 22 saves; he is 23-11-5 on the season and 5-3-0 vs. the Isles. 

Special Teams

The Isles were 2-2 on the power play (2:59);  Washington was 0-4 on the power play (8:00), allowing a power play goal.

The Isles are 19-11-6 when they score at least one power play goal and 17-23-4 when they do not. The Isles are 7-16-5 when they allow at least one power play goal and 29-18-5 when they do not.

Three is a Magic Number

The Isles are 31-11-4 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 5-23-6 when they do not. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 118-20-15 when scoring three or more.

One-Goal Games

The Isles are 11-9-10 in games decided by a single goal including 8-9 in regulation. They are 1-4 in games decided in overtime and are 2-6 in shootouts. The Isles are 1-8 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game (including one game the Isles scored after allowing an empty-netter).

Back-to-Backs

Including today, the Isles are 9-7-1 in the front end and 6-10-1 in the back end. The Isles will end the season with a back-to-back on April 28th vs. Washington and April 29th vs. Tampa Bay.

 

Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 27-14-5 in back-ends. 

Matinee Isles

The Isles went 4-6-3 in matinees this season. 

Ice-time Leaders

Isles: Mathew Barzal (24:05);  Washington: John Carlson (22:23)

Mathew Barzal led Isles forwards with 24:05 of ice-time. 

Isles record by ice-time leaders: Adam Pelech (12-5-4), Noah Dobson (9-12-3), Ryan Pulock (7-6-2), Anthony Beauvillier (0-1-0), Mathew Barzal (1-1-1), Zdeno Chara (2-1-0), Sebastian Aho (0-1-0), Robin Salo (0-2-0), Scott Mayfield (0-3-0), Jean-Gabriel Pageau (0-2-0).

Face-offs

Isles 23, Washington 25 (48%)

Jean-Gabriel Pageau won 14 of 23 for the Isles; Nicklas Backstrom won 9 of 13 for Washington.

Hit Count

Isles 18 (Jean-Gabriel Pageau -6)

Washington 21 (Martin Fehevary -5)

Fights 

There were no fights. Season total: 22 (Martin 6, Chara 5, Johnston 4, Pageau 2, Mayfield 2, Wahlstrom 2, Bellows 1, Nelson 1, Palmieri 1)

 

Blocked Shots

Isles 17 (Andy Greene -5)

Washington 12 (Garnet Hathaway -3)

For the Analytics Crowd 

Corsi: All situations: Isles 50, Washington 65

Corsi: 5-on-5: Isles 38, Washington 54

5-on-5 leaders:

Isles: Ryan Pulock +7

Washington: Marcus Johansson +14

High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)

All situations: Isles 11, Washington 8

5-on-5: Isles 7, Washington 6

Scratches

(Cal Clutterbuck-INJ), (Scott Mayfield-INJ), (Anthony Beauvillier-INJ), (Brock Nelson -ILL), (Zdeno Chara-ILL)

Games Lost: 187 (135 to injuries and 52 to COVID protocol)

Zach Parise is the only Islander to have played in every game this season.

Challenges

Isles: 3 successful, 2 failures

Isles are 2-0-1 in games that they are successful (offside 1/18 @PHI, no goalie interference 2/22 @SEA, offside 3/15 @ WSH) and 0-2-0 in games that they are unsuccessful (no goalie interference 10/14 @CAR, no goalie interference 4/5 @DAL)

Opponents: 6 successful, 1 failure

The Isles are 3-2-1 in games where opponents' challenges go their way (goalie interference 10/16 @FLA and 10/23 @ARI; offside 12/19 vs VGK, goalie interference 3/5 vs STL, goalie interference 3/27 vs TB, goalie interference 4/26 vs WSH) and 0-0-1 in games where challenges go the Isles' way (goalie interference 3/15 vs WSH)

Last Minute Heroes:

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

For: 5  (Noah Dobson 19:56 – 12/5/21 vs CHI; Isles lost in SO) (Brock Nelson 17:03 – 2/20/22 vs OTT; Isles lost in SO), (Anders Lee 18:01 – 3/15/22 @ WSH; Isles lost in SO), (Kyle Palmieri 17:16 – 3/17/22 vs. NYR -GWG), (Kyle Palmieri 19:45 – 4/8/22 @ CAR – GWG)

Vs:  2 (Eeli Tolvanen 19:48 – 12/9/21 vs NSH-GWG), (Shea Theodore 19:12 – 12/19/21 vs VGK; Isles lost in SO)

The Isles allowed a tying goal to CAR on 4/8/22 but scored the winner in the final seconds.

All-time Islander Leader Boards:

Games Played (skaters)

1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 *** 3. Josh Bailey 991…

9. Brent Sutter 694 *** 10. Matt Martin 683 *** 11. Brock Nelson 674 *** 12. John Tavares 669 *** 13. Casey Cizikas 661 … 

18. Kenny Jonsson 597 *** 19. Garry Howatt 596 *** 20. John Tonelli and Anders Lee 594 *** 22. Cal Clutterbuck 587

Goals    

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

9. Bobby Nystrom 235 *** 10. Derek King and Anders Lee 211 *** 12. John Tonelli 206 *** 13. Brock Nelson 204 *** 14 Billy Harris 184 *** 15. Josh Bailey 174

Assists

1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553 *** 4. Josh Bailey 378…

17. Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo 230 *** 19. Mathew Barzal 217 *** 20. Nick Leddy 198 *** 21. Pierre Turgeon 193 *** 22. Brock Nelson 182

Points

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

7. Pat LaFontaine 566 *** 8. Josh Bailey 552 *** 9. John Tonelli 544 *** 10. Bob Bourne 542 …

14. Billy Harris 443 *** 15. Brock Nelson 386 ***  16. Kyle Okposo and Stefan Persson 369 *** 18.  Anders Lee 364…

22. Ziggy Palffy 331 *** 23. Mathew Barzal 307

+/-

1. Bryan Trottier +467 *** 2. Denis Potvin +456 *** 3. Mike Bossy +380…

19. JP Parise +67 *** 20. Adam Pelech +61 *** 21. Jude Drouin +58 *** 22. Patrick Flatley +57 *** 23. Greg Gilbert +54 *** 24. Gord Lane +48  

Games Coached 

1. Al Arbour 1,500 *** 2. Jack Capuano 483 *** 3. Barry Trotz 286

 

Coaching Wins

1. Al Arbour 740 *** 2. Jack Capuano 227 *** 3. Barry Trotz 151

On the Farm

Bridgeport is headed to the Calder Cup Playoffs!  The Isles went 10-5-2-0 in their last seventeen games and finished the regular season with a record of 31-30-7-4. 

Chris Terry led the team with 30 goals and 61 points while Otto Koivula has a team-leading 35 helpers. Jakub Skurek went 16-15-4 in goal on the season while Cory Schneider is 14-11-4.

Bridgeport is off for a week before beginning the playoffs. They will be the 6th seed in their division and face either Providence or Springfield in a best-of-3 first round series.

Season Series Stats

Washington leads the season series, 2 games to 1 (and 4 points to 3).  The teams will conclude the home-and-home, and the season series, on Thursday.

The Isles are 3-6-2 in their last 11 games against the Caps.

UP NEXT

THURSDAY, APRIL 28th  –WASHINGTON AT ISLANDERS 7:00 PM 

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

The Isles return home to end the season with the final set of back-to-backs as they will host Washington on Thursday and Tampa Bay on Friday. 

The Isles are 2-2-1 in their last five games against Washington at home; the Caps blanked the Isles 2-0 on January 15th in the only previous meeting at UBS Arena.

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

The Skinny: Carolina 5, Isles 2

"The Skinny"      

By Eric Hornick

Game 79

Carolina 5, Isles 2

Max Domi scored the tie-breaking goal 5:40 into the third period and Carolina then cemented the victory with a pair of empty nets as the Hurricanes spoiled Alumni Weekend with a 5-2 victory over the Isles before a crowd of 15,945 at UBS Arena.

Carolina had taken a 2-0 lead in the first period, but the Isles got goals from Ross Johnston late in the first and Ryan Pulock on the power play in the second to even the score, but it was not enough as the Isles fell to 1-5-1 in their last seven games. It's the first time since the 0-8-3 stretch in November/December that the Isles (0-4-1 in their last five) have gone at least four games without a win.

The Scoring:

1st Period

Derek Stepan (9) 02:25 CAR 1,NYI 0

Seth Jarvis (17) Andrei Svechnikov (39), Sebastian Aho (43) 08:09 CAR 2,NYI 0 PPG

Ross Johnston (2) Matt Martin (4), Casey Cizikas (6) 18:25 CAR 2,NYI 1

2nd Period

Ryan Pulock (4) Josh Bailey (28), Kieffer Bellows (12) 15:27 CAR 2,NYI 2 PPG

3rd Period

Max Domi (11) Teuvo Teravainen (43), Jordan Martinook (9) 05:40 CAR 3,NYI 2

Jesper Fast (14)EN Jordan Staal (19) 17:53 CAR 4,NYI 2

Brendan Smith (4)EN 18:50 CAR 5,NYI 2

The Skinny            

The Isles are 14-10-2 in their last 26 games …Kieffer Bellows had four points in this last six games (1-3-4) after going pointless in his ten prior appearances…Both of Ross Johnston's goals have been at home (January 30th vs Minnesota… The Isles have allowed 17 empty net goals this season, including two today…Noah Dobson was on for both empty-netters, leaving him at -4 for the day…Josh Bailey reached for 40-point mark for the sixth time in his career…Carolina's Sebastian Aho had an assist for his 399th point…Both Casey Cizikas and Jesper Fast recorded their 200th point…Cizikas is the 44th to record 200 points in an Islander uniform…Max Domi scored the winning goal in his 499th NHL game…The Canes tied club record for wins (52) and points (112).

The Injury

Antti Raanta left the game in the second period with a lower body injury. He did not return.

Playing the Big Boys

The Isles have hosted opponents with at least 100 points in three straight games for the first time in club history.  The streak will grow to five if Washington earns a single point over their next two games.  It would be only the second time in NHL history that has happened – Montreal did this in 1971-72)… 

Isles Team Leaders

Goals:  Nelson 36, Lee 26, Pageau 16

Assists: Barzal 40, Dobson 35, Bailey 28

Points:  Nelson 58, Barzal 54, Dobson 47

• Nelson will lead the Isles in goals for the third straight season, after Lee did so in the prior three seasons.

• Barzal is looking to lead the team in assists for the fourth time in five seasons (Nick Leddy did so last year)

• Nelson is looking to end Barzal's 4-year run as the club point leader; Mike Bossy is the only Islander to lead the team in scoring in at least five straight seasons.

• Dobson has 47 points; no Islander defenseman has had 50 points since 2008-09 when Mark Streit had 56. Dobson, who is the first Islander defenseman in 13 years to score at least 12 goals, needs two points to become the youngest Islander defenseman since Denis Potvin to have at least 49 points in a season.

Home is Where The Sorokin Is

Ilya Sorokin is 13-4-4 at UBS Arena, with a 2.01 GAA and a .933 save percentage. 

Since February 1st, he has been even better, going 7-1-2 in ten home starts (1.93 GAA, .942 save percentage) .

PK is More Than Okay

The Isles allowed a goal in their only time short; they have killed 40 of 46 (87.0%) over their last fifteen games and 79 of 91 in the last 29 games (86.8%).  At home they are even better, having killed 41 of 47 (87.2%) since the beginning of February.

And How About That Home PP?

Since the beginning of February, the Isles home PP has converted at a 34.1% rate (15-44).  Only Florida (38.5%) and Tampa Bay (35.9%) has had a better home power play in that stretch.

Zach Attack

Zach Parise has 408 career goals, tying him for 95th place all-time with Patrik Elias and Ray Ferraro and, passing Marian Gaborik.  Ray Bourque has 410 goals and sits 94th.

All-Star Break Splits

The Islander offense has improved significantly since the All-Star break. The Isles scored 92 goals in 39 games before the break (2.4/gm) and have scored 124 in 40 games since the break (3.1gm).  

Forwards:

Before: 80-106-186 in 39 games (4.8/gm)

After:    107-132-238 in 40 games (6.0/gm)

Defense:

Before: 12-47-59 in 39 games (1.5/gm)

After:    17-76-93 in 40 games (2.3/gm)

Most Career Goals by an Islander Wearing #27

1. Derek King 211

2. Anders Lee 210 

3. John Tonelli 206

Most Shutouts In a Season

• 7 Ilya Sorokin 2021-22

• 7 Semyon Varlamov 2020-21 (56-game season)

• 7 Chico Resch 1975-76

• 6 Robin Lehner 2018-19

• 6 Jaroslav Halak 2014-15

Home and Road

The Isles are 35-34-10 overall; they are 19-15-5 at home and 16-19-5 on the road.

Carolina is 52-20-8 overall; they are 28-8-4 at home and 24-12-4 on the road.

Home is Where the Fans Are

The Isles have played 39 home games and recorded 29 sellouts. The sellout crowds of 17,255 are the largest indoor crowds to ever see the Islanders play at home. 

Leader of the Pack

Barry Trotz has coached more games and recorded more victories than any other active coach. Trotz' NHL record is 912-670-60-167 in 1,809 games.

Most Coaching Wins

1. Scotty Bowman  1,244

2. Joel Quenneville  970

3. Barry Trotz  912

Most Games Coached

1. Scotty Bowman  2,141

2. Barry Trotz        1,809

3. Joel Quenneville 1,768

Sweet Lou

Lou Lamoriello has the second-highest win total for any general manager in NHL history:

1. David Poile 1,490  (pending game Sunday night)

2. Lou Lamoriello 1,362

3. Glen Sather 1,319

It All Starts at the Top

Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz have 2,273 wins between 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 28-9-6 when scoring first and are 7-25-4 when allowing the opening goal. 

The Shots

Isles    12-9-5=26

Carolina 10-9-15=34

The Isles are 12-8-4 when they outshoot their opponents, 1-2-1 when the shots are even and 22-24-5 when they are outshot. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 88-60-18 when outshot.

In the Nets

Semyon Varlamov made 29 saves; he is 9-17-2 on the season and 5-4-4 vs  Carolina.

Antti Raanta made 17 saves before leaving with a lower body injury in the second period.  Pyotr Kochetkov made seven saves in relief to earn his 2nd NHL win in as many decisions. 

Special Teams

The Isles were 1-3 on the power play (5:44);  Carolina was 1-1 on the power play (0:53).

The Isles are 18-11-6 when they score at least one power play goal and 17-23-4 when they do not. The Isles are 7-16-5 when they allow at least one power play goal and 28-18-5 when they do not.

Three is a Magic Number

The Isles are 30-11-4 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 5-23-6 when they do not. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 117-20-15 when scoring three or more.

One-Goal Games

The Isles are 11-9-10 in games decided by a single goal including 8-9 in regulation. They are 1-4 in games decided in overtime and are 2-6 in shootouts. The Isles are 1-8 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game (including one game the Isles scored after allowing an empty-netter).

Back-to-Backs

Including today, the Isles are 9-7-1 in the front end and 6-10-1 in the back end. The Isles will end the season with a back-to-back on April 28th vs. Washington and April 29th vs. Tampa Bay.

 

Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 27-14-5 in back-ends. 

Matinee Isles

The Isles went 4-6-3 in matinees this season. 

Ice-time Leaders

Isles: Noah Dobson (23:25);  Carolina: Jaccob Slavin (23:53)

Mathew Barzal led Isles forwards with 22:35 of ice-time. 

Isles record by ice-time leaders: Adam Pelech (12-5-4), Noah Dobson (9-12-3), Ryan Pulock (7-6-2), Anthony Beauvillier (0-1-0), Mathew Barzal (0-1-1), Zdeno Chara (2-1-0), Sebastian Aho (0-1-0), Robin Salo (0-2-0), Scott Mayfield (0-3-0), Jean-Gabriel Pageau (0-2-0).

Face-offs

Isles 20, Carolina 27 (43%)

Mathew Barzal won 5 of 9 for the Isles; Derek Stepan won 8 of 9 for Carolina.

Hit Count

Isles 23 (Casey Cizikas -5)

Carolina 11 (Three with 2)

Fights 

There were no fights. Season total: 22 (Martin 6, Chara 5, Johnston 4, Pageau 2, Mayfield 2, Wahlstrom 2, Bellows 1, Nelson 1, Palmieri 1)

 

Blocked Shots

Isles 10 (Adam Pelech-2)

Carolina 10 (Steven Lorentz -2)

For the Analytics Crowd 

Corsi: All situations: Isles 47, Carolina 58

Corsi: 5-on-5: Isles 38, Carolina 52

5-on-5 leaders:

Isles: Ryan Pulock +7

Carolina: Two with +16

High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)

All situations: Isles 8, Carolina 10

5-on-5: Isles 7, Carolina 9

Scratches

(Cal Clutterbuck-INJ), (Scott Mayfield-INJ), (Anthony Beauvillier-INJ), (Jean-Gabriel Pageau-COVID Protocol)

Games Lost: 182 (130 to injuries and 52 to COVID protocol)

Zach Parise is the only Islander to have played in every game this season.

Challenges

Isles: 3 successful, 2 failures

Isles are 2-0-1 in games that they are successful (offside 1/18 @PHI, no goalie interference 2/22 @SEA, offside 3/15 @ WSH) and 0-2-0 in games that they are unsuccessful (no goalie interference 10/14 @CAR, no goalie interference 4/5 @DAL)

Opponents: 5 successful, 1 failure

The Isles are 2-2-1 in games where opponents' challenges go their way (goalie interference 10/16 @FLA and 10/23 @ARI; offside 12/19 vs VGK, goalie interference 3/5 vs STL, goalie interference 3/27 vs TB) and 0-0-1 in games where challenges go the Isles' way (goalie interference 3/15 vs WSH)

Last Minute Heroes:

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

For: 5  (Noah Dobson 19:56 – 12/5/21 vs CHI; Isles lost in SO) (Brock Nelson 17:03 – 2/20/22 vs OTT; Isles lost in SO), (Anders Lee 18:01 – 3/15/22 @ WSH; Isles lost in SO), (Kyle Palmieri 17:16 – 3/17/22 vs. NYR -GWG), (Kyle Palmieri 19:45 – 4/8/22 @ CAR – GWG)

Vs:  2 (Eeli Tolvanen 19:48 – 12/9/21 vs NSH-GWG), (Shea Theodore 19:12 – 12/19/21 vs VGK; Isles lost in SO)

The Isles allowed a tying goal to CAR on 4/8/22 but scored the winner in the final seconds.

All-time Islander Leader Boards:

Games Played (skaters)

1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 *** 3. Josh Bailey 990…

9. Brent Sutter 694 *** 10. Matt Martin 682 *** 11. Brock Nelson 674 *** 12. John Tavares 669 *** 13. Casey Cizikas 660 … 

18. Kenny Jonsson 597 *** 19. Garry Howatt 596 *** 20. John Tonelli 594 *** 21. Anders Lee 593 *** 22. Cal Clutterbuck 587

Goals    

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

9. Bobby Nystrom 235 *** 10. Derek King 211 *** 11. Anders Lee 210 *** 12. John Tonelli 206 *** 13. Brock Nelson 204 *** 14 Billy Harris 184 *** 15. Josh Bailey 174

Assists

1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553 *** 4. Josh Bailey 377…

17. Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo 230 *** 19. Mathew Barzal 216 *** 20. Nick Leddy 198 *** 21. Pierre Turgeon 193 *** 22. Brock Nelson 182

Points

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

7. Pat LaFontaine 566 *** 8. Josh Bailey 551 *** 9. John Tonelli 544 *** 10. Bob Bourne 542 …

14. Billy Harris 443 *** 15. Brock Nelson 386 ***  16. Kyle Okposo and Stefan Persson 369 *** 18.  Anders Lee 363…

22. Ziggy Palffy 331 *** 23. Mathew Barzal 306

+/-

1. Bryan Trottier +467 *** 2. Denis Potvin +456 *** 3. Mike Bossy +380…

19. JP Parise +67 *** 20. Adam Pelech +60 *** 21. Jude Drouin +58 *** 22. Patrick Flatley +57 *** 23. Greg Gilbert +54 *** 24. Gord Lane +48  

Games Coached 

1. Al Arbour 1,500 *** 2. Jack Capuano 483 *** 3. Barry Trotz 285

 

Coaching Wins

1. Al Arbour 740 *** 2. Jack Capuano 227 *** 3. Barry Trotz 150

On the Farm

Despite dropping the regular season finale to Hartford on Saturday by a 3-2 score, Bridgeport is headed to the Calder Cup Playoffs!  The Isles went 10-5-2-0 in their last seventeen games and finished the regular season with a record of 31-30-7-4 . 

Chris Terry led the team with 30 goals and 61 points while Otto Koivula has a team-leading 35 helpers. Jakub Skurek went 16-15-4 in goal on the season while Cory Schneider is 14-11-4.

Bridgeport is off for a week before beginning the playoffs. They will be the 6th seed in their division and face either Providence or Springfield in a best-of-3 first round series.

Season Series Stats

Carolina wins the season series, 2 games to 1 (and 4 points to 2).

The Isles have won just one of their last seven games against Carolina. 

UP NEXT

TUESDAY, APRIL 26th  –ISLANDERS AT WASHINGTON 7:00 PM 

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

The Isles and Capitals still have one-half of their season series to play. and they will do so with a home-and-home set that begins in DC on Tuesday in the road finale.

The Caps blanked the Isles 2-0 at UBS Arena in mid-January and then got a shootout winner from Anthony Mantha to beat the Isles on March 15th. 

The Isles are 2-6-2 in their last 10 games against the Caps.

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

The Skinny: Buffalo 5, Isles 3

"The Skinny"      

By Eric Hornick

Game 78

Buffalo 5, Isles 3

Rasmus Dahlin and Tage Thompson scored in the first 4:05 of the second period to break a 1-1 tie as the Sabres defeated the Isles 5-3 before a crowd of 12,955 at KeyBank Center.

Noah Dobson and Kieffer Bellows scored 1:37 apart in the third period to get the Islanders within a goal but they could not get even as the Isles fell to 1-4-1 in their last six games. It's the first time since the 0-8-3 stretch in November/ December that the Isles (0-3-1) have gone at least four games without a win.

The Scoring:

1st Period

Casey Mittelstadt (5) Kyle Okposo (24), Casey Fitzgerald (6) 12:11 NYI 0,BUF 1

Mathew Barzal (15) Noah Dobson (35), Sebastian Aho (10) 17:09 NYI 1,BUF 1

2nd Period

Rasmus Dahlin (13) Jeff Skinner (29), Alex Tuch (26) 01:17 NYI 1,BUF 2 PPG

Tage Thompson (37) Jacob Bryson (9), Victor Olofsson (28) 04:05 NYI 1,BUF 3

Vinnie Hinostroza (13) Anders Bjork (3), Zemgus Girgensons (8) 12:48 NYI 1,BUF 4

3rd Period

Noah Dobson (12) Zach Parise (19), Zdeno Chara (12) 08:45 NYI 2,BUF 4

Kieffer Bellows (5) Ryan Pulock (15), Otto Koivula (2) 10:22 NYI 3,BUF 4

Jeff Skinner (33) Tage Thompson (30), Victor Olofsson (29) 12:40 NYI 3,BUF 5

The Skinny            

The Isles are 14-9-2 in their last 25 games …Noah Dobson recorded his second consecutive multi-point game and extended his point streak to three games. He now has 47 points; no Islander defenseman has had 50 points since 2008-09 when Mark Streit had 56… Dobson needs two points to become the youngest Islander defenseman since Denis Potvin to have at least 49 points in a season…Dobson is the first Islander defenseman in 13 years to score at least 12 goals…Kieffer Bellows scored for the first time since February 27 vs. Anaheim…Adam Pelech had sixteen penalty minutes, just two shy of his season total.  He had never had more than four penalty minutes in a game…Jeff Skinner picked up only his third misconduct penalty in his 851 game career… With 37 goals, Tage Thompson is youngest Sabre to do so since Thomas Vanek in 2006-07 (43 goals)…The Isles have been outscored 7-2 in the first period of the last six games and have allowed 34 goals in their last eight games (one of which was an Islander shutout)…The Sabres were not credited with a hit during the first period.

Battling the Big Boys

The Isles had faced three consecutive opponents who already had at least 100 points – it's only the third time that has ever happened; the Isles hosted opponents who already had at least 100 points in consecutive games for the first time in club history and will face a third (Carolina) on Sunday.  If Washington reaches 100 points before facing the Isles on April 28th the Isles will play their final five home games against opponents with at least 100 points (which would be only the second time in NHL history that has happened – Montreal did this in 1971-72).

Isles Team Leaders

Goals:  Nelson 36, Lee 26, Pageau 16

Assists: Barzal 40, Dobson 35, Bailey 27

Points:  Nelson 58, Barzal 54, Dobson 47

• Nelson will lead the Isles in goals for the third straight season, after Lee did so in the prior three seasons.

• Barzal is looking to lead the team in assists for the fourth time in five seasons (Nick Leddy did so last year)

• Nelson is looking to end Barzal's 4-year run as the club point leader; Mike Bossy is the only Islander to lead the team in scoring in at least five straight seasons.

Home is Where The Sorokin Is

Ilya Sorokin is 13-4-4 at UBS Arena, with a 2.01 GAA and a .933 save percentage. 

Since February 1st, he has been even better, going 7-1-2 in ten home starts (1.93 GAA, .942 save percentage) .

PK is More Than Okay

The Isles killed five of their six penalties; they have killed 40 of 45 (88.9%) over their last fourteen games and 79 of 90 in the last 28 games (87.8%).  At home they are even better, having killed 41 of 46 (89.1%) since the beginning of February.

And How About That Home PP?

Since the beginning of February, the Isles home PP has converted at a 32.9% rate (14-41).  Only Florida (19-50, 38.0%) has had a better home power play in that stretch.

Zach Attack

Zach Parise has 408 career goals, tying him for 95th place all-time with Patrik Elias and Ray Ferraro and, passing Marian Gaborik.  Ray Bourque has 410 goals and sits 94th.

All-Star Break Splits

The Islander offense has improved significantly since the All-Star break. The Isles scored 92 goals in 39 games before the break (2.4/gm) and have scored 122 in 39 games since the break (3.1gm).  

Forwards:

Before: 80-106-186 in 39 games (4.8/gm)

After:    106-127-233 in 39 games (6.0/gm)

Defense:

Before: 12-47-59 in 39 games (1.5/gm)

After:    16-76-92 in 39 games (2.4/gm)

Most Career Goals by an Islander Wearing #27

1. Derek King 211

2. Anders Lee 210 

3. John Tonelli 206

Most Shutouts In a Season

• 7 Ilya Sorokin 2021-22

• 7 Semyon Varlamov 2020-21 (56-game season)

• 7 Chico Resch 1975-76

• 6 Robin Lehner 2018-19

• 6 Jaroslav Halak 2014-15

Home and Road

The Isles are 35-33-10 overall; they are 19-14-5 at home and 16-19-5 on the road.

Buffalo is 31-38-11 overall; they are 16-18-6 at home and 15-20-5 on the road.

Home is Where the Fans Are

The Isles have played 38 home games and recorded 29 sellouts. The sellout crowds of 17,255 are the largest indoor crowds to ever see the Islanders play at home. 

Leader of the Pack

Barry Trotz has coached more games and recorded more victories than any other active coach. Trotz' NHL record is 912-669-60-167 in 1,808 games.

Most Coaching Wins

1. Scotty Bowman  1,244

2. Joel Quenneville  970

3. Barry Trotz    912

Most Games Coached

1. Scotty Bowman  2,141

2. Barry Trotz        1,808

3. Joel Quenneville 1,768

Sweet Lou

Lou Lamoriello has the second-highest win total for any general manager in NHL history:

1. David Poile 1,490  (pending game Saturday night)

2. Lou Lamoriello 1,361

3. Glen Sather 1,319

It All Starts at the Top

Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz have 2,273 wins between 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 28-9-6 when scoring first and are 7-24-4 when allowing the opening goal. 

The Shots

Isles    6-5-11=22

Buffalo 12-10-13=35

The Isles are 12-8-4 when they outshoot their opponents, 1-2-1 when the shots are even and 22-23-5 when they are outshot. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 88-59-18 when outshot.

In the Nets

Ilya Sorokin made 30 saves; he is 25-17-8 on the season and 3-2-1 vs  Buffalo.

Dustin Tokarski made 19 saves; he is 9-11-5 on the season and 3-0-0 vs. the Isles.   

Special Teams

The Isles were 0-2 on the power play (4:00);  Buffalo was 1-6 on the power play (11:42).

The Isles are 18-10-6 when they score at least one power play goal and 17-23-4 when they do not. The Isles are 7-15-5 when they allow at least one power play goal and 28-18-5 when they do not.

Three is (Usually) a Magic Number

The Isles are 30-11-4 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 5-22-6 when they do not. Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 117-20-15 when scoring three or more.

One-Goal Games

The Isles are 11-9-10 in games decided by a single goal including 8-9 in regulation. They are 1-4 in games decided in overtime and are 2-6 in shootouts. The Isles are 1-7 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game (including one game the Isles scored after allowing an empty-netter).

Back-to-Backs

Including today, the Isles are 9-7-1 in the front end and 6-9-1 in the back end. This back-to-back concludes on Sunday vs. Carolina.  The Isles will end the season with a back-to-back on April 28th vs. Washington and April 29th vs. Tampa Bay.

 

Under Barry Trotz, the Isles are 27-13-5 in back-ends. 

Matinee Isles

The Isles are 4-5-3 in matinees this season; the final matinee will be on Sunday at home vs. Carolina.

Ice-time Leaders

Isles: Ryan Pulock (23:32);  Buffalo: Rasmus Dahlin (24:05)

Mathew Barzal led Isles forwards with 18:29 of ice-time. 

Isles record by ice-time leaders: Adam Pelech (12-5-4), Noah Dobson (9-12-3), Ryan Pulock (7-6-2), Anthony Beauvillier (0-1-0), Mathew Barzal (0-0-1), Zdeno Chara (2-1-0), Sebastian Aho (0-1-0), Robin Salo (0-2-0), Scott Mayfield (0-3-0), Jean-Gabriel Pageau (0-2-0).

Face-offs

Isles 30, Buffalo 20 (60%)

Casey Cizikas won 12 of 16 for the Isles; no Sabre won more than he lost.

Hit Count

Isles 14 (Zdeno Chara and Otto Koivula -3)

Buffalo 5 (Five with 1)

Fights 

There were no fights. Season total: 22 (Martin 6, Chara 5, Johnston 4, Pageau 2, Mayfield 2, Wahlstrom 2, Bellows 1, Nelson 1, Palmieri 1)

 

Blocked Shots

Isles 10 (Three with 2)

Buffalo 10 (Owen Power -3)

For the Analytics Crowd 

Corsi: All situations: Isles 36, Buffalo 58

Corsi: 5-on-5: Isles 32, Buffalo 45

5-on-5 leaders:

Isles: Ryan Pulock +7

Buffalo: Rasmus Asplund +17

High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)

All situations: Isles 6, Buffalo 16

5-on-5: Isles 6, Buffalo 14

Scratches

(Cal Clutterbuck-INJ), (Scott Mayfield-INJ), (Anthony Beauvillier-INJ), (Jean-Gabriel Pageau-COVID Protocol)

Games Lost: 178 (127 to injuries and 51 to COVID protocol)

Zach Parise is the only Islander to have played in every game this season.

Challenges

Isles: 3 successful, 2 failures

Isles are 2-0-1 in games that they are successful (offside 1/18 @PHI, no goalie interference 2/22 @SEA, offside 3/15 @ WSH) and 0-2-0 in games that they are unsuccessful (no goalie interference 10/14 @CAR, no goalie interference 4/5 @DAL)

Opponents: 5 successful, 1 failure

The Isles are 2-2-1 in games where opponents' challenges go their way (goalie interference 10/16 @FLA and 10/23 @ARI; offside 12/19 vs VGK, goalie interference 3/5 vs STL, goalie interference 3/27 vs TB) and 0-0-1 in games where challenges go the Isles' way (goalie interference 3/15 vs WSH)

Last Minute Heroes:

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

For: 5  (Noah Dobson 19:56 – 12/5/21 vs CHI; Isles lost in SO) (Brock Nelson 17:03 – 2/20/22 vs OTT; Isles lost in SO), (Anders Lee 18:01 – 3/15/22 @ WSH; Isles lost in SO), (Kyle Palmieri 17:16 – 3/17/22 vs. NYR -GWG), (Kyle Palmieri 19:45 – 4/8/22 @ CAR – GWG)

Vs:  2 (Eeli Tolvanen 19:48 – 12/9/21 vs NSH-GWG), (Shea Theodore 19:12 – 12/19/21 vs VGK; Isles lost in SO)

The Isles allowed a tying goal to CAR on 4/8/22 but scored the winner in the final seconds.

All-time Islander Leader Boards:

Games Played (skaters)

1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 *** 3. Josh Bailey 989…

9. Brent Sutter 694 *** 10. Matt Martin 681 *** 11. Brock Nelson 673 *** 12. John Tavares 669 *** 13. Casey Cizikas 659 … 

18. Kenny Jonsson 597 *** 19. Garry Howatt 596 *** 20. John Tonelli 594 *** 21. Anders Lee 592 *** 22. Cal Clutterbuck 587

Goals    

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

9. Bobby Nystrom 235 *** 10. Derek King 211 *** 11. Anders Lee 210 *** 12. John Tonelli 206 *** 13. Brock Nelson 204 *** 14 Billy Harris 184 *** 15. Josh Bailey 174

Assists

1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553 *** 4. Josh Bailey 376…

17. Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo 230 *** 19. Mathew Barzal 216 *** 20. Nick Leddy 198 *** 21. Pierre Turgeon 193 *** 22. Brock Nelson 182

Points

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

7. Pat LaFontaine 566 *** 8. Josh Bailey 550 *** 9. John Tonelli 544 *** 10. Bob Bourne 542 …

14. Billy Harris 443 *** 15. Brock Nelson 386 ***  16. Kyle Okposo and Stefan Persson 369 *** 18.  Anders Lee 363…

22. Ziggy Palffy 331 *** 23. Mathew Barzal 306

+/-

1. Bryan Trottier +467 *** 2. Denis Potvin +456 *** 3. Mike Bossy +380…

19. JP Parise +67 *** 20. Adam Pelech +60 *** 21. Jude Drouin +58 *** 22. Patrick Flatley +57 *** 23. Greg Gilbert +54 *** 24. Gord Lane +48  

Games Coached 

1. Al Arbour 1,500 *** 2. Jack Capuano 483 *** 3. Barry Trotz 284

 

Coaching Wins

1. Al Arbour 740 *** 2. Jack Capuano 227 *** 3. Barry Trotz 150

On the Farm

Bridgeport is headed to the Calder Cup Playoffs!  Bridgeport clinched a spot last night by beating Springfield 4-2 and having both Hartford and Lehigh Valley lose their games. The Isles are 10-4-2-0 in their last sixteen games and 31-29-7-4 on the season heading into their season finale on Saturday night vs. Hartford. 

Chris Terry continues to lead the team with 30 goals and 59 points while Otto Koivula has a team-leading 35 helpers. Jakub Skurek is 16-14-4 in goal on the season while Cory Schneider is 14-11-4.

Season Series Stats

Buffalo wins the season series, 2 games to 1 (and 4 points to 2); the home team won all three games.

The Isles are winless in their last four games in Buffalo, which is their longest winless stretch there since going 0-4-1-1 in six trips between 1999 and 2001.

UP NEXT

SUNDAY, APRIL 24th  – CAROLINA AT ISLANDERS 1:00 PM 

[MSG+ (Pre-game at 12:30pm), WRHU 88.7 FM, WRCN 103.9FM, ESPN Radio]

The Isles return home to play their consecutive 100 point opponent at UBS Arena as the Carolina Hurricanes become the final opponent to finish UBS Arena.  The teams split a pair of games in Raleigh earlier this season. 

The Islander win on April 8th in Raleigh, coming on a late goal by Kyle Palmieri, was the Isles' first in the last six games against Carolina.

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